How do you define and frame your innovation challenge based on user insights?

It's so important to frame your questions in a way to get deeper insights. For example, if I go to a group of employees and ask them: "What do you want more of?" I'm likely to hear better pay and more time off, which is certainly a start, but can be limiting. However, if I ask them to tell me about their best day at work, I get a story from which I can extract key themes and attributes to better design their experience at work.

Engage your users and regularly seek their feedback. This should be done regularly to maximize customer-focused solutions. This is where you can truly differentiate from competitors.

To define and frame an innovation challenge based on user insights, I analyze user feedback, behavior data, and market trends to identify areas for improvement or unmet needs. For example, after conducting user interviews and analyzing customer feedback for a meal delivery service, I identified a recurring pain point: customers desired more customization options for their meals. Based on this insight, I framed the innovation challenge as "How might we provide personalized meal customization options to enhance customer satisfaction?" This focused our efforts on developing solutions that directly addressed user needs and preferences.

Las entrevistas a profundidad, dada su naturaleza exhaustiva, demandan un tiempo considerable (como otros métodos de investigación cualitativos). Esta extensión temporal limita la cantidad de entrevistados que podemos abordar. Por tanto, la selección de estos participantes debe ser estratégica e intencional: debemos garantizar que nuestra muestra sea representativa, asegurando la diversidad de nuestros usuarios. Además, es importante también considerar a nuestros usuarios extremos, ya que esto nos permite comprender de manera más completa las necesidades y experiencias de una amplia gama de personas, lo que nos lleva a crear soluciones más inclusivas y efectivas.

Initially the idea is to give the user a free space for any ideas or feelings that the person has on his/her mind and share mostly in an unstructured way. As a Design Thinker, we need to assume that everything is possible and tangible at least during the ideation stage. Do not block or limit your user ideas, even the crazy ones. Then from there, you start to frame the possibilities, what is possible to make it happen with the asset you have at your hand, and drop the ones that are simple impossible to make it done.

We synthesize user findings based on Empathy Map: 1. Think / Feel: What does the user think about or have concerns with the topic? 2. See: What does the user envision about the topic? 3. Hear: What influences / advice does the user have regarding the topic? 4. Say / Do: What might the user say or behave regarding the topic? 5. Gain / Pain: What are the key pain points or delighters regarding the topic? Based on the Empathy Map, we determine which insights are most critical and impactful for addressing user needs on the topic. We then frame the innovation challenge based on the most pressing user needs and opportunities identified using HMW statements.

Without finding new insights or validating assumptions, you cannot move on to the next stage. So make sense of the data, organize into themes, and make sure to prioritize which problems / insights are worth solving before framing the challenge.

Synthesizing your user research findings is crucial. Use personas, journey maps, empathy maps, or affinity diagrams to visualize and organize data, creating a shared understanding of your users. These tools highlight opportunities and gaps in their current situation. How do you leverage these tools to ensure your team has a unified understanding of user insights and can effectively address identified gaps?

There are few methods when it comes to synthesizing the findings. It varies with different types of Design Work. For a Process, System or Service Design, we need to look for the leverage points in the process, system or service and then we need to frame those insights into a HMW Question. For Product Design it's a bit Exhausting as there are a lot of Attributes that matter. Synthesizing all those attributes into a Need Statements are crucial. Those Needs Statements are then organized, clustered and prioritized. It's put into Primary, Secondary and Latent Needs which are also given ratings to work on.

Reframing the problem using the How Might We or HMW Question works like a charm. But it's not that easy as we might be framing it wrongly. A thorough discussion with the team in ensuring the direction of the question is done well. Selecting the right conditions that scopes the problem frame is crucial and that can be found from the Secondary Needs and Latent Needs of the Users. So it's crucial to conduct enough observation and interviews in order to be able to come up with the insights which can guide the Framing process.

"How might we" (HMW) statements have great power and as we all know that comes with great responsibility. There is a temptation to use HMW's to thinly veil a predetermined solution outcome. Avoid the trap of making them too specific as to the problem solution as that will limit creativity and innovation. Another helpful addition to HMW problem statements is to add the extra phrase of "...so that" or "...in order to" as this will provide more hints about the true jobs-to-be-done value for the user. Eg. "How might we help busy parents prepare healthy meals for their kids SO THAT food battles at dinner time are minimized?"

Defining a problem statement through the lens of "How might we..." has been a game-changer in my approach to technology management and software development. It transforms challenges into opportunities for innovation, focusing on user needs rather than preconceived solutions. This strategy encourages my teams to think creatively and user-centrically, leading to more impactful and meaningful solutions. For instance, asking, "How might we make our app more accessible for visually impaired users?" led to the development of features that significantly improved user experience and product value. It's a testament to how a well-framed problem statement, rooted in user insights, can guide and inspire the innovation process.

How to define the problem 1. Before defining the problem, you got to find out what is the current vs ideal state of the users in this context? 2. Then find out the steps to get to the ideal state. 3. Which steps are they having a hard time to accomplish? 4. How much does the problem cost them? How frequent? When does it happen? How does it happen? Who else are affected by the problem? 5. Quantify the problem. Eg. Late for submission by 3 days on average. Eg. Burn $30 for every purchase made. 6. What alternatives are they using to solve the problems?

Encourage the team to think in creative and unconventional ways. The "how might we (HMW)" statement could invoke emotion/sentiments (ie: how might we capture the feeling of [enter emotion!!] with our product/design/service?" Thinking about users feeling can both inspire innovation and empathy in new ways.

ALIGNING INNOVATION TO STRATEGY AND USER NEEDS IS ESSENTIAL TO WIN BUY-IN from top management, I learned as facilitator of 100+ innovation projects.. The BEST PRACTICE in the proven FORTH INNOVATION METHOD, is to draft with top management before the start an INNOVATION ASSIGNMENT. How? When you answer together with your stakeholders the following questions you get a clear picture of what innovation has got to deliver: 1. Why do we need to innovate? 2. What are we looking for? 3. Who is the target group? 4. When do we want to launch it? 5. Where: in which countries? Or regions? 6. Which (financial) criteria the new offering has to meet? In this way everyone has clear expectations of the deliverables of the innovation expedition.

Narrow down the scope of your challenge to focus on the most critical aspects. Avoid broad or vague challenges; instead, hone in on a manageable and impactful area. ???? Balance Specificity and Openness: Define the scope of the challenge to provide direction without stifling creativity. ???? Focus on Outcomes: Focus on the desired outcomes rather than specific solutions. What do you want to achieve with this challenge? ???? Consider Constraints: Identify any relevant constraints, such as budget, technical limitations, or regulatory requirements. However, don't be overly restrictive.

The journey to defining and framing innovation challenges is as much about intuition as it is about process. 1. It starts with stepping into others' lives, feeling what they feel, and uncovering insights beyond words. Synthesizing these insights becomes a creative act, blending intuition and analysis to form a coherent vision. 2. Crafting the problem statement is like painting with questions, opening doors to new possibilities with each stroke. 3. Refining our focus requires a delicate balance, aligning our creative ambitions with practical realities.

Here is where we need to look at the insights and discuss which are the leverage points that we need to work with. Bringing back the Design Brief and scoping on the Parts Of the Problem and also the Direction we are working on in the Design Work is important. We should not get too complicated using all the tools written in this article. Those tools might complicate things further or at times create cognitive bias. Bring the team or stakeholders together in defining the leverage points required.

Refining your scope is essential to focus on the most important and feasible aspects of your problem statement. Utilize tools like the Value Proposition Canvas, Lean Canvas, or Business Model Canvas to map out key elements such as target segments, value proposition, channels, revenue streams, and cost structure. This alignment helps test assumptions and ensure your problem statement matches your business goals and resources. How do you prioritize the key elements of your innovation challenge to ensure alignment with your business goals?

In my experience, communicating an innovation challenge is all about clarity and connection. Use an elevator pitch for quick, compelling intros, and to lay out the problem you are solving for; the journey map and personas for illustrating user journeys; and a pitch deck for deep dives backed by data, and to get your CFO on-board. Frame your challenge through the lens of human-centered design: "How might we make our app a daily joy for users?" not just "increase engagement." Open the floor for feedback—this is about dialogue, not monologue. Your challenge should be the North Star that aligns your team and stakeholders, putting human experience at the core. Get this right, and the numbers will follow. You must be able to be a story teller!

- Simplify Communication: Explain challenges so a 5-year-old can understand. This enhances clarity and focus. - Use in Various Formats: Apply this in elevator pitches, storyboarding, pitch decks, etc. This helps identify the opportunity gaps and also helps with positioning the problem.

A crucial part of the whole problem framing, is how you concise all the information collected and them summarise in a nice simple storyline to your audience, with the utmost goal to get an approval from your sponsors, but also important, from the people who are going to build and the people who are going to use at the end. Delivering a project where only the leaders are satisfied is just half way, the bigger outcome comes when you are able, through the Design Thinking, to satisfy most of the parts involved.

Clearly articulate the innovation challenge to your team and stakeholders. Ensure everyone understands the user insights, the problem statement, and the defined scope to align efforts and foster collaborative problem-solving. ?? Clear and Concise: Communicate your challenge in a clear, concise, and engaging way. Use simple language and avoid technical jargon. ?? Visual Appeal: Consider incorporating visuals like infographics or videos to enhance understanding and capture attention. ?? Multiple Channels: Promote your challenge across various channels frequented by your target audience. This could include social media, your website, or industry publications.

Communicating with the intention of collaborating to solve and innovate is the mindset we need to establish. Here is where we get the key people to be involved in understanding the scope and the Direction of the Innovation. Being Honest, Open and Transparent about the insights and opinions are crucial. We need to communicate on a mutual agreement on what is needed in the Innovation.

Gentle reminder is to keep asking powerful open ended question/statements like "how might we..." and when the conversation is in motion work on incorporating (yes/and) especially when the conversation is not your favorite. In my experiences persons will speak when they feel safe.

We all know that HMW (how might we...) construct is a great way to frame a well-articulated problem statement in design thinking. But to get there, we first need to turn on our long-lost CURIOSITY, wear an INQUIRY mindset and have relentless PERSEVERANCE to find the truth, leading us to great insights. Here are some key attitudes and behaviors needed in our journey to framing a great LEADING QUESTION: challenge status quo, think beyond lean (do more with less), proactively seeking gaps, be child-like curious (5 WHYs), listen to learn, not respond find blind spots in human experiences, break patterns of thinking. -> The art of 'asking an insightful question' is a critical skill in the age of chatGPT. Garbage in, garbage out :)

Please include your key stakeholders, like management, early in the decision-making process. This will increase their commitment to implementing the process outcome.