Our work as interaction designers has focused more and more often on defining and crafting innovative products and services; ones that win the hearts and minds of people, while creating a business advantage (commercial or social) for the organizations launching them. Our success rate in this field is what granted us ‘a place at in the boardroom’ in recent years. Still, too many of the initiatives we work on are shelved before – or immediately after launch. Too many of our projects fall in traps that hinder their chances of success.
Starting from my experience – lots of successful launches and lots of failures in 15 years of design – and analyzing a variety of case studies, this talk focuses on three moments in the design process where there are some of the most dangerous of these traps: the scoping and definition of an opportunity; the shaping of the product / service; the last mile to launch. It highlights what are the risks in these phases and how they can be prevented, or at least mitigated. It provides tips and advice to design leaders and practitioners alike, to help them launch products and services that can fully express the innovative potential. It formalizes new techniques and design approaches to add to our toolkit as designers in the boardroom.
