Innovation requires learning to design for the changes around us. This involves not treating moving things as if they’re still. Even if we are standing still, movement is all around us. Whether it’s the seasons, the weather, business cycles or more, we are surrounded by change. Change might be the only true constant. However, our […]
Design for Movement Read More »
Of the many ways to reach people, email still works. Sometimes innovation is best doing new things with old tools. This is not your typical post. Today I’m launching the Censemaking Newsletter. Every two-three weeks I’ll send some of the best on trends, tools, techniques, research and case studies on innovation with the goal of
Innovation to Your Inbox Read More »
Big shakeups happen in work, life, and the economy regularly. Navigating these waves of change well requires forethought and foresight. How do we prepare ourselves to meet the future in a way that accounts for all the changes that are underway without us giving up our agency and purpose? Strategic foresight is an approach that
Riding the waves of resilience Read More »
Three numbers tell a story of transformation worth listening to. Our world is changing quickly and this week three numbers came to mind to show just how fast that’s happening and why we need to pay attention if we want to play a role is shaping this transformation. These numbers all point to a need
Tranformation in Three Numbers Read More »
Developmental evaluation is a powerful tool to support innovation, engaging communities, and foster deep learning. While it might be growing in popularity, increasingly in demand, and a key difference-maker for social and technological innovators it might also not be for you. Developmental evaluation (DE) is an approach to evaluation that is designed to support innovation
Developmental Evaluation is not for you Read More »
Design-driven evaluation focuses attention on what organization’s use in their decision-making and learning to support the creation of their products, delivery of services, and the overall quality of their work. While ultimately practical, this focus on utility also introduces some difficult conversations about what organizations truly value, not just what they say. To say something
Utility in Design-Driven Evaluation Read More »
A recent article titled ‘The Right Way to Lead Design Thinking’ gets a lot of things wrong not because of what it says, but because of the way it says it. If we are to see better outcomes from what we create we need to begin with talking about design and design thinking differently. I
Leadership & Design Thinking: Missed Opportunities Read More »
Developmental evaluation holds promise for product and service designers looking to understand the process, outcomes, and strategies of innovation and link them to effects. It’s the great promise of DE that is also the reason to be most wary of it and beware the traps that are set for those unaware.  Developmental evaluation (DE), when
Developmental Evaluation’s Traps Read More »
Design thinking has brought the language of design into popular discourse across different fields, but it’s failings threaten to undermine the benefits it brings if they aren’t addressed. In this third post in a series, we look at how Design (and Design Thinking) can elevate themselves above their failings and match the hype with real
Elevating Design and Design Thinking Read More »
Design thinking is in its ‘bullshit’ phase, a time characterized by wild hype, popularity and little evidence of what it does, how it does it, or whether it can possibly deliver what it promises on a consistent basis. If design thinking is to be more than a fad it needs to get serious about answering
Beyond Bullshit for Design Thinking Read More »
