Design Thinking at Work

More than ever, executives seek creativity and innovation from their teams. Their greatest hope that their teams will discover a disruptive breakthrough that can dominate their industries. Their greatest fear is to find themselves on the wrong end of disruption. David Dunne, a foremost expert in the field, explains the advantages of design thinking: advance warning of future disruption, a stream of incremental improvements to existing products and even game-changing innovation. But, he warns, design thinking works only if you understand it well and apply it with patience. Unlike many authors who extol the wonders of design and creativity, Dunne doesn’t cheerlead. He offers a sober assessment, including the common mistakes leaders make and the ongoing difficulty of making true design thinking succeed and endure in organizations. Leaders should embrace this slim volume, including the high-level steps they must take to overcome the common pitfalls that undermine design thinking initiatives.