When it comes to building great products, design is the most important “feature.” We’ve moved into the stage where product design dominates — it’s what sets companies apart and gives a real edge over competitors.
A process at the highest level gives you an approach for breaking down a large project into manageable chunks. Architects, engineers, scientists, and other thinkers use the design process to solve a variety of problems.
1. Define the Problem
You can’t find a solution until you have a clear idea of what the problem is.
Some tools to help facilitate this step would be to use a Lean Canvas template to help shape the problem designers are asked to solve visually.
2. Collect Information
This step might include collecting sketches, taking photographs, and gathering data to start giving you inspiration.
Miro
Paper and Pen
Moodboards
3. Brainstorm and Analyze Ideas
Here is where you begin to sketch, make, and study so you can start to understand how all the data and information you've collected may impact the design.
Miro
Notes
Confluence
4. Develop Solutions
This is when you take your preliminary ideas and form multiple small-scale design solutions.
UXPin (or similar prototyping tool)
Design Systems
5. Gather Feedback
In this step, you present your ideas to as many people as possible: PMs, BAs, Engineers, SMEs, and any others you trust to give insightful comments.
UXPin (or similar prototyping tool)
6. Improve
And finally you reflect on all of the feedback and decide if or to what extent it should be incorporated. It is often helpful to take solutions back through the Design Process to refine and clarify them.
Confluence (Retrospectives)