Understanding and acknowledging the different ways in which people think could be the key to unlocking maximum design brainpower on your team.

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How to Think Like a Designer 

For centuries, the smartest thinkers in the world have thought a lot about thinking, both in how we arrive at knowledge and the types of intelligence we use to gain it. While there are endless philosophical reasons to try and understand intelligence, there are as many practical reasons as well. Acquiring knowledge and applying it deftly to arrive at new, innovative ideas is critical to the design process. Certainly, when it comes to innovation, design and thinking go together. Designers require flexibility in thought patterns and the capacity to tap into their different types of intelligence to arrive at the best insights that inform the design of products, services and experiences.  
At frog, we regularly help teams and organizations use design methods to uncover insights about customer needs in collaborative work sessions. It’s very fulfilling and fascinating work, full of rewarding opportunities to flex our skills. But it can also be very mentally exhausting. This is because it requires energy to think very deeply about the design problem at hand, but also more broadly at the context around the problem and the systems that support it. It takes more energy still to creatively generate ideas that can be shaped into solutions.  
All this is to say that it helps to understand the different types of thinking involved in the design process. Not all design challenges will require the same types of thinking. Thinking like a designer simply means being flexible and adaptable enough to apply different types of intelligence as required. 
Dr. Robert J. Sternberg, an American psychologist and researcher, developed the <a class="Hyperlink SCXW55841956 BCX0" href="https://www.intelltheory.com/sternberg.shtml#:~:text=Sternberg's%20Triarchic%20Theory%20of%20(Successful,(Sternberg%2C%201988%2C%201997%2C" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Triarchic Theory of (Successful) Intelligence</a>, arguing that there are three types of intelligence. Below is a look at the three types of intelligence as he defines them, as well as how these intelligences manifest on design teams.

This is the ability to complete academic, problem-solving tasks—the kind that traditional IQ tests measure. These typically present neatly defined problems leading to a single correct answer. Throughout the design process, there are many opportunities to use this type of thinking to reduce friction in customer experience, solve technical problems and make strategic decisions.

Analytical

Also known as synthetic intelligence, this is the ability to draw on existing skills and expertise to deal with new and unusual situations. ‘Wrong’ answers are sometimes okay here, because they can often represent different perspectives. Creative intelligence is essential for innovative, disruptive thinking—the kind that unlocks unlimited opportunities for better design.

Creative

This is the ability to “roll with the punches”—to adapt to everyday life with the use of existing knowledge and skills. We use practical intelligence to assess a situation clearly, understand necessary steps to take and act accordingly. Practical intelligence enables design team members to stay flexible in the face of change, such as shifting program needs and logistical hurdles.

Practical

What is intelligence? 

<h4>What to Know about Knowledge </h4>
Now that it’s clear that different types of intelligence are in play throughout the design process, here are some considerations for how to apply this knowledge when forming design teams. 
First and foremost, knowledge takes perspective. It’s critical to pack your design team with a diverse group of people with different training, roles, ages, abilities and viewpoints. You want as much diversity of perspective as possible to arrive at the most meaningful, relevant insights. There are also more tactical benefits. Inviting a range of people to the table at opportune moments keeps people informed throughout, allowing all team members to act more strategically in their individual contributions. For example, at frog, we’ve seen great benefits to having different business domains represented in collaborative work sessions, from design to marketing, finance and IT.  
Secondly, intelligence requires the right conditions to thrive. To harness the brainpower of a team, people need the right climate to work in both from an environmental standpoint and on a <a href="https://go.frog.co/en/building-studio-culture-critique" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cultural level</a>. The act of generating ideas takes mental energy, and a vulnerability to express embryonic ideas with the rest of the team. It is important to safeguard this act. At frog, we aim to create mutually supportive environments where the majority of the team’s mental energy can go toward supporting the design challenge at hand—not feeling mired in thoughts related to unhealthy work dynamics, such as having to feel defensive of inputs or protective of ideas. It is important for team members to think freely, feeling supported by their colleagues and in a stable, secure environment for doing their best work.   
Finally, humans need a break from thinking to go experiencing. Have you ever been sitting at your desk, sipping coffee and staring at your computer screen when an insight gently knocked at your door, floated in and fully materialized at your desk? Probably not. More likely, a striking realization came to you once you left the comfort of your desk, took a walk, talked to people, busied yourself with an uncomplicated physical task, or allowed yourself to mentally relax and explore in some way. Inspiration can come from anywhere, but rarely while you’re sitting down waiting for it to arrive. You need to go look for it. Allow yourself and your team space to explore and process information away from the desk from as much as you can. 
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<h4>How to Learn More about Insights </h4>
From a team and organization standpoint, understanding how people think can inform how business functions and teams are structured, the tools used and processes in place. Through frog’s <a href="https://www.frog.co/services/org-activation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Org Activation</a> practice, we help companies form stronger teams that activate and organize around the customer to deliver continuous value over time.   
Understanding intelligence can also inform the scoping of projects, specifically related to synthesizing insights from design research. Insights are invaluable to the design process—they’re a way of demonstrating clarity around the design challenge and lead to stronger, more viable concepts to explore. To learn more about insights, read my previous piece on <a href="https://www.frog.co/designmind/is-your-design-insight-really-just-info" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the difference between insights and information</a>.  
For my guide to collaborating as a team to arrive at valuable insights, download <a href="https://go.frog.co/en-us/uncover_design_customer_insights" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to Uncover Valuable Design Insights: 3 Steps to Understanding the Unknown</a>. This guide is based upon the pioneering research, experiments and engagements in human dynamics which comprises the Synectics® body of knowledge. Synectics® is a registered trademark of <a href="https://synecticsworld.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Synecticsworld, Inc</a>.

Follow this three-step process for finding new possible meanings for design research observations—and to find the most relevant opportunities for innovation. 

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Cristóbal Perán

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Knowing why humans do what we do is not trivial, nor is understanding the world around us an easy feat. But gathering these insights is essential to the human-centered design process. 

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Is Your Design ‘Insight’ Really Just ‘Info’? 

Understanding the inner workings of the universe has obsessed scientists and philosophers alike for millennia. While many theories have emerged, what’s clear is that humans are at the center of any possible understanding. Wrote British author Alan Wilson Watts, “Through our eyes, the universe is perceiving itself. Through our ears, the universe is listening to its harmonies. We are the witnesses through which the universe becomes conscious of its glory, of its magnificence.” 
If we are the universe trying to understand itself, then how do we as humans understand ourselves, each other and the world around us? The answer is perception. I believe Irish philosopher George Berkeley put it best when he said, “The only things we perceive are our perceptions.” In other words, human consciousness is the matrix upon which the cosmos can be understood. 
As designers, we’re also specifically fond of understanding the inner nature of things: knowing how something works and why, the motivations behind different decisions. In fact, gaining this understanding is fundamental for being able to predict behaviors and to design for them accordingly. That’s why when conducting design research, we observe, ask questions, challenge processes and seek to form insights based on what we are perceiving with our own senses. These insights are critical — they inform the design of product and service <a href="https://www.frog.co/designmind/building-loyalty-customer-experience" target="_blank" rel="noopener">experiences</a>.
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<h4>What’s in an insight?</h4>
First, what is an ‘insight’ in this context? At frog, we define an insight as a penetrating discovery about the hidden motivations behind user, consumer and customer behaviors applied to unlock opportunities for innovation. The secret recipe to helping people and organizations thrive is combining the right mix of insights.
An insight, therefore, is not just information. Here’s a look at the difference:
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Gathering insights about human behaviors is at the core of how we design at frog. We have more than 50 years of experience fundamentally challenging the way businesses and industries operate, creating measurable value for our clients, end users and society-at-large by understanding — and reimagining — how people engage with the world around them.  
As we continue to move into the era of analytics, <a href="https://www.frog.co/designmind/cant-nice-things-or-can" target="_blank" rel="noopener">artificial intelligence</a>, machine learning, IoT and Big Data, our need to understand human behaviors will only intensify. These emerging technologies unlock all sorts of new behaviors and create new unmet needs in the process. Our job then as designers and innovators is to advance the human experience, which we can only do by first having a deep understanding of our current reality.

While not exhaustive, here’s a look at how and why gathering meaningful insights is essential to the design process. 

Basic human needs (shelter, food, love, etc.) never change. What changes is the contexts in which we operate. When we gather insights, we’re looking to articulate interactions and express challenges people face in their everyday lives.

Insights help teams uncover unmet needs. 

Successful concepts only work because people want and value them. This is an obvious but often overlooked fact. Having insights about how and why users engage in an experience and the friction they might experience helps inform more relevant, meaningful solutions.

Insights inspire new concepts, experiences and entirely new constructs.

<a href="https://www.frog.co/designmind/designing-the-business-of-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Changes</a> in any system — whether a changed law, a new fashion or a new technology — knock existing systems out of balance and create new needs. Expressing these changes as insights informs new opportunities.
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<h4>How good is your insight?</h4>
Of course, as I said earlier, not just any piece of information qualifies as an insight. Insights need to be tested. You may find even during the most collaborative research process that people get attached to their own discoveries, protective of the emotional connection between their perception and their insights. However, insights need to be objectively measured.  
For each supposed insight, ask yourself and your team: Does it resonate? Is it novel? Is it repeatable? Asking these sorts of questions is where a team with diverse viewpoints, training, backgrounds and skill sets can really strengthen decision-making.  
Because people do have the tendency to become emotionally attached to their insights, you will also need to create the right climate for <a href="https://www.frog.co/designmind/building-a-culture-of-collaboration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mutually supportive collaboration</a>. You want as much mental energy as possible from the team to be expended on supporting the vision, not protecting or defending their inputs. This requires the right mindset. It means being open-minded, but also creative, analytical, rational and critical — without being judgmental, biased or otherwise dismissive. 
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<h4>How committed are you to unlocking the potential of your insight?</h4>
Of course, interest in the universe is not enough. It takes perseverance, hard work and resources to hunt out the right insights. However, once applied to the design process, insights have unlimited power to inform the design of the world around us. 
At frog, we&#8217;ve learned a lot about capturing and applying design insights in design research, developed over decades <a href="https://www.frog.co/services/org-activation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">partnering with companies and organizations</a> to activate around the customer to deliver continuous value. We believe it&#8217;s a necessary part of the human-centered design process. 
To learn more, download the frog guide to collaborating as a team to arrive at valuable insights, called <a href="https://go.frog.co/en-us/uncover_design_customer_insights" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to Uncover Valuable Design Insights: 3 Steps to Understanding the Unknown</a>. This guide is based upon the pioneering research, experiments and engagements in human dynamics which comprises the Synectics® body of knowledge. Synectics® is a registered trademark of <a href="https://synecticsworld.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Synecticsworld, Inc</a>.

Insights lead to the identification of pain points caused by changing complexity.

What can insights do? 

Follow this three-step process for finding new possible meanings for design research observations—and to find the most relevant opportunities for innovation.

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A recent frog webinar shared why remote work matters now and looking into the future, as well as how companies can bring their teams together for creative, collaborative work sessions.

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9 Keys to Remote Collaboration

We are living in a historic moment. Elements of remote work that may have been only a small part of our business have become our everyday working reality. Even once we return to working in-person, the patterns we are setting today will transform the way we work moving forward. Now more than ever, we’ll need creativity and collaboration to succeed.
In this time of Coronavirus, we’ve shifted frog’s working tools to enable ongoing design at scale. We now have more than 60 programs running this way globally. We recently decided to host a webinar to share some of our experiences in working together even at a time of physical isolation.
During the webinar, we talked about collaboration and problem-solving in a remote context. We discussed the difference between an operational and creation mindset&#8211;and how both are necessary for a successful business. We also shared three collaboration methods often used in-person, which you can use remotely to good effect with commonly available online tools:
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<ul>
<li>‘Person in the Pit’ model to help you frame your session</li>
<li>‘Mental Excursion’ to help you keep a remote team engaged</li>
<li>‘Intrigue Selection’ to down-select with a growth mindset</li>
</ul>
In addition, we talked about how critical it is to establish a climate for your team that supports their creative performance. This is one in which everyone understands and supports the task they&#8217;re all after, everyone has each other’s back, and all believe they can find a solution. We then demonstrated how a team at frog recently used these tools and principles to solve a specific, pressing challenge many know all too well: working from home while helping children also “work” from home.
<a href="https://go.frog.co/en/en/remote-collaboration-problem-solving-webinar-recording">Watch the webinar recording</a> to hear the full discussion.

Throughout, attendees asked questions related to their biggest remote collaboration challenges. We received hundreds of compelling questions, on topics ranging from how to create the right remote work environment to how to manage team dynamics from a distance. There were far too many to go through during the webinar, but we still wanted to share a look at our responses to some of the key recurring question themes. 


Cris Perán (CP): Creativity is something we’re all born with. In fact, leading experts like <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&amp;v=iG9CE55wbtY&amp;feature=emb_logo">Ken Robinson</a> and multiple studies support that all of us are born creative geniuses, but at a certain moment in our lives, we learn that being creative can bring unwanted consequences. This happens specifically within our educational systems where we are taught there’s only one answer to every exam question.
As a result, learning to be creative is rather an unlearning process more than anything else. Often when we feel people are not being creative around us during a session, it’s actually our fault, not theirs. People may feel worried that they are being tested to come up with the right answer, rather than feel free to be creative. As a member of the team, it’s your job to ensure all feel safe to explore in this context. Working remotely is of absolutely no consequence to your team’s creative potential, but you will need to adapt your process to the circumstances.

How can I instill a creative mindset and culture while working remotely?

Turi McKinley (TM): I think of design as making-based problem-solving, so I throw quite a wide net around how that translates into the digital world. Digital tools let us get to know our users, synthesize that learning into actionable insights that drive rich concepting, and then help us iteratively refine those concepts into viable solutions. However, just like a post-it note in your team room, or a white board in a meeting room, it’s not the tool itself that is valuable. It’s about how the team uses those tools to make things happen.
So, what changes for a traditional design team? Let’s assume that ‘traditional’ here means a team working together in a team room, engaging in regular collaboration and crit sessions, directly sharing work, and (hopefully) frequently engaging with their users in the process of designing something and making it real. With that definition, the main change now is in leadership. For the team leader and the program manager, how you curate tools and direct the group to capture insights will have a big impact on the ease and speed of this work.
This will require more planning and preparation to make it go smoothly. In a physical space, it’s quite easy to move, re-sort, build understanding and share to a group using just post-its and markers. In the digital world, different tools fulfill different needs. Some, like Excel, are great for capture, but don’t help groups ‘see and feel’ emerging knowledge. That’s where digital canvas tools like Miro or Mural can bridge the gap. Teams can decide when to literally zoom out together to see the big picture of affinity groups, and when to dive into the details.

How do traditional design methods translate into a completely digital environment?

CP: Technology has evolved wonderfully during the last decades. The quality of audio and video communication improves with every blink of our eyes. New ways of remote collaboration have emerged, whether they are over “traditional” formats like word processing documents or presentations, or via digital canvas tools like Miro or Mural. The reality is that there’s a tool for mostly every task and for every team. We have found that when engaging people to participate, it ultimately boils down to ensuring they CAN contribute and that their contribution is VALUED. Of course, they will also want their effort to be MEANINGFUL, so showing you’re actually doing something with the content of the session is also crucial.

How can I better engage my team during a remote work session? 

CP: Someone told me something once about trust: It takes a lifetime to build and a second to destroy it. And right he was. Especially if you’re a lead member of the team, but also if not, you have to give trust to receive it. For people to believe you really value their contribution, you need to really value their contribution.
There’s not much you can do about what people think about themselves, but you can show them what you think of them. If you assume value on everybody’s contribution and give them credit and recognition for it, eventually everyone will feel good about contributing in your sessions. This is assuming there are no hidden agendas or underlying conflicts within the team, which unfortunately is not uncommon. For those cases, we have answers, too, but they need to be considered on a case-by-case basis.

How do I build trust and encourage team members to do their best work during remote work sessions?

TM: Someone who is resistant has likely already had a bad experience with digital or remote work. Perhaps they were frustrated finding necessary information or have felt embarrassed by their inexperience. Re-engaging them can take both empathy and patience. I’m a fan of one-to-one conversations in situations like this. I try to remember my own learning curve and frustrations with the tools (ask my colleagues how I feel about Slack). You may find that the resistant person is aware that these new ways of work are needed, and that sharing their experience with someone is enough to tip the balance towards engagement.
For both the new and resistant participants, my recommendation is to assign someone on your team to become an internal expert on each digital tool so they can be live ‘customer support’ as needed. For example, in a recent workshop with a new client in the broadcast space, we used a digital canvas tool that was new to many of us. Miguel, an interaction designer at frog, committed to really learning the tool, and it was lucky that he did. When the key stakeholder kept getting lost on the board, zooming way out, Miguel knew about a specific product feature, the ability to jump to another user’s cursor, that brought everyone quickly back to the area in focus for the topic at hand. It was an enormous help for the stakeholder, and it really eased the tensions among the client team (and our team, too.)
Our ability as designers to ‘think like a user’ needs to be turned to how we can help our colleagues become comfortable using these new tools—and in the process we’ll end up improving our own ability as well.

How can I better support colleagues and clients who are new or even resistant to remote work styles and tools?

CP: I’m sad to report a collaborative session will need your full attention…and so will your child (eventually). So, what can you do? Set firm time restrictions for the session, and find a way for your children to be occupied. Better if it is something they really like and makes them happy so they don’t feel on the losing end of the deal (Pokémon is quite high in my house’s chart right now). 
Once your session is complete, be clear with your team that you will be dedicating your full attention back to home responsibilities. Half running the session while half being with your children will make everyone wholly unhappy—probably you most of all.

How can working parents and caregivers manage a collaboration session from a busy home? 

TM: To be effective, design teams need tools to support two broad activities: (1) working together and (2) designing and delivering great experiences customers love.
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<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">For working together, we need video communication to let us see each other and share in real time. Collaboration and documentation tools provide us the ability to communicate asynchronously and structure our knowledge. In addition, program and project management software help us know where to focus next.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">When designing and delivering great experiences, we need remote design research and user validation to enable us to know and interact with our users. We need digital canvas tools to give teams a place to think visually and explore ideas, as well as collaborative design and delivery platforms to make things real.</li>
</ul>
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There are many tools to address these needs. Overall, frog is tool-agnostic, though we do offer <a href="https://go.frog.co/en/en/remote-ideation-problem-solving-workshop">a focused workshop</a> to help you define the remote collaboration tools and processes that will work best for your environment.

What tools and resources are available to support remote ways of working and designing?

CP: Think in terms of outcome, team, process and tools. And in that order. Otherwise, you might be running a session for the wrong reasons or modifying something without the right people involved. Not every problem even needs a remote session—some challenges can be solved over email.

What practical, actionable advice can I use to conduct better remote collaboration sessions? 

TM: Kara Pecknold, Design Director at frog Munich, wrote a great piece for <a href="https://thenextweb.com/growth-quarters/2020/04/24/innovative-leaders-must-practice-radical-empathy-especially-in-times-of-isolation/">The Next Web</a> all about why leaders need to practice radical empathy during this time. In her article, she cites an example of how the frog team eased anxieties while collaborating remotely with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF; AKA Doctors without Borders). In addition, Matteo Penzo, Executive Director at frog Milan, recently gave a fully remote presentation on <a href="https://go.frog.co/en/en/remote-ideation-problem-solving-workshop">digital product delivery</a>.  
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<h6>What&#8217;s Next?</h6>
If you and your team are ready to come together with frog experts to solve real, pressing problems within your organization, we’re ready to help. Find out more about <a href="https://go.frog.co/en/en/remote-ideation-problem-solving-workshop">frog-led remote training workshops and strategic problem-solving sessions</a>. We also invite you to learn more about frog’s <a href="https://www.frog.co/services/org-activation">Org Activation</a> practice, a service that helps unleash the human potential in organizations.

What are some examples and frog case studies that relate to this style of remote collaboration? 

Your 9 Key Questions Answered

Turi McKinley

Albert Dang

Turi McKinley focuses on developing frog’s design research, participatory design and creative collaboration skills. She partners closely with companies seeking to develop new skillsets and capabilities for user centered design and innovation.

Cris has led innovation and R&amp;D teams for over 20 years, specializing In creative problem solving, as well as the development and launch of new products and services. His expertise involves setting up innovation models for businesses and organizations, fostering company culture, insight-led product and service design, and running inventive problem-solving projects.

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