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GROUP ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET

STUDENT DETAILS

Student name: Phan Trần Thái Hòa Student ID number: 31211021732

Student name: Võ Hồ Nhật Linh Student ID number: 31211023822

Student name: Huỳnh Kim Ngân Student ID number: 31211023799

Student name: Đinh Phượng Thu Phương Student ID number: 31211024389

Student name: Lê Mai Quỳnh Student ID number: 31211022018

Student name: Hồ Thị Minh Thư Student ID number: 31201029030

Student name: Lê Phương Uyên Student ID number: 31211021717

UNIT AND TUTORIAL DETAILS

Unit name: DESIGN THINKING FOR CREATIVITY Unit number: DTC-03

Tutorial/Lecture: Class day and time:

Lecturer or Tutor name: Mr. Doan Duc Minh

ASSIGNMENT DETAILS

Title: ASSESSMENT 2

Length: 1452 words Due date: 17/03/2024 Date submitted: 16/03/2024

DECLARATION

I hold a copy of this assignment if the original is lost or damaged.

I hereby certify that no part of this assignment or product has been copied from any other student’s work or
from any other source except where due acknowledgement is made in the assignment.

I hereby certify that no part of this assignment or product has been submitted by me in another
(previous or current) assessment, except where appropriately referenced, and with prior permission
from the Lecturer / Tutor / Unit Coordinator for this unit.

No part of the assignment/product has been written/ produced for me by any other person except
where collaboration has been authorised by the Lecturer / Tutor /Unit Coordinator concerned.
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I am aware that this work may be reproduced and submitted to plagiarism detection software programs for
the purpose of detecting possible plagiarism (which may retain a copy on its database for future
plagiarism checking).

Student’s signature: Hoa

Student’s signature: Linh

Student’s signature: Ngan

Student’s signature: Phuong

Student’s signature: Quynh

Student’s signature: Thu

Student’s signature: Uyen

Note: An examiner or lecturer / tutor has the right to not mark this assignment if the above declaration has not
been signed.
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ASSESSMENT 2

I. Rationale
The Lego Group, a Danish toy company founded in 1932 by Ole Kirk Christiansen in Billund, is
known for its innovative interlocking plastic bricks. The name "Lego" comes from the Danish phrase
"leg godt" meaning "play well," symbolizing creativity, learning through play, and the joy of building.

Lego's vision is "A global force for Learning-through-Play," aiming to be a leader in the toy industry,
delivering value-driven results, and fostering an environment where everyone can succeed and grow
together. The mission of Lego is to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow. They aim to
provide fun and engaging experiences that promote creativity, learning, and collaboration, preparing
children for a playful and successful future through play.

Moreover, Lego is not just an ordinary toy company; it is a symbol of cultural values embedded in its
products. From imagination, creativity, fun, learning, caring, to quality, Lego continuously innovates
and improves to provide the best experience for players and the community. This demonstrates that
Lego is not just a toy company but also a symbol of creativity and innovation in the industry (1).

II. Design Thinking Approaches

1. Empathize
As a fact, Lego transformed from near bankruptcy years ago to global prominence nowadays, and at
the heart of Lego’s successful reinvention lies a powerful tool: empathy.

Jorgen Vig Knudstorp, Lego's leader, prioritized deeply understanding their audience - children who
played with Lego bricks (2) by encouraging his team to spend time with families to observe how
children interacted with the iconic toy.

Lego designers used empathy to design sets that sparked imagination, creativity, and joy, aligning
with children's desires and needs (3). As a result, by putting themselves in the shoes of their young
users, Lego created products that aligned with children’s desires and needs (Empathy Map) (See
appendix).

Lego's empathetic approach drove innovation, strengthening emotional bonds through shared
moments of play and expanding the realm of empathy beyond its bricks by instilling digital empathy
skills in children through collaborations with organizations (4).

2. Define
Firstly, the toy market resembles a bustling playground, teeming with players vying for
attention.Video games and apps are drawing kids' attention away from physical toys.

Lego caters to adults with intricate sets that challenge creativity and engineering skills, while children
enjoy imaginative play and the fun of building. A 2022 study by Dahlgaard and Anninos emphasized
Lego effectively leverages customer innovations through platforms like Lego Ideas, showcasing
successful interaction with diverse customers (5). In response to technological change, Lego embraces
digital transformation and explores new themes while maintaining tradition to uphold its creativity
and imagination (6).
Consequently, Lego was defined with 3 issues:
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1. Competitive market
2. How to balance innovation and tradition
3. The challenge of digital transformation and diversification.

3. Ideate
Lego encountered the challenge of preserving its distinctive position in a saturated market amid rising
competition from digital entertainment such as video games and apps. To maintain its core identity,
Lego launched Lego Ideas - an online crowdsourcing platform allowing users to suggest new set ideas
as a solution to this problem.

During this stage, creativity is unleashed on intelligence (7), so Lego introduced a concept where fans
can submit new ideas for Lego sets. Other fans vote on the proposals, and the ones with the most
votes are evaluated by Lego employees. Selected ideas are then transformed into sets available for
purchase (8).

Lego Ideas targeted a passionate audience of teenage and adult Lego fans who enjoyed generating
ideas for new Lego sets. The platform amplified the natural inclination of community members,
aligning with Lego Inc.'s objectives.

4. Prototype
Research suggests that Lego's physical prototypes foster distinctiveness and creativity due to their
emphasis on co-creation values (9). This approach encourages user creativity to be both diverse and
flexible by allowing them to connect their imaginations to readily available resources without
limitations.

Following the conceptualization stage, Lego launched an initial prototype on its website as a voting
platform for customer-generated ideas, which enabled them to vote for the most favored design,
ultimately determining the official new product to be launched in the market. By implementing this
process, Lego demonstrates its appreciation for each user's contributions while ensuring the resulting
product aligns with the customer's preferences.

5. Test
Positive customer responses toward the voting page have prompted its transformation into an official
crowdsourcing platform: Lego Cuusoo, which means “Fantasy" in Japanese. First launched in 2008 as
a testing version in Japan, Lego Cuusoo allowed users to submit product design ideas, and after six
years of success, with over 2.8 million users contributing to over 135,000 ideas (10), Lego Cuusoo
officially transitioned to the globally recognized Lego Ideas platform in 2014.

Over a decade, the program has shown continuous growth. The winning design from Lego Ideas in
2022 contributed to a 17% revenue increase for Lego, reaching $9.5 billion (11).

III. Design Thinking Principles

2.1. End-user Needs
The end-user-need principle prioritizes understanding and fulfilling user requirements over just
financial gain. Lego exemplifies this by offering Lego Serious Play, a workshop method using Lego
bricks to unlock user creativity for various goals. This user-centered approach empowers individuals
to explore their identities and aspirations through building with Legos (12).
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Moreover, Lego also engages children in the process of character development, storytelling, and
feedback on new playset ideas, which helps them create experiences that match the users’
expectations and behaviors (13). Furthermore, Lego has leveraged crowdsourcing to generate playset
design ideas from its fans and former users, which enables them to stay relevant and connected to
their customers in a dynamic industry (14).

Finally, Lego empowers its experts to come up with ideas for new products based on critical customer
input. By doing so, Lego has created a universal language that transcends age, language, and culture,
and puts the needs and goals of users at the center of design decisions (15).

2.2. Enterprises Creativity

Lego, the iconic interlocking brick corporation, has effectively incorporated creativity into its product
creation process. This project relies heavily on open innovation and crowdsourcing. They aggressively
support open innovation by connecting with its devoted fan base, both young and elderly. Users can
submit innovative ideas for new items via platforms such as Lego Ideas (16). If a concept receives
10,000 backers within two years, Lego will formally study it for future manufacture (17). This method
guarantees that new and inventive ideas enter their innovation pipeline.

Lego®Serious Play® offers a secure and supportive environment for participants to explore their
creative potential. People are able to access their subconscious thoughts and get beyond conventional
cognitive barriers through interactive construction activities. Building using Lego bricks physically
activates different brain regions, boosting creativity and creating new thought pathways (18).

Lego is an open-ended toy that allows everyone to create their own worlds. Lego encourages
unrestricted play and exploration, allowing youngsters to create unique constructions, vehicles, and
magical planets. This innovative process promotes critical thinking and problem-solving abilities as
players find out how to turn their thoughts into concrete products (19).

2.3. Creative Learning

Lego has integrated Creative Learning into marketing, prioritizing trust and empowerment within
teams for a human-centered approach in strategy formulation.The brand emphasizes the educational
and imaginative potential of its products, using storytelling techniques across movies, games, and
online content to forge emotional connections.

Lego's marketing strategy involves co-creation with enthusiasts to propose and vote on new sets,
fostering a community and involving the audience creatively. The brand targets a broad demographic
of children, teenagers, and adults who enjoy creative play. Lego uses various advertising methods like
TV commercials, digital marketing, social media campaigns and collaborative content.

2.3.1. Television commercials:

These advertisements often feature compelling narratives showcasing the limitless possibilities of
Lego building, resonating with the creativity of children and the nostalgia of adults.

2.3.2. Digital marketing:

Lego's digital strategy further enhances the customer experience through innovative technology,
interactive online content, and a robust social media presence. Augmented reality apps allow users to
virtually explore Lego products, while the brand's website and mobile apps provide interactive
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building instructions, games, and a platform for sharing creations, fostering engagement and creativity
within its community.

2.3.3. Social media campaigns:

Social media, a pivotal component of Lego's digital strategy, serves as a dynamic channel for sharing
news, highlighting user-generated content, and engaging in meaningful two-way conversations with
fans.

2.3.4. Collaborative content:

Additionally, Lego explores digital storytelling through web series, online games, and collaborations
with digital influencers, aiming to authentically connect with its audience in the digital spaces they
frequent most.

2.4. DYNAMISM
Lego strategically responds to macroenvironmental changes by embracing digitalization since 2012 to
create an adaptive organization. They address challenges in global processes with a new platform
architecture, focusing on dynamism.

Aligning with Helfat et al.'s framework, Lego emphasizes reflective learning for dynamic capability
building, leading to improved technical fitness. The study introduces prospective capability building
activities, emphasizing forward-looking initiatives.

In the Lego Group, deliberate prioritization of prospective activities significantly contributed to

technical and evolutionary fitness. The study underscores the importance of a balanced approach to
dynamic capability building, recognizing the tension between prospective activities and immediate
value delivery and emphasizing the role of entrepreneurial managers in navigating this dynamic
landscape.

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GROUP -PROSPECTIVE ACTIVITIES VS. REFLECTIVE LEARNING IN

PREPARATION FOR A TURBULENT DIGITAL FUTURE Recommended Citation
[Internet]. 2019. Available from:
https://web.archive.org/web/20200321184208id_/https://aisel.aisnet.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?a
rticle=1135&context=ecis2019_rp

APPENDIX