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The Human-Centered Design ProcessErica Stivison

This book was printed on Neenah Classic Crest Smooth 110 Cover paper in Solar White with an Epson Stylus Pro Inkjet printer.

Typeset in Garamond, Alternate Gothic, and Titling Gothic Compressed.

Designed and handcrafted by Erica Stivison.

R E F L E C TThe Human-Centered Design Process

THE OVERALL IDEA INCORPORATES DESIGN THINKING.

IT CAN HELP WITH PRESENT AND FUTURE PROJECTS.

USE THIS TOOL TO SOLVE A PROBLEM IN A CREATIVE WAY.

THE IDEA STEMS FROM TOOLS GENERATED WITHIN THE PRACTICE OF DESIGN.

THIS PROCESS IS ONE OF MANY SUCCESSFUL METHODS AVAILABLE.

As previously explored by big thinkers like Tim Brown of IDEO, Bruce Mau, Warren Berger and the d.school at Stanford University.

Emphasizes the examination of humans through needs, dreams and behaviors.

Even if this problem does not lay in a creative field.

All aspects of design are included in the origin of this process including, but not limited to, architecture, interior, graphic, motion and product.

Other methods include the Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA,) Subsector/Value Chain Analysis, and Triangulation.

This book serves as a documenting piece to describe the process of the the project you are standing in front of, which began in August 2011. Consider yourself a student in a class that comes without a predirected project, consider the following: How do you work? Remember that this class is about personal management of a self implemented project. You are your own boss and teacher. You are your main motivation. What you will be working on is inspired by what you are inspired by. Make it a good one and make it work.

EXPER IMENT

CHOOSE REF INE REFLECTHEARIDENT IFYS T AR T END

DISCUSS

START

I D E N T I F YDevelop EmpathyDevelop QuestionsCapture Themes

H E A RCollect StoriesIdentify ProblemsIdentify Strengths

E X P E R I M E N TDetermine StrategiesNarrow SolutionsMake ComparisonsPlay Out Solutions

C H O O S EDetermine GoalsState ObjectivesIdentify Big IdeasIdentify Patterns

D I S C U S SRequest FeedbackMeasure EffectivenessReflect on PlanAdjust if Necessary

R E F I N ERegroupDiscuss FindingsDevelop StandardsBuild Network

R E F L E C TReassessMove On

END

Discover y

Assessment

Imp lementat ion

P lann ing

P lann ing

Process Eva luat ion

Outcome Eva luat ion

F INAL DEVELOPED PROBLEM-SOLVING STRUCTURE

I D E N T I F YThe Project

IN IT IAL PHASEAfter compiling a list of inspirations, qualities of those inspirations and designing mini projects structured around those qualities, create a final project. This final project can stem from one of the preliminary projects, but do not have to. Do not design for the gallery space, but think of a project that can take an entire semester.

WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

THE F IRST IDEA D IDN’T GO ANYWHEREThe initial project I created for myself stemmed from the concept of collaboration. I wanted to study how people work together and make some sort of tool that will help with future collaborations.

“From all aspects, problem solving is merely understanding the root of the problem.”

MACR

OMI

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EDUCATIONAL CLASSROOM

BIOLOGY S.I. SESSION

DIGITAL LABS ON CAMPUS

ELITE UNIVERSITY

HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION

PHILANTHROPIC AGENCY

HOTEL MANAGEMENT

ARCHITECTURE FIRM

FREELANCE ARTIST

WHAT

Elementary school/Integrating after school programs with the curriculum

Get the most out of the after class study group

Making the lab the most efficient where students and employees function with minimal distraction

Think about learning environments

Restructure organization

Help grasp needs of people trying to serve

Rethink hospitality

How best meet client objectives

Best way to run an online shop

HOW REL ATE TO DES IGN TH INKING

WILL IAM ZEHNER, BUSINESS PROFESSOR

H E A ROut All Ideas

HOW DOES DES IGN TH INKING APPLY?

INTERVIEW WITH EDUCATION MAJORS

MAKING IT WORKIn order to make a clearer decision on a direction, I forced myself to go out and talk to people about what drives them. I wanted to find the key issue that gets them going, but most importantly, related on a macro scale that effects a wide range of people. Where I was aiming to go with this, I didn’t know. I did know that I liked to ask questions and encourage dialogue, as well as learn more from what drives people. These interviews became centralized on friends of mine, non-design related. These areas of dialogue ended up focusing on education, science and art.

RESEARCH PHASE

NEXT STEP : PROBLEM SOLVE

In the midst of the interviewing, note taking, and idea building, I discovered three sources about visualizing ways to do something. The three books include, VizAbility, by Kristina Hooper Woolsey, Scott Kim, and Gayle Curtis; Change by Design, by Tim Brown; and the Human-Centered Design Toolkit, by IDEO (a company founded on the idea of big picture, collaborative problem solving.) These sources sparked inspiration for ways of thinking about how to get things done. Methods of problem solving, thus, began my next area of focus.

After immersing myself in this new idea I discovered a plethora of pre-existing models for problem-solving that served much of the same purpose as what I was looking to create. My biggest challenge here was to analyze the pros and cons of each structure to make sure that what I created includes those qualities I desire and excludes those that are unnecessary. On top of simply finding pre-printed structures, I spoke with professors about sharing models of structures they used in differing areas such as in social work and business.

H E A R A N D D I S C U S SRelated Projects

UNIVERSALBUSINESSSOCIALPERSONAL

ENVIRONMENTCULTURESEEINGDRAWINGDIAGRAMMINGIMAGINING

DISCOVERYINTERPRETATIONIDEATIONEXPERIMENTATIONEVOLUTION

INSPIRATIONCONCEPTING COLLABORATIONEVALUATION

1.2.3.4.5.6.

1.2.3.4.5.

1.2.3.4.

1.2.3.4.

1.2.3.4.

1.2.3.4.5.

INSPIRATIONIDEATION IMPLEMENTATIONCONCLUSION

PROBLEMRESEARCHDEVELOPMENTIMPLEMENTATIONREFLECTION

EXAMPLES OF PROBLEM-SOLVING STRUCTURES

VISUAL EXAMPLES OF PROBLEM-SOLVING STRUCTURES

F IRST THOUGHT: PROJECT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

WHERE TO?

I wanted to make a system of coordinating platforms that stemmed from the ideas behind project managing. This multifaceted functioning entity would be collaborative, help the user manage time and tasks, as well as allow for feedback. Most importantly, the system as a whole would encourage new ways of making so that new and innovative ideas could be discovered as a way to solve problems, with an emphasis on this innovation.

Presented on the next spread is my initial attempt at the system’s manifestation in web form. Here was my attempt at project managing in an interactive application with room for micro and micro views of progress. Listed on the facing page are key values of the system that are important for me to incorporate.

E X P E R I M E N TWith Ideas

INTERACTIVE:Mobile Application

INTERACTIVE:Website

PRINT:Booklet

PRINT:Poster

WHERE SYSTEM COULD MANIFEST

MAKE SURE TO INCLUDE

C H O O S ECore Values

ROUGH EXECUTION OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN WEB FORM

R E F I N EIdeas

WILL IAM ZEHNER, BUSINESS PROFESSOR

“The fundamental questions to ask are, ‘What problem are we trying to solve? and ‘What decision are we trying to make?’”

D I S C U S S A N D R E F L E C TOn Outcomes

DIRECT FEEDBACK

A red flag was waved when I heard the words “site map” and “programming.” The general idea behind my initial project was still alive as I began to imagine what other form it could take place. If not in a standard form, than maybe if I honed in on the core of the concept, the technical, physical form would manifest itself.

FEEDBACK AND GENERAL CONSENSUS

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F INAL DEVELOPED MODEL

E X P E R I M E N T , C H O O S E , D I S C U S S A N D E X E C U T EFinal Project Plan

EXAMPLE OF PROBLEM SOLV ING IN GRAPHIC DES IGN

EXAMPLE OF PROBLEM SOLV ING IN EDUCATIONAfter losing sight of the motivation to create a website based piece, I aimed to create something I was a little more familiar with to help explain what I thought made most sense: problem solving. Without ideas for shape of this theoretical structure I started by pulling the core values into a massive layered structure of lines, images and text. Weeding through the mess I came up the presented examples of problem solving. This theoretically worked because everything fit and made sense and looked nice on the page, but the key word here is “theoretical.” I made each step of these examples fit into the pre-existing model I created. One aspect about myself I came to learn was how easy it was to think about doing something before I actually started making it. Nonetheless, I came up with what is presented on the facing page.

The presented examples in education refers to an elementary school implementing a new learning philosophy. The example in graphic design breaks down the process of creating a poster as a call for submissions for a creative arts journal on campus.

SEVERAL STEPS AT ONCE

THESE EXAMPLES

DETAIL FROM SAMPLE PROBLEM SOLV ING

MAX ENTRIES5 V I S U A L / 2 P R O S E / 3 P O E M S

F O R A P O T E N T I A L T O TA L O F 1 0 S U B M I S S I O N S

V O L 2 2 .

LITERARYS U B M I S S I O N S :

2 , 5 0 0 W O R D M A XB L A C K I N K & . D O C F O R M ATT I M E S N E W R O M A N , 1 2 p t .

SUBMISSIONSB Y D E C E M B E R 1 s t M U S T I N C L U D E :

Y O U R N A M E & N A M E O F W O R KG E N R E O F W O R K ( V I S U A L / P R O S E / P O E T R Y )

S M A L L P I C T U R E O F Y O UM A X 3 S E N T E N C E B I O

&VISUAL

S U B M I S S I O N S :

. J P G F O R M ATM A X 6 X 9 I N @ 3 0 0 D P I

S O R I N O A K @ S T E D W A R D S . E D U

F O R S U B M I S S I O N S & Q U E S T I O N S

SUBMITT O T H E

SORINO A KREVIEW

OPEN TOS T U D E N T S , F A C U LT Y & A L U M N I

2 0 1 1T H E S T . E D W A R D ' S L I T E R A R Y A N D C R E A T I V E A R T S J O U R N A L

DECEMBER

You’re off to a good start. You need a "lead in" in the top left corner. Drop 2011 down and knock it out of the blue. I think you should left justify the information copy. The little Vol. 22 is a nice touch.

WORDS OF WISDOM FROM DES IGN PROFESSORS

“Don’t be lazy. Don’t be timid. Go out into the world. Tell us what you need to know. Let people interact with your project.”

R E F L E C TOn How To Proceed

MOVING FORWARD

It was here that I hit a road block, again, and considered ditching the still-theoretical idea of the project-managing system as a whole. I was given the name of a book to discover, the task to talk to people, and the task of having someone actually use the structure to solve a problem. After interviewing, individual steps were refined and clarified.

GENERAL IDEA

WHAT DO YOU TAKE FROM THIS?Taking cues from data visualization and information architecture the Human-Centered Design Process spells out, visually, a way to do something. From project managing to creative consulting , this step-by-step process aims to encourage innovation. It is not a fixed structure. It may be changed and better adapted to how you best work. As of now, it is still a very conceptual, theoretical tool that exists only as a strategy.

As a way to develop a model for problem solving , I came to focus on my personal processes. It is rare that I look back on a project and reflect on how to improve in the future. With help from feedback and big ideators (one who shares ideas,) I was able to create something that was not only interesting to me, but nothing I could have expected to make. What I find fascinating is the amount of time I spent researching the topic. At one point during the class, a professor said, “I’m worried about your project. All I have been seeing up to now are sketches.” It was then that I had to motivate myself to start creating those large conceptual ideas I had inside.

I have learned to push myself to make. Self directed making encourages me to continue learning , honing my craft and developing my eye for design. Additionally, I have learned to let go. Now that this process is set up, room for delineation is already accounted for.

If I had any advice on how to proceed, it would be these design principles taken from contents of Glimmer by Warren Berger :

I would like to encourage you to test out this process and let these ten design principles inspire you.

ASK STUPID QUESTIONSJUMP FENCES MAKE HOPE VISIBLE GO DEEP WORK THE METAPHOR DESIGN WHAT YOU DO FACE CONSEQUENCESEMBRACE CONSTRAINTSDESIGN FOR EMERGENCEBEGIN ANYWHERE

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A big “Thank You” to everyone who helped me along in this project. Without these people, this project would not have developed into what it has become today. This includes, but is not limited to, Dr. Stacy Borasky, Clint Breslin, Maria Carrasco, Angela Dartt, Natalie Davis, Gwyn Della Croce, Leti Eades, Renee Fernandez, Paul Fucik, Daniel Lievens, Tuan Phan, Hayley Shaw, Margo Sivin, Dr. William Zehner II, and all of my graphic design classmates.

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