Chapter 1 — Design Thinking Background
- Definition of Design Thinking
- Business uses of Design Thinking
- Variety within the Design Thinking discipline
- Design Thinking mindset
Chapter 2 — Fundamental Concepts
- Empathy
- Ethnography
- Divergent thinking
- Convergent thinking
- Visual thinking
- Assumption testing
- Prototyping
- Time for learning and validation
Chapter 2 — Design Thinking Resources
- People
- Place
- Materials
- Organizational fit
Chapter 2 — Design Thinking Processes
- The existence of numerous approaches
- The Double Diamond process
- The Stanford d.School 5-Stage process
- The Designing for Growth process
- The role of project management
Chapter 3 — Designing for Growth Process Stages
- What Is
- What If
- What Wows
- What Works
Chapter 3 — Design Thinking Tools and Methods
- Visualization
- Journey mapping
- Value chain analysis
- Mind mapping
- Brainstorming
- Concept development
- Assumption testing
- Rapid prototyping
- Customer co-creation
- Learning launch
Chapter 3 — Design Thinking Application
- Applying Design Thinking to product development
Learning Outcomes
- Explain the Design Thinking approach to solving problems
- Apply Design Thinking approaches and tools to a variety of challenges and problems
- Participate positively in collaborative ideation and evaluation
- Compare different process models such as the Double Diamond, Stanford d.School, and Designing for Growth
- Test assumptions and accelerate learning through rapid prototyping
Target Audience
Relevant for the following roles:
- Anyone who wants to understand the theory of Design Thinking and apply this human-centered approach to create real business value
- Product managers, business analysts, marketing professionals
- Innovation and strategy teams
- UX/UI designers, service designers
- Testers and software developers
Prerequisites
There is no formal prerequisite.
Course Duration: 2 days

This certification provides comprehensive knowledge of the theory and practice of Design Thinking — a collaborative, innovation-seeking approach to problem solving that uses a designer’s mindset to solve business challenges. It covers core concepts such as user/human-centered design, empathy, prototyping, and iteration, along with different Design Thinking process models including the Double Diamond, the Stanford d.School 5-Stage approach, and Designing for Growth. It is one of the mandatory modules of the A4Q Certified Service Designer certification scheme.

