Design Thinking: The Beginner's Guide

Course Closed Re-opens in a few weeks
100 % booked
Beginner
Google Logo 5 Stars Trustpilot Logo
5 Stars

What You’ll Learn

  • How to apply design thinking to your problems in order to generate innovative and user-centric solutions
  • How to make use of practical design thinking methods in every stage of your problem, with the help of method templates
  • How to initiate a new working culture based on a user-centric approach, empathy, ideation, prototyping, and playful testing
  • How to employ ethnographic and analysis methods, such as interviews, focus groups, and surveys
  • How to prototype early and fast, as well as test your prototypes so as to reduce risks and accelerate organizational learning

Some of the world’s leading brands, such as Apple, Google, Samsung, and General Electric, have rapidly adopted the design thinking approach, and design thinking is being taught at leading universities around the world, including Stanford d.school, Harvard, and MIT. What is design thinking, and why is it so popular and effective?

The overall goal of this design thinking course is to help you design better products, services, processes, strategies, spaces, architecture, and experiences. Design thinking helps you and your team develop practical and innovative solutions for your problems. It is a human-focused, prototype-driven, innovative design process. Through this course, you will develop a solid understanding of the fundamental phases and methods in design thinking, and you will learn how to implement your newfound knowledge in your professional work life. We will give you lots of examples; we will go into case studies, videos, and other useful material, all of which will help you dive further into design thinking.

This course contains a series of practical exercises that build on one another to create a complete design thinking project. The exercises are optional, but you’ll get invaluable hands-on experience with the methods you encounter in this course if you complete them, because they will teach you to take your first steps as a design thinking practitioner. What’s equally important is you can use your work as a case study for your portfolio to showcase your abilities to future employers! A portfolio is essential if you want to step into or move ahead in a career in the world of human-centered design.

Design thinking methods and strategies belong at every level of the design process. However, design thinking is not an exclusive property of designers—all great innovators in literature, art, music, science, engineering, and business have practiced it. What’s special about design thinking is that designers and designers’ work processes can help us systematically extract, teach, learn, and apply these human-centered techniques in solving problems in a creative and innovative way—in our designs, in our businesses, in our countries, and in our lives.

That means that design thinking is not only for designers but also for creative employees, freelancers, and business leaders. It’s for anyone who seeks to infuse an approach to innovation that is powerful, effective and broadly accessible, one that can be integrated into every level of an organization, product, or service so as to drive new alternatives for businesses and society.

Get an Industry-Recognized IxDF Course Certificate

Increase your credibility, salary potential and job opportunities by showing credible evidence of your skills.

IxDF Course Certificates set the industry gold standard. Add them to your LinkedIn profile, resumé, and job applications.

Course Certificate Example

Be in distinguished company, alongside industry leaders who train their teams with the IxDF and trust IxDF Course Certificates.

Our clients: IBM, HP, Adobe, GE, Accenture, Allianz, Phillips, Deezer, Capgemin, Mcafee, SAP, Telenor, Cigna, British Parliament, State of New York

Is This Course Right for You?

  • You want to land a job in design – or get a promotion.
  • You want to learn real-world design skills that are valuable in any job and any industry.
  • You want timeless human-centered skills AI cannot replace and turn AI into your superpower.
  • You're tired of wasting time on influencers and want to learn from real experts.
  • You want actual career outcomes, like increasing your salary potential and job opportunities.
Explore Course Content

Loved by People Around the World

Your New Life. Starts Now

  1. Take IxDF Online Courses by Industry Experts

    Design a life and career you love. Industry leaders from Adobe, Google, and NASA guide you step-by-step. Design skills help you grow in any job, any industry.

  2. Turn AI Into Your Superpower

    IxDF teaches you the human-centric skills AI cannot replace and how to turn AI into your superpower.

  3. Increase Your Career Opportunities

    Salaries for people who learn design surpass $200K in cities like San Francisco, with 45% projected job growth globally.

  4. Get Industry-Trusted Certificates to Stand Out

    Add IxDF Course Certificates to your LinkedIn profile and resumé: show hiring managers you belong to an elite group.

Without IxDF With IxDF

Course Overview:

  • Each week, one lesson becomes available.
  • Study flexibly. Take as much time as you want.
  • 26h, 6m over 6 weeks (est.).

Lesson 0: Welcome and Introduction

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 1 hour, 44 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 0.1 An Introduction to Courses from IxDF (33 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 0.2 Get Help, Career Advice, and Job Opportunities (6 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 0.3 How to Get Your Course Certificate (20 mins)
  • Community-based learning and networking. 0.4 Grow Your Global Network and Build Your Brand (12 mins)

Lesson 1: What is Design Thinking and Why is it so Popular?

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 3 hours, 13 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 1.1 Welcome to Design Thinking: The Beginner’s Guide (15 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 1.2 What is Design Thinking and Why Is It So Popular? (41 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 1.3 Design Thinking: New Innovative Thinking for New Problems (21 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 1.4 Obstacles to Problem Solving and Innovation in Design Thinking (17 mins)

Lesson 2: The Design Thinking Process

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 4 hours, 5 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 2.1 5 Stages in the Design Thinking Process (22 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 2.2 Stage 1 in the Design Thinking Process: Empathise with Your Users (28 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 2.3 Stage 2 in the Design Thinking Process: Define the Problem and Interpret the Results (21 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 2.4 Stage 3 in the Design Thinking Process: Ideate (22 mins)

Lesson 3: Empathise with the People You Design For

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 4 hours, 44 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 3.1 The Power of Empathy (10 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 3.2 Design Thinking: Getting Started with Empathy (53 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 3.3 How to Develop an Empathic Approach in Design Thinking (27 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 3.4 Empathy – How to Improve Your Designs by Developing Empathy for Your Target Group (53 mins)

Lesson 4: Define the Design Challenge

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 3 hours, 23 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 4.1 Stage 2 in the Design Thinking Process – Define the Problem by Synthesising Information (13 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 4.2 Methods to Help You Define Synthesise and Make Sense in Your Research (58 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 4.3 Affinity Diagrams – Learn How to Cluster and Bundle Ideas and Facts (14 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 4.4 Empathy Map – Why and How to Use It (39 mins)

Lesson 5: Ideate

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 5 hours, 39 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 5.1 What is Ideation – and How to Prepare for Ideation Sessions (26 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 5.2 Understand the Elements and Thinking Modes that Create Fruitful Ideation Sessions (27 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 5.3 Create Some Space – for Ideation Sessions and Design Thinking (11 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 5.4 Create Some Space With d.school (12 mins)

Lesson 6: Prototype and Test

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 5 hours, 2 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 6.1 The Key Benefits of Prototyping (14 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 6.2 Design Thinking: Get Started with Prototyping (46 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 6.3 Prototyping in Design Thinking: How to Avoid Six Common Pitfalls (20 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 6.4 What Kind of Prototype Should You Create? (24 mins)

Lesson 7: IxDF Course Certificate and Course Wrap-up

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 13 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 7.1 How to Add Your IxDF Certificate to LinkedIn (7 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 7.2 Help Us Help You: Course Evaluation (4 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 7.3 Six Steps to Your Career Success (3 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 7.4 Get Your IxDF Course Certificate (2 mins)

Start Today

  • Get unlimited access to all 40 self-paced courses, at no extra cost.
  • Learn human-centric skills AI cannot replace and how to turn AI into your superpower.
  • Build your salary potential with industry-recognized certificates.
  • 1,146,515 enrollments and counting.
Start Growing Now - $22/Mo
Privacy Settings
By using this site, you accept our Cookie Policy and Terms of Use.
Customize
Accept all
Reid Dickson
Reid Dickson

The course is very comprehensive and offers a good balance of mediums to learn from.

Jenna Franklin
Jenna Franklin

I enjoyed all of the tools available for download. It helped me easily share this information with others who were interested in design thinking.

Gillian Tyler
Gillian Tyler
Web Designer/Developer

There were lots of real world examples particularly from the instructors' work.