DESIGN THINKING CONSULTANT
A DESIGN THINKING WORKSHOP TO LINK YOUR IDEA, YOUR TECHNOLOGY OR YOUR PROCESS TO A REAL USE AND IDENTIFY AN ECONOMICALLY VIABLE APPLICATION.
Tamim DaoudiIndustrial designer · Strasbourg
WHAT IS THE DESIGN THINKING METHOD?
Design thinking is one stage of the designer’s process, at the very start of a project. It consists of framing the problem around users’ needs before looking for solutions.
The design thinking method is often described in five stages: understanding users, defining the problem, generating ideas, prototyping and testing. Our workshop covers the essentials in a short, practical format, designed for design thinking within companies.
We offer this service when you are developing an idea, a process or a technology that has one or more distinctive characteristics, but you do not yet know which need or which use to link it to. For example, when you have:
- an innovation or a technology in search of applications;
- a new material whose uses have yet to be defined;
- a process that could meet a need that is still poorly identified;
- a product idea to test against users’ real expectations.
The workshop lets us identify together a relevant potential application that will be economically viable. If you wish, this process then opens the way to a design study.
WHY WORK WITH A DESIGN THINKING CONSULTANT FROM AN INDUSTRIAL DESIGN BACKGROUND?
Unlike a generalist design thinking agency, the workshop is led by an industrial designer: the ideas do not remain ideas, they are drawn, tested against feasibility and turned into physical mock-ups. With Tamim Daoudi, a designer for more than 20 years, you benefit from:
- an external facilitator who structures the thinking and brings out ideas without bias;
- an engineer present from the workshop onwards to assess the technical and economic credibility of each idea;
- a use-centred approach, informed by projects for connected objects, medical devices and industrial equipment for start-ups, SMEs and large groups;
- the option of continuing through to the design study and the design engineering of your product.
HOW DOES A DESIGN THINKING WORKSHOP WORK?
In a workshop format, we bring the following people together for one day or two half-days to work on your project:
- 1 designer, who leads the session;
- 1 engineer, who ensures technical and economic credibility;
- 3 to 5 target users;
- one of your employees, who acts as the link with your company.
The workshop moves forward in several stages:
- Defining the problem: starting from users’ needs, we formulate together the question to be solved.
- Imagining answers: ideas emerge as diagrams, keywords or sketches, over the course of a session led by the designer.
- Prioritising and selecting: the ideas are ranked, then shortlisted according to their relevance in terms of use, technical credibility and economic viability.
- Mocking up and testing: in a second phase, basic mock-ups illustrate the shortlisted ideas in 3D; users handle and test them.
Having target users handle these mock-ups makes it possible to check very early on that the intended use is understood and relevant, before committing to any development. The aim is to arrive at one or more application solutions, which can lead on to industrial design support.
WHAT OUR COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE WORKSHOP INCLUDES
Do you have an innovation, a technology or a new material, and are you looking for the use that matches a real need, a market? The workshop includes:
- preparing the workshop and discussions about your project;
- drawings, sketches and use scenarios;
- a conceptual, technical and economic approach;
- mock-ups to make the ideas tangible.
You leave with an initial, concrete approach in terms of uses and ergonomics. The collective intelligence workshop is offered at €2,000 excl. VAT: see the details of our packages on the Offers page.
AFTER THE WORKSHOP: FROM USE TO PRODUCT
The applications selected can open a design study: three creative directions, validated upstream by our engineers, with sketches, 3D models and photorealistic renderings. The project can then continue through to the prototype and industrialisation, with the same point of contact.
For an SME, the Bpifrance Design Diagnosis (Diag Design, €4,000 excl. VAT, 50% funded) is another way in: it assesses the impact of your product’s design on its users and defines areas for improvement.
A DESIGN THINKING WORKSHOP LED BY A DESIGNER AND AN ENGINEER
The designer leads the session and draws out the ideas; from the outset, the engineer makes sure the ideas are technically and economically credible. This dual perspective avoids holding on to an attractive but unworkable idea, and gives your team a solid basis for deciding on the next steps of the project.
USERS AT THE HEART OF THE COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE WORKSHOP
Three to five target users take part in the workshop. They react to the problem statement and the sketches, then handle and test basic mock-ups that illustrate the shortlisted ideas. Their feedback makes it possible to prioritise the solutions according to real use, and not only according to the project team’s intuitions.
Where does Tamim Daoudi offer design thinking consulting?
Based in Strasbourg, the studio is not tied to one region: Tamim Daoudi works with companies all over France on their design thinking consulting projects. He comes to your premises for the key stages (scoping workshops, design reviews, user testing, follow-up at the manufacturer’s) and runs the rest of the project remotely, just as responsively.
He works throughout France, including in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Nice, Nantes, Montpellier, Strasbourg, Bordeaux, Lille, Rennes, Reims, Toulon, Saint-Étienne, Le Havre, Grenoble, Dijon, Angers, Nîmes, Clermont-Ferrand, Aix-en-Provence, Brest, Tours, Amiens, Limoges, Metz, Besançon, Perpignan, Orléans, Rouen, Mulhouse, Caen and Nancy.
Wherever you are, a first video call is enough to scope your needs.
Contact meFrequently asked questions: design thinking consulting
What is a design thinking workshop?
A design thinking workshop is a collective working session, led by a designer, that starts from users’ needs to define a problem and then imagine answers. At the studio, it brings together a designer, an engineer, 3 to 5 target users and one of your employees. The aim: to identify a relevant application for your idea, technology or process, one that is technically credible and economically viable.
What are the 5 stages of design thinking?
Design thinking is generally described in five stages: empathy, to understand users; defining the problem; ideation; prototyping; and testing. Our workshop follows the same spirit in a short format: defining the problem, searching for ideas through diagrams, keywords and sketches, selecting them according to use, technology and economics, then basic mock-ups tested by users.
How long does a design thinking workshop last?
The workshop takes place over one day or two half-days. Basic mock-ups, which let users handle the shortlisted ideas, are made in a second phase. This deliberately short format quickly gives you an initial, concrete approach to uses and ergonomics, before committing to a more comprehensive design study.
Who takes part in a design thinking workshop?
Four profiles are brought together: a designer, who leads the session; an engineer, who assesses the technical and economic credibility of the ideas; 3 to 5 target users, who bring their experience of use; and one of your employees, who acts as the link with your company. This diversity of perspectives is what gives collective intelligence its strength.
How much does a design thinking workshop cost?
The collective intelligence workshop is offered at €2,000 excl. VAT for one day, with a designer and an engineer. It includes the preparation, discussions, drawings and sketches, use scenarios, the conceptual, technical and economic approach, and mock-ups. Details of our packages are on the Offers page.
What happens after the design thinking workshop?
The workshop results in one or more application solutions, prioritised according to use, technical credibility and economic viability. You can then launch a design study, offered at €13,000 excl. VAT: three creative directions validated upstream by our engineers, with sketches, 3D models and photorealistic renderings. The project can continue through to the prototype and industrialisation.
Why bring in an external design thinking consultant?
An external facilitator takes a fresh look at your project and structures the thinking without internal bias. With his background in industrial design, Tamim Daoudi can also translate ideas into sketches and mock-ups, while the engineer present checks their feasibility. You leave with tangible, credible directions, not just a list of ideas.
Is design thinking suited to industrial and technology projects?
Yes, it is even one of its most useful applications. The studio works exclusively with businesses (start-ups, SMEs and large groups) in industry, medtech and deeptech. When a technology, a material or a process has promising characteristics but no identified use, the workshop makes it possible to link it to a real need and a market.
