We have exhorted the use of simple sketches and mock-ups to help clients and users better imagine and comprehend complex systems or new ideas of which they do not have a common ground in which to relate. We uncovered an article from the June 2005 issue of Fast Company magazine that discusses how “design” in the broadest sense, helps form and communicate business strategy.
“People need to have a visceral understanding -- an image in their minds -- of why you've chosen a certain strategy and what you're attempting to create with it. Design is ideally suited to this endeavor. It can't help but create tangible, real outcomes.”
In other words, people need concrete examples to grasp the meaning and import of the strategy being pursued, whether that is the advantages of a virtual server room, or a new way to provide service internally. It clears any confusion over competing interpretations of however you explained the strategy in words. With that grasp, people not only can get behind the strategy, but also are better prepared to participate and advocate on its behalf. And it is a process—essentially a prototyping process—that unlocks ideas and suggestions in your people who otherwise would be unable to give feedback.
“Once you spot a promising idea, you build it. The prototype is typically a drawing, model, or film that describes a product, system, or service. We build these models very quickly; they're rough, ready, and not at all elegant, but they work. The goal isn't to create a close approximation of the finished product or process; the goal is to elicit feedback that helps us work through the problem we're trying to solve. In a sense, we build to think.”
The next time you find yourself proposing a new strategy to a client or internal group, a simple diagram or mock-up may be the difference between your plans being understood and supported, or withering away in obscurity.
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