Design Thinking: Engineer Vs Product Mindset

Design Thinking refers to the systematic process involved in solving problems. A Product Mindset thinks of design thinking as a process or steps to solve customer problems while an Engineer proposes a design to technically solve the problem.

What is Design Thinking from Product Vs Engineer Mindset?

The commonality of Design Thinking among different mindsets lies in solving the problem. The key difference is the question asked to solve the problem. Product asks the 5 W’s of the problem namely the What, Why, Who, When, and Where of the problem while an Engineer answers the how to solve the problem.

What are the different phases of Design Thinking?

Design Thinking follows different phases to solve the problem

Phase 1: Sympathize and understand customer’s problems

Phase 2: Define Problem Statement

Phase 3: Ideate different solutions

Phase 4: Implement Solution

Phase 5: Verify the solution with customers

Phase 6: Release optimal solution

Phase 7: Measure Return on Investments

Phase 8: Communicate ROI to all stakeholders

How to seamlessly integrate Design Thinking into Product Development?

• Building products that are both transformative and innovative involve bringing people together and collectively understanding the problem.
• Invest time and effort to understand customer’s needs and their everyday activities to simplify and innovate solutions.
• Don’t just limit with customer’s needs but try to walk in their shoe to understand the clients of your customers to build solutions benefitting both your customers and their clients.
• Omni-channel communication platform where everyone including UX designers, Product, Business, and Engineers work for the common goal.

Design Thinking is a skillful art. Engineers dive deeper into the art of problem-solving with optimal solutions, while a product mindset manages the entire problem lifecycle starting with understanding customer’s problems until they reach the finish line with a successful customer-centric product.

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