Solve Big challenges are best solved collaboratively

We work with all kinds of organizations on complex challenges

Whether you’re looking to develop your next breakthrough product, service or business model, we can help. Using human-centred design, we help you cut through the complexity and find solutions informed by what really matters to the customers and stakeholders most directly impacted.

Here are some of the recent challenges we have partnered with our clients on:

Generating new fundraising ideas with a four-week sprint

Raising awareness of Global’s Make Some Noise

Online event invites people to harness the power of technological innovation to remove barriers for people living with disability

Remarkable’s annual Design-athon moves online

How Treehouse and KAUST came together to understand what university campus residents want from the smart home of the future

How we work with you

Our team of designers, researchers, entrepreneurs, technologists and facilitators brings decades of shared experience working with the world’s most respected organizations on some of their most complex strategic challenges. Here’s how:

Understanding the big picture

We start by deeply understanding your organization, context, and key stakeholders that need to be (and stay) engaged.

Getting clear on desired outcomes

Working with you, we define the scope, key outcomes, team, timeline and concrete deliverables.

Innovative methods that work

We draw from a wide arsenal of creative tools, technologies, and methods at each stage of the project

Collaborating across boundaries

We bring together the right people from within and outside your organization to solve the problem

Transferring skills as we go

We leave behind the tools and know-how your team needs to tackle its next big challenge

Demonstrate the impact

We capture the metrics, stories, and evidence to demonstrate and communicate the impact you’ve made

Solve Run a design sprint to tackle a specific objective

Human-centred design can be applied to a vast array of complex business and societal challenges. Our outcome-specific sprints leverage the fundamentals of design in a way that is especially tailored to make the greatest impact in a given industry or for a specific type of challenge.

We have tailored sprint approaches to address specific objectives including:

Sustainability / Circular Economy
New Business Model Development
Organizational Culture Transformation
Diversity and Inclusion Strategy

Outcome-specific sprints design thinking

Our approach Human Centered Design

1. Field research

Purpose We begin by going out into the field to gain empathy with users and find new sources of inspiration that will ground our innovation efforts in what really matters to people.

Skill Sets Ethnography / Design Research / Study Design / Interviewing / Desktop Research / Design Anthropology / Social Listening

Methods and Tools

User journey mapping and persona development
In-context observation and interviewing for empathy
Focus groups and engagement workshops
Day-in-the life studies / photo studies (digitally enabled)
Analogous inspiration and cross-industry desktop and social research

Outcomes

A bank of original user research to inform this and future projects
Lasting customer closeness and user empathy

2. Form Insights

Purpose To distill a unique point of view based on what we have observed in the field that will help us identify unmet or unexpressed user needs and opportunities

Skill Sets Synthesis / Design Research / Team Facilitation

Methods and Tools

Empathy Mapping
Synthesis Frameworks
What / How / Why analysis
Insighting templates

Outcomes

A set of novel points of view, or “hunches” that reveal what users really value and where we should focus our innovation efforts
Greater ability to recognize opportunities in day-to-day observations and interactions

3. Focus the Challenge

Purpose To translate our newly discovered insights into focused, user-centred “How Might We…?” (HMW) questions that will guide our upcoming idea generation

Skill Sets Synthesis / Team Facilitation

Methods and Tools

“How Might We…?” (HMW) formulation
Opportunity re-framing
Right-sizing the opportunity space

Outcomes

A set of focused, user insight-inspired HMW questions that frame opportunity spaces for teams to explore in the following step: idea generation
Increased ability to put the user at the center of the challenge

4. Generate ideas

Purpose To create a wide variety of possible solutions that address the overarching design challenge. Ideas at this stage should be aspirational, creative, and inspiring - withholding judgment about what is feasible and viable until later in the process

Skill Sets Team Facilitation / Brainstorming / Lateral Thinking

Methods and Tools

Group and individual brainstorming
Crazy 8s
Random input and external stimulus
De Bono’s thinking hats
Synchronous and asynchronous ideation

Outcomes

A wealth of potential solutions to explore and evolve
New habits that encourage a “yes, and..” mindset to approaching future challenges

5. Prototype

Purpose To make early stage ideas tangible in order to get fast feedback from users and stakeholders. This helps us quickly experiment, iterate and learn instead of investing time and resources in new ideas before key assumptions are tested

Skill Sets Graphic design / illustration / 3D modelling / business analysis

Methods and Tools

Paper prototyping
Storyboarding and process mapping
Digital prototyping (In-app templates, wireframing, CAD)
Video production and experience role-play
User feedback and focus group testing

Outcomes

A set of rough and ready prototype solutions that are ready to share with users for feedback
New habits that encourage people to seek early feedback instead of over-investing in untested ideas

6. Implement

Purpose In this final step, teams plan how to bring their top prototype solutions to fruition. Work ranges from creating a short video pitch for initial pilots to developing detailed business cases, implementation roadmaps and MVPs

Skill Sets Business Modelling / Financial Analysis / Experiment Design / Project Management / Agile Development

Methods and Tools

Business model canvas
Lean Experiment Mapping
30-60-90 Day Roadmapping
Business case templates
A/B Testing

Outcomes

Everything required to take top prototype solutions forward for future funding, support and development
Increased confidence and expanded toolkit for taking new ideas through to implementation

Threehouse Innovation Design Thinking Innovation Leadership

And we can do it all remotely

Treehouse is one of the few design and innovation companies that is equally effective and experienced working virtually as in-person. In fact, we built our own platform Sprintbase to help virtual project teams achieve amazing outcomes remotely.

A shared virtual environment

Our team uses Sprintbase to support remote collaboration and keep our joint teams on track. All research, ideas and prototype solutions are captured in one place where the team can work together. The built-in process and guidance makes sure teams on the ground apply the innovation process, tools and mindsets consistently and effectively.

Remote coaching

Coaches provide expert advice to help teams get the absolute best outcomes from their projects. We advise on which design thinking tools and methods teams should apply, help teams stay focused and motivated, and build everybody’s confidence. Coaches help teams move faster and generate bolder, more innovative solutions that go on to implementation.

Read enough?

Let’s talk about how we can partner with you to solve your next strategic challenge

Solve your next strategic challenge with design thinking