Design It: A Reflective Report on a Design Thinking Workshop

This reflective report covers a design thinking workshop that discusses topics such as design thinking theories, problem-solving, value chain analysis, and more. It emphasizes the importance of creativity and innovation in problem-solving and provides insights on how to approach problems effectively. The report also touches on ethics and technology and their role in personal and professional development.

Running Head: DESIGN IT 0
Design it
Reflective report
Student name
10/1/2018

Design it 1
Contents
Reflective Report.........................................................................................................................................2
References...................................................................................................................................................2

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Reflective Report
I had a best experience of my life from all modules of that workshop. I really enjoyed it and
learnt many helpful things form that workshop. It was interesting at the learning point of view
as a student as well as professional person. It was based on the design thinking and it was
related developing prototypes for different products that were used in our assignment.
I missed first class of design it module. In second class, I set myself for full attention for
learning from teacher and activities held on in that module. Reyaz Jeffrey was my lecturer for
that module. Lecturer made some plan of gifting some cash vouchers for few lucky students,
who are not missing classes and on time in the classes (Asheim, 2007). Design thinking and
process management was the topic of this week module. I learnt a lot about design thinking
from that week. Design thinking is a process in which you can create your ideas and convert
them in an innovation for solving a problem. It was not like designing work (Brown & Wyatt,
2010).
Design thinking was an approach of creative thinking for the positive impact in the front of
society. From design thinking, you introduced innovation for solving commercial as well as
social problems (Drucker, 2014). We had an activity in that module, which was based on the
video of ‘shopping card design thinking project’. There was some questionnaire also, which was
related to that video. Lecturer assigned some assignment, one was poster designing. We were
also showed few of the posters of previous class students (Hobcraft, 2017). It was totally based
on the idea of creativity and relativity. Both are required for designing of the poster, which was
our next assignment given by lecturer. I learnt about design and business with the help of
design thinking tools. I also study about some innovation stories for getting more knowledge
about the innovation (Kuratko, 2005). I found many differences between business and design in
different perspectives, such as methods, processes, values, levels of focus, and understand. We
learned that, what is innovation and what is not an innovation in that module (Martin, 2009).
Design thinking was not always creative, drawing, fashion, painting, and sculpting. Innovation

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was just like providing techniques of thinking that critical problem solving approach (Liedtka,
Ogilvie, & Brozenske, 2014).
In third week module, we learned about design thinking theories, and revised last week
topics. I learnt about many theories of design thinking, such as logic of reasoning, learning
theories and co-creation, action research, philosophical worldview, divergent, and convergent
(Rowe, 1991). I learnt so many things from those theories, which are providing a solution for a
particular problem, such as logical reasoning be used for mathematical measurements and
statements to fount out a conclusion of a given problem. There are three parts of reasoning,
which are inductive, adductive, and deductive reasoning. Where divergent and convergent
thinking provides reality about the problem and develop new solution for the problem. Action
research was a process in which experimentation was done on the problem multiple times for
finding the solution of that problem. I also learnt that process of creative learning provides
reflection, and imagination (Calderhead, 1989). Co-creation theory was based on customer’s
requirements. Product should have changes according to the needs of customers. In this
module, all the group members enjoyed a poster-making activity. It was awesome for me and it
helped me a lot for my project design process. In the end of the module, lecturer gave an
introduction about blogs and reflective writing with importance of timely blogging. I also learnt
about reflection in that module (Ortlipp, 2008). Reflection provides a brief idea about what
happened in the fast and it will be used as an experience for learning. I was start blogging and it
was awesome for remembering things, which are done by me in the past, and how they are
useful for my future use. We also learned about reflective writing, it is a formal and organized
way for written about your learning’s from your experience. It was all about you only. Reflective
writing is used for many purposes, such as blogging, academic work, career deployment,
decision-making, and personal development. There were good examples taken by the lecturer,
which was from Hollywood movie ‘Harry Potter’. In which professor Dumbledore had memories
and he used those memories as a reflection for taking decision. Blogs are short and structured
entries according to the reflection template, but reflective report have a formal structure, and it
was written towards the end of modules. Blogs are the reflective part of each individual activity,
but reflective report was reflecting on the complete experience of particular workshops.

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Reflective reports are the learning in terms of knowledge and personal development. For a
better reflective report writing, regularly writing reflective blogs based on modules (de Andrés
Martínez, 2012). Those will help you to analyze the overall experience.
In the fourth week of that workshop, our topic was design problems. That workshop was
based on learning process through solving a particular problem. It involved many things, such as
problem solving, identifying problem, visualization, and persona. I learnt about problems from
that module. There are so many ways to solving a problem but something effective is very
necessary to found a better solution of a problem. We revised many concepts for finding
solution of a problem, such as experimentation, observation, prototyping, and visualization. I
was always active for the learning process after that process of problem solving. After that
workshop, I was always had a mindset for solving a particular problem. We learned a lot from
that workshop and it was providing many thoughts related to problem. First found the solution
of a problem but always remember the process of by which you got the solution. I also enjoyed
the group discussion on the topic ‘Spotting the Obvious’ using pictures on the topic ‘A day at
the Beach’. That activity was so beneficial for brought a new vision for the students. I found
that pictures are better rather than text and visual aids for understanding about possibilities
and realities. In next session of that module, I learnt about Persona of design thinking (Dorst,
2011). It was a tool to understand the requirement of stakeholder. I also learnt that it was
depending on your persona to find out their own identity. For increasing understanding with
customers, you an idea to get about like, dislikes, needs, characteristics, behavior, and desires
of customers.
In fifth week module, we continued the topic design problems. I learnt many things, which
are related to personal and knowledge development. We learned about group formation and it
was a tough work to forming a team for a particular task. In this week, we discussed about last
taught class, which was on design thinking, brain mapping, and mind mapping. Brain storming
rules were to say always yes to all in the front of you. Always, thought about new ideas with
innovative thinking for problem. I enjoyed the activity in which generate some innovative ideas
(Nelson, 2013). I chose the problem, which was related to the vehicle. Problem was that when

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someone getting out from the car while raining. I chose a solution for that problem was
something like a helmet. Our lecturer that does not change or modified previous solution of the
problem, just try new innovative ideas for solving problem suggests us all. Analysis was must
and required for finding a solution of particular problem. That was a lesson for me from that
lecture. I learnt about journey mapping more, when I was trying to found out solution of that
problem. There are so many solution of a single problem, but the final solution was in the front
of us. Journey mapping was a process in which know about the current experiences of the
customers and using them creating new ideas for making that product more innovative for the
customers.
I leant about value chain, and it was not as simple as I know in my past. It was related to
product qualities, which are creating by marketing and other ways (Shamah, 2013). I found that
value chain was so important for an organization growth. It involves different activities for
creating product so useful or meaningful for the customers. I learnt that value chain complete
the analysis part of a company in which different things are included, such as service quality,
marketing of product, competitor analysis, and purchase of raw material for the product. The
value chain analysis provides helps to found out key resources within the company. It was
helpful for cut out the cost margins and improved services for the product within the company.
I learnt that value chain analysis involves in all kind of activities in the company including the
company infrastructure, human resources department, technical department, marketing plans,
development of product, and services provided by customer care service. We learned about
mind mapping in that module, which provides pictorial representation of problems. It was a
design-thinking tool and it was beneficial for finding solution of a problem. It provides an idea
or concept for solving that particular problem.
In next module, my group had an assignment to made collection data of different social
media used by the people. Design thinking prototype was necessary for solving of that problem.
I leant that for any problem first step was analysis of the problem and collect data on the bases
of primary and secondary data related to the problem. Primary and secondary data with their
advantages and disadvantages are would be important sources for finding solution of a

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problem. I found that, observation, interviews, discussions, and surveys are considered in the
primary data sources while articles, news, government records, and website pages was
considered in secondary data sources (Dunne & Martin, 2006). I leant about ethics to carried
are so important for research and so useful for managing different works. I found that ethics
are an action on a particular condition based on your understating ( Reynolds, 2018). It is also
matter with your behavior at different places, such as society, workplaces. Ethics are a
necessary part of a human being for maintains relations for social perspective. Empathy is the
word, which strike in mind when we do some work for a good reason. I also learnt about design
thinking tool and their usages for the getting needs and desires of customers for a product
selection in the real world (Kimbell, 2011).
In next module, I had to deliver the presentation on a social media application, which was
concept to synchronize all social media for specific period. I was so nervous in the starting of
the presentation but I was happy when I got the responses of other team member about my
presentation. Positive responses made me more energetic and it made my confidence high. I
learnt that any new idea with some innovative and creative thinking designed was always
welcoming. I felt so better when I found solution of smart tent problem using design thinking
prototyping models and with help of GPS system for the trekkers among all. I found that always
follow the rules and regulation of a procedure to got solution of a problem. I understood that
proper deliver of your ideas matter a lot with the qualitative ideas from that presentation in the
workshop (Scarborough, 2016). All of my group members were at university before the time for
the preparation of presentation. It was so helpful and it reflects at the time of delivery. It was
so effective and impressible after the getting feedback on my presentation by the lecturer. I
found it would be used in my future presentations for the clients. I learnt a lot for other
presentations also just by listening to them.
I learnt about creativity and brain storming through the rapid prototyping model. It
provides a better solution of any problem, which was faced by any person. I had information
about this type of prototype. It was just forming your ideas and thoughts to found out solution
of a problem. Just like shapes, your ideas to found a feasible solution of raised problem in front

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of us. It was beneficial for saving time and money. I got new ideas from it to solving different
problems. It was helpful to reduce unnecessary work for solving a problem (Kirzner, 2015).
Brainstorming and empathy are so necessary but rapid retyping was so helpful for shapes your
ideas for a given problem. I also leant about wire framing, storyboarding, and sketching from
that workshop. Those are so interesting in that workshop. It was time consuming but it provides
better results at end stage. I found some interesting things in that workshop, such as paper
prototyping, and creativity from different activities held in the workshop. Rapid prototyping
provides a better solution with low cost and less time before the ideas into practical.
Design thinking process was helpful for innovation for the particular problem. At the end of
the workshop, we had to present our assignment two. I was excited for that assignment. I was
before time at the university with all my group members. It was my best experience and I learnt
about blogs and reflective reports from that module (Lundvall, 2010). I had lot of good
experience form that workshop module. They are so beneficial in my present working project
and as well as in my future projects also. Now my thinking is always positive for a problem and I
really want to solve that particular problem with the help of my creative ideas, which I got from
different modules of that design-thinking workshop.
It was really better experience of my life in which I participated with full of my energy,
which was helped me in my currents problems. I also learnt about ethics and technology to
making my future better in term of employment and personal development from that
workshop. I want to share my experiences of that workshop with my friends and different
group members, so they can also having these types of betterment in their life. In the end of
that workshop, I was so happy to submit my presentation and present it in front of my lecturer,
and other group members.
An action plan is a way to decide your future work according to your thoughts. I have an
idea for implementing a Customer Service Management System, in which I will use my
learning’s, which I have from those modules of design it workshop. I am sure that, I will
complete that project in next sixth month.

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References
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Reynolds, G. (2018). Ethics in Information Technology (6th ed.). Boston, USA: Cengage Learning.
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