Diary of a reluctant remote Design Sprint Facilitator

The first picture is what my job used to look like. Co-creating with our clients over 4 days to create an app prototype, investment case pitch deck and customer centric advertorial video. The next two show a snippet of my job in the “new normal”.

The last 6 months before the COVID-19 lockdown saw me deliver 10 Design Sprints across Bangkok, Sydney, Perth, Dubai, Nairobi, Auckland and Lagos.

There is nothing quite like the rush from getting a team of people into the same room and creating an environment enabling laser focus over 4 straight days. At the end of it you all feel like you have achieved the impossible. Clients are blown away by the output, more-so by a new found sense of belief in their own abilities and the “culture hacks”, which they have learnt and are able to take back to their day to day jobs.

You can imagine the “eye rolling” which ensued when I knew that I would have to switch to remote work until we would be allowed to travel again. So many questions crossed my mind?

• Would there still be a demand for my work?
• Would our clients want to do remote delivery?
• For clients who wanted remote delivery but lived in countries with poor technology communications infrastructure, would remote even be an option?
• What would the impact on pricing be? Would clients want a lower price for remote?
• How do we pivot our business model for remote and get our people ready for this mind shift change?
• And many more questions than a beach has sand 

Now that the dust has settled and I’ve delivered several remote Design Springs which included one for a major European Retailer and a Tech Giant looking to enter the world of InsureTech, I’ve got the battle scars but also a new found belief that there in chaos there is a ladder to a world of happy possibilities.

Here are a few short answers to some of the questions which I’ve asked myself:

• Would there still be a demand for my work?

ANSWER: A resounding yes! I compare the current state of Design Sprints to where the Agile community was 5 years ago. It’s still a mysterious art in large parts of the world. Having learnt how to replicate face to face delivery in the virtual world will allow you to reach a world where geographically spread out attendees across different time zones is an opportunity and not a limitation.

• Would our clients want to do remote delivery?

ANSWER: Yes! COVID-19 hasn’t meant that our clients have stopped innovating. The virus has done more for Digital Transformation than most CIO’s and CEO’s ever have or had the courage to take on. Right now clients are looking for new ways to innovate in a world were organisations have had to make huge leaps forward, creating a situation where the gap between competitors has closed rapidly.

• For clients who wanted remote delivery but lived in countries with poor technology communications infrastructure, would remote even be an option?

ANSWER: It is, but you need to tailor your approach to unique client situations. A one size fits all approach to delivering Design Sprints will not work in the remote world. You need to create a lean version of your usual agenda in order to compete in the “attention economy” and maximise engagement. You need to do a lot of pre-work so you can hit the ground running on day 1 and still create magic in 4 days. You need to master when to work with the client online and what exercises to complete offline. There is a lot to talk about here but more on this at another time.

• What would the impact on pricing be? Would clients want a lower price for remote?

ANSWER: New clients will always rightfully ask the question. The key here is that the value and quality of our outputs has not changed so we have not had to change our pricing. In addition we found that we needed more resources for remote delivery than we did in face to face engagements.

• How do we pivot our business model for remote and get our people ready for this mind shift change?

ANSWER: It’s daunting. It requires strong Leadership to realise that this change can’t be treated as a part time project. You need to create a dedicated team who will work on turning the vision of remote delivery into a possibility. You need people to own and deliver the following work streams:

• Tools and Technology: How might we use technology to replicate our face to face engagements? Pro tip: you need plan A, B and C. What works for one client or in one country may not work for another
• Process and Execution: How might we create an experience which allows us to deliver outputs of the same quality as face to face engagements? This includes pre-sprint, during sprint and post sprint processes. This includes design of Miro/ Mural boards, Zoom backgrounds, checklists, etc.
• Collateral: How might we create media to build credibility in our ability to deliver remotely? You need documentation, videos and other material which allow your sales team to get up to speed with how to position the offering. You need collateral to show your clients the value of remote delivery. You need training guides and other interventions to get your whole delivery team and client team proficient with a new way of working in record time.

The learnings are too many to share in a single post so I will split these up and share as my remote Design Sprint journey. Pro tip: You are not alone! There is so much great content out there from the likes of AJ& Smart, Sandy Lam and Robert Skrobe.

Until I pen my next diary entry, I leave you with the following quote, dedicated to everyone trying to establish a new normal amidst the pandemic:

“When a defining moment comes along, you define the moment or the moment defines you.” Roy McAvoy, played by Kevin Costner. Tin Cup, 1996