The Field Guide to Human-Centered Design

"There's no better way to understand the hopes, desires, and aspirations of those you're designing for than by talking with them directly."

From the nonprofit design organisation IDEO.org, this resource shares the practice and promise of human-centered design (HCD) with the social sector. IDEO.org describes HCD as an approach to problem solving that is meant to "get you to learn directly from people, open yourself up to a breadth of creative possibilities, and then zero in on what's most desirable, feasible, and viable for the people you're designing for." IDEO.org and IDEO have used HCD to tackle an array of design challenges through projects ranging from social enterprises to communication campaigns to medical devices.

The resource covers 57 design methods, which offer a set of exercises and activities that will take you from framing up your design challenge to getting it to market. It also examines the seven key mindsets that underpin how and why IDEO.org believes design can change lives: Empathy, Optimism, Iteration, Creative Confidence, Making, Embracing Ambiguity, and Learning from Failure. It includes a full slate of worksheets and case studies from projects that show HCD in action.

The reader learns that, no matter what kind of design challenge presents itself, the person drawing on HCD will move through three main phases:

1. Inspiration - involves learning how to better understand people, observing their lives, hearing their hopes and desires, and getting smart on the challenge.
2. Ideation - involves making sense of everything that has been heard, generating new ideas, identifying opportunities for design, and testing and refining the solutions.
3. Implementation - involves bringing the solution to life: figuring out how to get the idea to market and how to maximise its impact in the world.

"By taking these three phases in turn, you'll build deep empathy with the communities and individuals you're designing for; you'll figure out how to turn what you've learned into a chance to design a new solution; and you'll build and test your ideas before finally putting them out into the world."