The Corporate Design Camp is a residential programme in which executive and leadership teams tackle a real company problem using the design thinking method, leaving with a tangible prototype and presentation. It runs for 2-5 days depending on the company's needs, is set up at a hotel or nature venue with a meeting room, and gives groups of 5-25 space to work together away from the office agenda.

What is in the programme?

The camp follows the stages of design thinking in order: empathising, defining the problem, ideating, prototyping and testing. On the first day the team chooses the customer or employee experience issue to work on, then uses interview techniques and user journey maps to understand who the problem affects, where and why. The findings are then distilled into a single problem statement.

In the ideation sessions, rapid sketching, brainstorming and voting techniques bring out a large number of possible solutions, and the most promising are selected. In the final part, low-cost prototypes are built with paper, card and simple digital tools; the teams present them to one another, gather feedback and refine the solution. At the close, each team's output is turned into an action plan that can be taken to management.

Highlights

• Work on a problem from the company's own agenda rather than a fictional case.
• A flow covering every stage: empathy, definition, ideation, prototype and test.
• Rapid prototyping with paper and card; hands-on work that needs no technical knowledge.
• A close with team presentations, awards and certificates of participation.

Who Is It For?

Suited to executive teams of 5-25 with product, service or process renewal on their agenda, innovation committees and cross-departmental project groups. The small group size allows the team to split into working groups of 4-6 and for every idea to be discussed. Physical effort is low; sessions alternate between the meeting room, standing work and tables.

Planning Notes

• The problem to be worked on, and any related customer data, should be agreed before the camp.
• A room with plenty of wall space and reconfigurable tables should be chosen.
• Transport from the office to the venue and alcoholic drinks are not part of the standard package.
• Mild seasons suit open-air breaks better; the programme is designed so it can be completed indoors.