A4Q Design Thinking Course with Online Exam

Our Design Thinking course is for anyone who wants to look at business challenges from a creative, customer-centric perspective. In particular: Business Analysts; Business Service Designers (including Business Designers and Service Designers); User Researchers; Project Leaders; Product Owners; Business Engineers; Business Architects; Business Change Managers and anyone involved in transformational change projects.

Design thinking is a creative and human centred approach to business innovation. It’s about applying the design mindset to business challenges, making sure solutions are customer-centric and focused on meeting the needs of all stakeholders. 

This Design Thinking course covers the underlying principles of design thinking, bringing the strategies and techniques to life by applying them to a range of real life scenarios. Delegates learn how to empathise with and engage with the customer, unlock key insights, question assumptions, explore strategies and test ideas.

During this course, you will cover:

• The rationale for Design Thinking
• The Design Thinking mindset
• Core design thinking practices
• The Design Council Double Diamond
• The d.School 5 stage approach (Stanford)
• Design Thinking techniques including:

- Service safari

- Empathy map

- Customer journey map

- Problem framing

- Service blueprint

- Assumption reversal

- Prototyping

- Feedback capture grid

• Organisational culture and Design Thinking
• Cultural aspects that may inhibit or enable Design Thinking
• The Culture Pyramid 

During this three-day course you’ll receive all the training you need to prepare for the examination leading to the A4Q Foundation Certificate in Design Thinking. This is one of the mandatory modules for the new internationally recognised A4Q Service Designer qualification.

All delegates attending a classroom, virtual classroom or online course, sit the examination (ratified by global certification body iSQI) remotely using an online proctoring service. This examination consists of 40 multiple-choice questions with a pass mark of 26/40.

The Design Thinking course forms one part of AssistKD’s Business Service Designer training programme which includes courses on Business Service Design and CX Analysis. It is one of the mandatory modules for the new internationally recognised A4Q Service Designer qualification.