A guide to understanding design sprints

A traditional design sprint process lasts five days, during which the team is completely immersed in the problem without the constant distractions of daily work. Ideally, these five days will be Monday to Friday of a single week to maintain momentum. However, scheduling issues may necessitate splitting the process across two different weeks. The idea is to maintain intense focus that forces rapid decision-making, whereas traditional project cycles are often affected by endless debates that can stall progress. The time constraint encourages a bias toward action, ensuring the team immediately generates tangible feedback for each idea.

A successful sprint relies on a diverse, cross-functional team. Bringing together diverse perspectives enhances the likelihood of generating novel and enduring solutions. While the exact composition can vary, a well-rounded team typically includes several key roles:

• The Facilitator: This is a neutral party who manages the process, keeps track of time, and ensures everyone follows the structured exercises. They don't contribute ideas but instead guide the conversation and activities.
• The Decider: This is the person with the authority to make the final decision, such as a CEO, product manager, or department head. Their decision confirms that the sprint’s conclusions have the necessary buy-in, or justification, in terms of the money, staff, and time required for implementation.
• Designer: The person responsible for creating the product’s look and feel. They are heavily involved in the prototyping phase.
• Product Manager: They provide insight into business goals, user needs, and the overall product vision.
• Engineer/Developer: This person offers a technical perspective on the feasibility of building the solutions being discussed.
• Subject Matter Experts: These can be marketing leads, customer support representatives, data analysts, or anyone with deep knowledge relevant to the challenge. They are crucial during the initial "understand" phase to provide context.

This mix of expertise ensures that the solutions are not only creative but also viable from business, technical, and user-centric standpoints. This level of project collaboration from the outset is a key strength of the process.

The five-day sprint is structured with a specific goal for each day. This step-by-step process ensures that the team builds a solid foundation before jumping to solutions and that the final prototype is grounded in a deep understanding of the problem.

To maximize the value of a design sprint, preparation and execution are key. Here are some best practices to keep in mind:

1. Choose the right challenge: Don't sprint on a minor optimization. Pick a problem that is significant, complex, and warrants a week of your team's focused attention.
2. Get the right people in the room: A diverse, empowered team is the most critical ingredient. Ensure the Decider is committed to participating throughout the week.
3. Trust the process: The design sprint schedule is intense and highly structured for a reason. Avoid the temptation to skip steps or deviate from the time-boxed activities. Each exercise builds on the last.
4. Preparation is everything: Before the sprint begins, the facilitator should handle all logistics, from booking a dedicated room with ample wall space and whiteboards to gathering supplies such as sticky notes, markers, and dot stickers. For remote sprints, this means setting up the digital collaboration tools and ensuring everyone is comfortable using them.
5. Embrace tangible results: The sprint is designed to yield tangible results. Focus on creating concrete artifacts at each stage, such as maps, sketches, storyboards, and a prototype.