Week 1 Masterclass Ismail Akbani Human Centric Approach to Innovation

Summary

The video emphasizes the importance of a human-centric approach to innovation, focusing on empathy and understanding users' needs, desires, and expectations. It begins with a reflection on how personal involvement in tasks, like polishing shoes, fosters empathy. The speaker discusses the role of human-centered design in startups and innovation, highlighting that all actions and purchases are driven by needs, expectations, or desires—be they biological, psychological, or social. The session aims to teach empathy techniques and design thinking frameworks, which can be applied to improve customer experiences and product development.

Takeaways

• 🎯 The video highlights the importance of empathy and how it changes one's approach to tasks when personally involved.
• 🔍 Human-centric design is emphasized, focusing on the user's experience and needs.
• 📊 The discussion challenges the dominance of data-driven approaches, advocating for a balance with human-centered thinking.
• 🎥 A video was shown to set the stage for discussing human-centric design, focusing on the importance of empathy.
• 🤔 The concept of 'hiring' products or services to fulfill specific needs is introduced, inspired by Clayton Christensen's ideas.
• 💡 Innovation and startups should adopt a human-centric approach to opportunity discovery.
• 🛠️ Various tools and frameworks for applying human-centric design in corporate environments are mentioned.
• 🧠 All human actions, including purchasing decisions, stem from needs, expectations, or desires, which can be biological, psychological, social, or spiritual.
• 💭 The distinction between needs, desires, and expectations is crucial for understanding customer behavior.
• ⚖️ Addressing needs and expectations can lead to a sense of balance or imbalance, influencing customer emotions and decisions.

Q & A

What is the key observation made in the video the speaker references at the beginning?

The key observation is that the way a person treats their shoes changes when they are responsible for polishing them, highlighting the concept of empathy.

How does the speaker define empathy in the context of human-centric design?

Empathy is defined as understanding and sharing the feelings of others, which in this context means putting oneself in the user's shoes to better design products or processes.

What is the broader context of the speaker's discussion on opportunity discovery?

The broader context is innovation. The speaker expands the topic from opportunity discovery to human-centric innovation, particularly in the context of startups.

What are some of the tools and techniques the speaker promises to share later in the session?

The speaker plans to share frameworks, structured methods, and tools that can be used to apply a human-centric approach to processes, specifically those used in corporate training programs.

What are the three main reasons the speaker gives for why customers interact with products?

Customers interact with products due to a need, an expectation, or a desire. These factors drive their actions and choices.

How does the speaker distinguish between need, expectation, and desire?

A need is an innate or biological drive, an expectation is something driven by external pressures or norms, and a desire is something more personal and internally motivated.

What example does the speaker use to illustrate the difference between need and desire?

The speaker uses the example of needing water due to thirst (a biological need) versus simply desiring water without a strong physical urge.

How does the speaker describe the internal imbalance caused by needs or expectations?

An internal imbalance is described as a sense of uneasiness or discomfort, which may manifest as pain, frustration, sadness, or loneliness.

How does the speaker apply the concept of human-centric design to corporate training?

The speaker has applied human-centric design to training innovation managers and HR leaders, helping them make processes more employee-friendly and organizationally effective.

What psychological concept does the speaker reference when explaining why customers 'hire' products?

The speaker references Clayton Christensen’s idea that customers don’t just buy products—they 'hire' them to get specific jobs done, linking this to their needs, expectations, or desires.