This is a long due post on design thinking since I kept delaying it thanks to numerous confusions I had about the concept. Enough is enough! Now it is time to let them out of my thinking hats !!
New Working Styles
In 2007, top management of hearing aid manufacturer Oticon boldly established a working group dedicated to a rather new and odd thing called design thinking. Three years later, the group was dissolved. This is the story of a tragic misunderstanding and untapped potential.
We talked to a former Oticon employee who decided to go to Denmark in 2007. At first it was difficult for him to find a job there. Even with a degree in mechanical engineering from one of the best universities in the US and a lot of work experience with his own consulting company it seemed difficult to get hired. Then a recruiter took a special interest in him, and the result was a job offer at Oticon, one of the world’s leading hearing aid manufacturers. They made a surprising proposal: “We’re just starting a new group called Centre for Design Thinking (CDT). You would be perfect for it.”
At that time, Oticon was taking a courageous step in a new direction. The top management decided to invest in a completely new group with an uncertain outcome a group that would “invent things.” The leader of this innovation group decided to embrace a relatively unorthodox idea called design thinking, and top management soon came to support the philosophy.
Read entire article here
Born between 1995-2012, these young people are just becoming adults. They’re also a huge chunk of world population, with over 23 million people and growing. Entitled, tech-immersed children with short attention spans? Whatever you think you know about Gen Zs, it’s time to leave it at the door.
What most don’t realize is that they will soon be (if they aren’t already) your customer. That’s right, as Gen Zs begin taking over the consumer market, companies should understand that in just 5 short years, they may account for as much as half of all consumers.
