Design Thinking is the Wave of the Future

Design thinking is a relatively new topic I have enjoyed exploring in my Strategic Design and Innovation Fellowship. This way of thinking has allowed me to strengthen my creativity in the most practical way. In design culture the overall goal is to establish a well designed product, package, and logo that encompasses something a consumer will want to purchase. If this product or service is designed efficiently, the user will rarely even consider the design attributes of the product or service, and instead only look forward to coming back to buy more in the future!

Design thinking is more common today than ever before. As the designer of a product or package, it is important to keep in mind the customer experience from start to finish. One of the most common techniques for design thinking is the SCAMPER technique. SCAMPER - Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify/Magnify, Purpose, Eliminate, Rearrange/Reverse - is a great tool to help focus on the small changes once a design is already established. This way of thinking is a great way for companies to get ahead of their competitors and expand on their current product selection. Some of the best forms of innovation are discovered when former product design attributes are altered and the organization continues to innovate. In order to keep progressing product and packaging designs for a smoother customer experience, designers can use the letters of SCAMPER to analyze aspects of the original design.

Throughout my coursework this semester I have been able to apply design thinking in various ways. In the simplest form, adding a header and page number to a paper adds clarity for the reader and can even produce a better grade in the end. As a design enthusiast and former TA I can appreciate turning in a well designed and easily read report rather than a paper with different sized text, no header, and no clear order (yes these exist because I had to grade some of them!).

In addition to the final touches of a paper, I have also used design thinking for specific assignments. One assignment that stands out was when I was tasked to reconfigure a product for a specific persona. The persona I analyzed was my Grandma Ronnie. When interviewing her she discussed issues with her can opener. As a left-handed individual Ronnie pointed out that most appliances are designed for right-handed individuals. She proclaimed, “It’s not that I can’t use the product itself, it is just harder and more difficult for left-handed people”. In order to use her can opener, Ronnie must rely on her non-dominant hand to do the ‘heavy twisting’.

After some research, I found that companies do make left-handed specific appliances; however, this would not solve the problem entirely. My grandma can attest that when living with a family of mixed (right and left) dominant hands it becomes a frustration where ultimately one side loses. Unless a family was to buy two can-openers, they were stuck in a design-related situation where someone loses the ability to utilize an appliance.

When using design thinking, I was able to come up with a few different alternatives to this specific design-related issue. My two ideas involved an electronic version of a can-opener and a new ambidextrous can-opener design.

The electronic version of the can-opener is designed similarly to a Keurig machine. Akin to how a mug fits on the base, the electric can-opener will have a similar structure. However, instead of leaving a space for coffee to pour out, the retractable lid will meet the can with the blade. In order to accommodate most can-heights the lid will work on a pulley system fitting the tallest and smallest of cans. This easy to use layout will open your can with the push of a button.

Now if only it were that simple. With almost everything in life there are advantages and disadvantages. While this design will accommodate both right-handed and left-handed individuals, it does have disadvantages including: cost, need for power source, can-width restriction, and bulky “footprint” on an already crowded countertop.

The second design is a hand held appliance with a horizontal layout. The average can opener today works as a vertical layout, with a knob on the right and the blade on the left. This in-turn forces a left handed person to use their non-dominant hand to twist the knob. In the new horizontal design, I have created a dual handle approach with the blade in the middle. There is a strong base holding the gears and blade in place that will sit on top of the can. Both handles are available, depending on whether the individual is left-handed or right-handed. In order to keep the structure balanced both handles also include a lock feature so the user can use the non-dominant handle as a grip. It is recommended to do this on a countertop so the can will easily rotate to open. This design satisfies both left and right-handed individuals and will be convenient to a family where not everyone has the same dominant hand.

Although I believe both these alternatives would solve my Grandma’s frustration, the second design would be the most similar to what she is using now. This new design would solve her left hand problem, work for any guests that come over to cook, and ultimately make using a can opener that is much easier for her independent lifestyle.

Overall, design thinking is a skill that requires attention, creativity, and research. Even the smallest tweak of a product or service can boost a customer's satisfaction and open the product up to new target markets. In today’s innovative era, entrepreneurs are consistently brainstorming the next newest breakthrough; however, with design thinking that breakthrough could simply be adjusting what is already in front of us.