Design Thinking 101

Isn't design thinking just a new name for brainstorming? Isn't it just some kind of fairy dust that produces impractical ideas? The answers to these questions are no and no. Design thinking (DT) is a highly productive and practical methodology successful design leaders, product managers, and technical leaders use to generate innovative product ideas and facilitate strategic road-mapping efforts. Led by design pro Gretchen Anderson, this video covers the basics of DT. She takes you through a series of exercises that illustrate DT's techniques and benefits, providing you with a recipe you can use to get your team quickly started with the DT approach.

• Understand the origins of design thinking and why successful businesses value it
• Discover why design thinking is so effective at generating breakthrough ideas
• Pick up the ability to run effective design thinking sessions with cross-functional teams
• Learn how to explain design thinking's value and outcomes to your stakeholders
• Master the basic tools and techniques of design thinking

Gretchen Anderson is Director of Design for Pacific Gas & Electric, where she's chartered with bringing design thinking to this 110-year old utility to drive it toward greater efficiency and safety. A Harvard graduate, Gretchen has worked in product design, interaction design, user research, and UX design since 1995 for companies and clients such as GreatSchools.org, frog design, Cooper, Virgin Records, Starbucks, Johnson & Johnson, and more.