Design

DESIGN
THINKING
TOOLKIT
DESIGN THINKING TOOLKIT
©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 1

If there is one thing that we as a society
have become increasingly familiar with, it is
change. “Uncertainty is the only certainty”, is
a concept that many people and companies
have struggled to incorporate into their
realities. The point of this introduction isn’t
to discourage you, but to shed light on a
property that many companies struggling
today lack: the ability to improvise.
In order for businesses to remain flexible

in times of change, they need to be able
to improvise. This idea is part and parcel
of innovation culture. It’s no coincidence
that innovation is frequently disruptive
to its industry. Crisis is often the calamity
that spawns new niches, blue oceans, and
business models. Companies will need to
brace themselves for a hyperbolic wave of
change in the future.

MJV’s advice for companies struggling
to get a foothold in their volatile sector
is to incorporate Design Thinking within
your strategy and workforce. While the
tested methodology is already a veteran
of the business world, it’s difficult to find
consolidated material about the tools behind
the mindset.
Below, we’ve provided a comprehensive list of

tools that designers use to get the most out
of their teams and projects. For those seeking
tools for a specific job, the items within the
toolkit have been color-coded to their most
optimal position within the Double Diamond
(some work for more than one).
For more information on the Design Thinking

Methodology, check out our articles and
E-books on the subject here. You can also
find our printed book on the subject: Design
Thinking – Innovation in Business.

TOOL CATEGORIES
1. IMMERSION: Tools that focus on
understanding the problem and the
people involved.
Keywords: Empathy, research, discovery,

user-centric.
2. ANALYSIS: Tools meant to help

visualize, classify, and clarify a problem,
using data from Immersion.
Keywords: Cluster, synthesis, prioritizing.
3. IDEATION: Tools designed to help

teams co-create, innovate and find
solutions.
Keywords: Diversity, openness, creativity.
4. PROTOTYPING: Tools used in the

process of developing and testing new
products and ideas.
Keywords: Fail Fast, MVP, continuous

improvement.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
06 Immersion
08 Interviews
10 The Five Whys
11 A day in the life
13 Analysis
16 Personas
18 Affinity Diagram
20 User Journey
22 Stakeholders Maps
24 Ideation
27 Brainstorming
29 Worst Possible Idea
31 Storyboard
33 Prototyping
36 Blueprint
38 Canvas
40 MVP
42 Ready. Set. Go!
+ Tip: click to jump straight to any section

01
01
01
IMMERSION:
Getting it right
from the start.

IMMERSION: Getting it
right from the start.
Immersion is quite possibly the most
important of the four halves of the Double
Diamond. This is where Design Thinking as
a mindset has the most to offer. Before you
begin to design a solution, you must first
understand the problem. And no matter
what that problem is, it will always involve
people.
User-centrism and Empathy are two very

big components of the Immersion phase. The
Tools within this section are designed to help
you get into the shoes of your end-user, client,
or stakeholder.
The most crucial piece of advice that we could

give you is to observe as many different
viewpoints as possible. Whether an issue is
complex or straightforward, the first-hand
accounts of the people involved should be
your top priority.
This process can many times lead to a

different understanding of the initial

problem. It’s common for designers to
have to reformulate their initial goals
and questions. Don’t shy away from that
possibility, it’s where the root causes lie.

INTERVIEWS
Interviews are your number one Tool for

Immersion. No matter the problem at hand,
this is a great way to get a grasp of what
people involved view as Pains and Needs.
HOW?
• Before meeting with your interviewees,

do some initial research into the subject
to write up a questionnaire.
• Ask about what they consider to be

obstacles on their path as well as
resources they need and don’t have.
• Pay close attention to their answers and

write down any interesting insights;
• If possible, record the interview so as not

to miss anything.
TIPS:
• The answers you get will only be as good

as the questions you ask. If you feel like
you’re not getting enough information to

fully understand the problem, alter your
questionnaire.
• Give people time to respond, a pause

for breath can sometimes lead to further
explanation.

• Improvise some questions to explore
answers further. Try to get at root
causes.
• Try to ask short, direct, and open

questions, which will encourage
interviewees to respond with
spontaneous, rich, and relevant
answers.

The Five Whys
A simple exercise that aims to explore
deeper aspects of situations to root out
underlying issues.
HOW?
• Write down the initial problem or

situation on a sheet of paper.
• Ask yourself why that particular issue

exists.
• Repeat this process five times, using

the answer to the previous why as the
1
context for the next one.
TIP:
This tool stimulates reverse reasoning

and can be asked to yourself or someone
else involved in the situation.

A Day in The Life
A form of shadowing that is used to glean

real-time insights from the daily routine
and actions carried out by the actors within
the given situation.
HOW?
• Before you begin the process of

shadowing “a day in their life”, ask your
volunteer to describe to you what
their day-to-day is like, being sure to
include any information pertinent to
the problem.
• Set a date to shadow the person’s

routine, making sure they re-enact
their day as accurately as possible (like
you aren’t even there).
• Take notes on any pertinent insight

that might shed light on the issue at
hand.

TIPS:
• If you require further clarification

on a subject, don’t hesitate to
ask your volunteer to explain their
thought process.
• Take advantage of this time to try

and empathize with the person
you’re shadowing. Don’t just think
about the actions they take, but
also the emotions they feel
throughout the day.
• Don’t be afraid to ask them

how they are feeling during key
moments throughout their journey.

02
02
02
ANALYSIS:
Information honed
to a fine edge.
ANALYSIS: Information
honed to a fine edge
If the purpose of Immersion is to
widen your understanding of a topic,
then Analysis seeks to narrow that
understanding into keen insights. We’re
still not developing solutions yet, so save
those ideas for later. This is the time to
truly wrap your head around the problem
before you.
The tools in this section are designed to

help organize the data collected in the
Immersion phase in an attempt to prompt
insight generation. While various modes
prove useful in this endeavor, one of the
best ways is visualization.
We recommend using a combination

of qualitative and quantitative data
in order to ensure that aspects such as
empathy and user-centrism continue to
be protagonists throughout the design
process.

Remember to always have in mind a
diverse range of profiles and viewpoints
when analyzing your information.
Questions to keep in mind:
• Does this data represent the entire

market?
• What isn’t the data showing us about

the situation?
• What do all these points have in

common?
• How do these different points interact

with each other?
• Who’s viewpoint are we missing?
• What biases exist within the data?
• Where are we making assumptions?


Personas
Think of Personas as the theoretical
representation of your end-user. They exist
to be referred back to throughout the rest
of the design process. Personas should
reflect user needs and behavior, as well as
any significant characteristics shared by a
particular group of users.
HOW?
• After you’ve completed gathering

information from your interviews and
research, try to identify unifying
patterns between them. These can
be aspects such as age, tax bracket,
behavior, and know-how.
• Form a single persona for each unique

type of user that you can identify.
• Assign a name to each and create a

story that helps illustrate the needs,
frustrations, and specific interactions
or behaviors that this ‘class of user’

might have in relation to the problem
you are attempting to solve.

TIPS:
• Personas represent your target

audience, so it’s important to verify if you
haven’t left out a niche user profile.
• Whenever you reach a divergent point

or critical moment within Ideation and
Prototyping, look back at your Personas
and ask yourself: “how would these
users react to this decision?”
• Don’t be afraid to include aspects such

as gender, race, and religion. All of these
aspects can play important roles in the
way people make decisions and interact
with products and services.

Affinity Diagram
A method of visualizing information by
grouping insights based on affinity, similarity,
dependency, or proximity. This is an
excellent way to understand the big themes
underlying root causes.
HOW?
• Gather the information extracted

through the Immersion phase and
briefly summarise them so they fit on
post-it notes.
• Examine these cards closely to identify

which can be grouped by themes,
subgroups, or similar criteria.
• Place the main themes in a row, with

their corresponding cards filed beneath
them in a column.
• You can use these themes as focal points

for possible improvements and areas

of opportunity within Ideation.

TIPS:
• The names you use for these subgroups

should somehow relate to the problem at
hand. These themes can be anything, but
here are just a few examples:
• Culture • Customers
• Leadership • Training
• Collaboration • Needs
• Goals • Pains
• Stakeholders • Uncertainties

User Journey
The User Journey is a graphic
representation of the relationship between
users and your product/service/strategy
that highlights the various points of
contact they experience throughout their
interaction. It can help teams visualize
the current state of affairs or a theoretical
future state of affairs, as well as underline
key moments that can influence them
along their journey.
HOW?
• Through research and interviews,

make a list of all of the touchpoints
your users have with your company,
product, service, or system.
• Give those touchpoints factual

descriptions (who, what, where,
when, why, how), remembering to
identify possible points of difficulty.
• Organize these touchpoints within a

flow diagram so you can visualize the
journey in an intuitive fashion.

TIPS:
• It usually helps to create two separate

User Journeys, one with the system
‘as-is’ as well as an ‘ideal’ version after
you have completed the Ideation
phase and move over into Prototyping.
• Personas can help you come up with

possible reactions that users might
have to changes throughout the
journey.

Stkaeholders Maps
A visual representation of the
different groups and people related
to a particular situation or system.
Stakeholder Maps are an excellent way
to remind your team of the actors within
a given situation. Keeping Analysis user-
focused while never losing sight of the
complexity of the situation.
HOW?
• Through your interviews and research,

compile a list of all the stakeholders
within your given problem. These will
undoubtedly include users, but can
also include actors from your own
organization.
• Organize these players in order of

closeness to the issue.
• Use four quadrants to assess which

stakeholders you should prioritize,
based on their level of interest and
influence.
• If the stakeholder has a lot of both,

then you should be managing them
closely and assessing their input as a
top priority.

TIPS:
• The Stakeholder Map can help you

understand who the big players are
within a system, but it can also show you
who might be interesting to involve in the
creation process.
• Reach out to your top-priority

stakeholders and see if they are available
to participate in the Ideation phase.
• This step can also be used in the

Immersion phase to select candidates
for interviews. DESIGN THINKING TOOLKIT

03
03
03
IDEATION: No
idea left behind

IDEATION:
No idea left behind.
Ideation is the phase most easily
associated with Design Thinking. This
is where the innovation happens. It’s
important to keep the prioritized insights
generated in the Analysis phase at hand
throughout this stage. If you had any good
ideas spring up during your interviews or
research, bring them back here and share
them with your team.
That’s really the most crucial aspect of

Ideation, sharing your ideas with your
team. This is not the moment for taking
charge and leading the flow of thought.
No idea is to be discarded or ridiculed. Just
like in Immersion, you want to amplify the
number of ideas generated in this stage.
The more, the merrier.
Some team members might be better

suited to research or insight grouping than
others, but it’s extremely important that

you push for everyone to participate
in this stage of the game. You might even

want to bring in outside participants to
co-create alongside your team. Especially
if you believe that your prototype will
undoubtedly involve areas that your team
does not specialize in.
Keep an open mind, and try to exercise

your listening skills more than your talking
skills. Give people time to think and
express their ideas, and above all: make
sure not to lose any of your post-it
notes!

Brainstorming
Much like how interviews are the cornerstone
of Immersion, Brainstorming is the
cornerstone of Ideation. It’s a collaborative
technique that aims to stimulate idea
generation in mass. This is the best time
for you to bring up ideas you’ve collected
throughout the design process thus far.
HOW?
• After identifying your root problems and

areas of opportunity through Analysis,
gather your team and anyone else you’ve
decided to include together to co-create
possible solutions.
• The goal at this stage is quantity over

quality. The more crazy, nonsense ideas
you have, the closer you’ll creep towards
innovation.
• Avoid judging ideas at this junction (save

the analysis of ideas for Prototyping).
• Ideas can always be combined and

refined, so be on the lookout for idea
groups as well as complimentary ideas.

TIPS:
• Sometimes it’s useful to come up with

guidelines for how you’ll share ideas. “I
believe root problem X can be solved
using idea A because of interaction Θ.”
• Creative resources can help optimize

Brainstorming. Create restrictions and
prerequisites (for example, “what if we
had all the money in the world”) or use
a well-known element to derive fantastic
solutions (e.g. “how would Batman solve
this problem?”).
• Don’t be afraid to get detailed with your

ideas. This will help you explore more
tangible solutions later.

Worst Possible Idea
Worst Possible Idea is a highly effective
tool to help get your team’s creative juices
flowing. It’s also an excellent choice if you
have team members that are less inclined
to public speaking or have difficulties
expressing themselves. The fact that ideas
generated with this tool are probably not
going to make it to the final prototype
relieves any anxiety and self-confidence
issues that participants might have.
HOW?
• Instead of putting pressure on

collaborators to generate good ideas,
this exercise calls for the worst
possible ideas you can come up with.
• Try to start out with bad ideas that are

actually doable, and gradually move
towards awful ideas that no one even
has the budget for.
• The bad ideas should also get

increasingly complex as you go
along.
• Once you feel that the team is

sufficiently warmed up, you can move
on to other tools.

TIPS:
• While this is considered a warm-up

exercise, some of these crazy ideas will
have useful components to them. If not
an example of what should be done, the
exercise can generate examples of what
to avoid (something of equal value to the
team).
• It’s good practice to not throw out

any idea, even the ones that you are
generating with horribleness in mind.

Storyboard
A visual representation of a user story,
through still frames (drawings, collages,
photographs). Storyboards can be used to
help communicate complex ideas. While
this is an excellent tool for ideation, it can
also be used in the Analysis phase to help
visualize the user journey.
HOW?
• Begin by defining what you want to

communicate or demonstrate.
• Write a script before creating a story,

to give it context.
• If you’re not the greatest artist,

you can always ask a teammate or
colleague to help you draw it out.
• Be creative, and remember to

consider scenarios, actors, and

contexts.

TIPS:
• Storyboards can be very useful in

detecting holes within a solution or idea.
• They’re also a great way to present a

refined solution to stakeholders and
higher-ups.

04
04
04
PROTOTYPING:
Running before
you can walk
PROTOTYPING: Running
before you can walk
Prototyping, as you might have already
guessed, is the final stage of the Design
Thinking process. This stage will bring
together all of the information, insights,
and ideas generated in the three previous
stages of the Double Diamond.
Most people are aware of what a basic

prototype is: it’s a functioning concept
that just hasn’t been refined and
polished for the main market yet. That’s
the main goal within the Prototyping stage.
Gather together all of the ideas generated
in the previous stage and decide what
you’re going to design as your solution to
the problem.
That solution doesn’t have to be

completely polished or even fully
functional. The biggest piece of advice we
can give you at this point is to fail fast.
The quickest way to determine if an idea
will hold water is to cast it out to sea. If

it floats, think about ways to improve it
(always keeping your end-user in mind).

But if it sinks, it might be better to move
on to a different idea.
Even after your prototype is tested and

validated, that doesn’t mean your work is
over. A crucial aspect of Design Thinking is
the notion of continuous improvement.
No matter how “ready for market” a
prototype might be, and even if it’s already
doing well within the market, its design
can always be improved upon.

Blueprint
A Blueprint is a matrix that visually
represents the system of interactions
that make up the provision of a service
or product in a simple manner. Think of it
as a photograph of an idea, that includes
all of the necessary information to
understand how a solution will work in
practice.
HOW?
• Define the stages of the journey that

make up the service (or system) and
divide them into columns.
• Fill in the lines considering the

following: physical evidence, user
actions, invisible actions of the system
or service (back-end), visible actions
(front-end), and perception of the
subject (positive, negative, etc.).
• Validate this concept with your

teammates and stakeholders.

TIPS:
• Blueprints help you visualize the

solution in no uncertain terms, but they
can also be useful when it comes to
refining solutions. Use the validation
process to get experts and users to point
out what they believe to be weakpoints,
then just draw up a new Blueprint and
start again.
• This process of refinement will go

through several iterations, so don’t be
discouraged by negative feedback, use it
to perfect your solutions.

Canvas
Canvases are a template that can be
adapted to several different objectives.
They can be used to build ideas up into
fully functioning solutions, as well as
visually represent all of the individual
aspects that make it up.
HOW?
• The Canvas should have eight

segments, or elements: People,
Storytelling, Challenges, Vision, Impact,
Management, Problem, and Solution
(it helps to print out a large canvas
on some A1 paper, or draw it on a
whiteboard).
• Use color post-its to describe each

aspect of the Canvas and post them in
their respective locations.
• Use the completed Canvas to

discuss possible alterations and

improvements that could be made to
the solution.

TIPS:
• There are several types of Canvases

and they have different purposes.
Examples: Business Model Canvas,
Project Model Canvas, Value Proposal
Canvas, etc. No matter what solution
you’ll be designing, it will most likely
include a variety of these.
• Refine your Canvases until you have

what you believe to be the best
possible solution to the problem.

MVP (Minimum Viable
Product)
MVPs are your star players in the
Prototyping stage. Once you’ve decided what
solution to go with, and you’ve minimally
refined that solution, it’s time to bring it to
life. This is the tool you’ll be using to test
your solutions to see if they sink or swim.
HOW?
• MVPs can have varying degrees of

fidelity, it all depends on what kind
of solution you’re developing. If it’s a
webpage or app for example, making
a functioning version that hasn’t gone
through UX and UI is good enough to
test out. If it’s a physical product, you
can always make something out of
cardboard to test it out with real users.
• Think of the materials and level of detail

necessary to make the idea tangible and
usable (for instance, can it be done on

paper or does it require digital screens
to simulate the interaction?)

• Invite end-users to interact with,
test, and evaluate your prototype.
• Based on the feedback, you can either

scrap the solution entirely in favor of
a new one or improve the idea until it
reaches a satisfactory level.
TIPS:
• Don’t worry about how janky your

prototype might look. It’s better to find
out that a concept is flawed before
you invest a bunch of time and money
into making it pretty.
• When selecting people to test it out, it’s

good to get a diverse cast of characters.
That means selecting people who are
familiar with similar or previous products,
and people who have never seen
anything like it before. Young people
and older people. Tech-savvy and tech-
illiterate people.
• It can also be good to refer back to your

Personas to remind yourself of all the
possible audiences that will eventually
interact with your solution.

05
05
05
Ready.
Set. Go!

Ready. Set. Go!
Diagram
Download the template
Personas
Stakehoders
Map
Service
Blueprint
Business
Model Canvas

About MJV
people transforming business
For 25 years, MJV Technology & Innovation has

helped to influence innovation and solve business
challenges with some of the largest
companies in the world . With offices in Europe, the
United States and Latin America, the consultancy
has a multidisciplinary team, composed of more
than 1000 professionals divided between designers,
engineers, anthropologists, data scientists,
developers, entrepreneurs and more.
We believe in collaborative Work and apply Design

Thinking and Agile Methodology as a guide for all
the projects we develop.
Mauricio Vianna Ysmar Vianna

CEO, PhD Chairman, PhD
mvianna@mjvinnovation.com yvianna@mjvinnovation.com

MJV is built upon five pillars, structured with
complete synergy:
INNOVATION IN BUSINESS:
Development and implementation of
innovative solutions to reduce costs, increase
revenue, and generate new business models.
TECHNOLOGY CONSULTANTS:
Develop and implement personalized services
such as Business Intelligence (BI), IT and the
Internet of Things (IoT).
DIGITAL STRATEGY:
Develop and implement corporate strategies
and user experience in a way that “being
digital” and thinking digital” become intrinsic
to the business model.
OUTSOURCING PROFESSIONAL PROFILES:

Allocation of UX, UI, Marketing, and IT
professionals contracted with the total
support of MJV concerning the work realized
and quality control.
SUSTAINABILITY:
Development and implementation of positive

impact solutions, considering aspects of the
entire ecosystem, looking at business, people,
and the planet.

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lis@mjvinnovation.com
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©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 1

In order for businesses to remain flexible

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 2

Below, we’ve provided a comprehensive list of

For more information on the Design Thinking

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 3

Keywords: Empathy, research, discovery,

2. ANALYSIS: Tools meant to help

Keywords: Cluster, synthesis, prioritizing.

3. IDEATION: Tools designed to help

Keywords: Diversity, openness, creativity.

4. PROTOTYPING: Tools used in the

Keywords: Fail Fast, MVP, continuous

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 4

10 The Five Whys

11 A day in the life

29 Worst Possible Idea

42 Ready. Set. Go!

+ Tip: click to jump straight to any section

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 5

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 6

User-centrism and Empathy are two very

The most crucial piece of advice that we could

This process can many times lead to a

different understanding of the initial

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 7

Interviews are your number one Tool for

• Before meeting with your interviewees,

• Ask about what they consider to be

• Pay close attention to their answers and

• If possible, record the interview so as not

• The answers you get will only be as good

you’re not getting enough information to

• Give people time to respond, a pause

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 8

• Try to ask short, direct, and open

DESIGN THINKING TOOLKIT

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 9

• Write down the initial problem or

• Ask yourself why that particular issue

• Repeat this process five times, using

This tool stimulates reverse reasoning

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 10

A form of shadowing that is used to glean

• Before you begin the process of

• Set a date to shadow the person’s

• Take notes on any pertinent insight

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 11

• If you require further clarification

• Take advantage of this time to try

• Don’t be afraid to ask them

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 12

The tools in this section are designed to

We recommend using a combination

©MJV Technology & Innovation 2022 All Rights Reserved 14

Questions to keep in mind:

• Does this data represent the entire

• What isn’t the data showing us about

• What do all these points have in

• How do these different points interact

• Who’s viewpoint are we missing?

• What biases exist within the data?