What is design? Defining ‘design’ is not straight forward. At present, in the tech, it is related to addressing of complex problems devoid of immediate clear solutions. What has been termed as ‘wicket problems’ (Rittel & Webber, 1973) is presently encountered in practice and theory and in this module relates to the appropriation of digital technologies within public services. Both the appropriation as well as ‘public services’ are complex matters in their own right. To address this, part of the design ethos, as I understand, appreciates no solution can ever be perfect. As we explore a solution, we explore the problem, resulting in learning about each. Design is about failing fast, testing small interventions, seeing if they work. That’s why design is about ‘action and change’ (Baskerville & Myers, 2014). In the tech industry, design has also been associated with aesthetics, a sort of appreciation of human needs, both, in terms of the usability of features and how they are presented. That’s how, digital ‘interventions’ should not result in artefacts that irritate but thought through concepts informed by context and therefore ready to blend in (Ackerman, 2000). However, we can recognize that design is ‘technicist’ but rather a philosophy, a way of doing, and approach, sometimes an outcome.
What is a ‘sprint’? Let’s move on to ‘sprints’. It sounds very sporty and there’s a reason for it. For this module, a ‘sprint’ sets the pace and the content of activities. In my view, a sprint is a set of (design) activities delimited by a problem question that we subsequently seek to address through development and testing of a solution concept. A sprint presupposes setting a structure, assembling a design context, and an eventual means of testing propositions developed. This module adapts “Google Design sprints” into a method for teaching digital interventions in public services. Usually design sprints are comprised of five days with each day reserved to a specific activity for a team of designers. Those include: (1) background research and requirements gathering; (2) appraisal of options and selection of one; (3) refinement of selected option as a concept; (4) visual articulation of the user story of the concept; (5) eventual testing of the concept on users.
How do we use the ‘design sprint’ throughout this module? In this module we will stretch the usual five-day schedule for a design sprint over the 12 weeks of the semester. Within a team of four or five peers, you will be paired with a partner from outside of the university. The partner, for example in local government or from a community group, will set a ‘challenge’ for your team, something they presently grapple with, where they think a well-informed digital intervention may be useful. Together with your team, you will then be introduced to a set of activities that present a full design sprint. At the end of term, you will present a concept you explored, researched, and ideally tested back to your challenge partner. For this you will be supported by your peers in the team, a structured reflective blog, and at least one mentor from APL or the School of Computing.
How does this relate to urbanism? The rapid diffusion of digital media and other information communication technologies has influence across all sectors of society. In the past couple of years, with other contextual factors, such as austerity, the first generation of ‘digital natives’ going into work, and generally advancing pace of change, the public sector faces many challenges that call for innovation and revision of established service delivery. At OpenLab’s Centre for Digital Civics, which this module is linked to, Newcastle University trains a new breed of interdisciplinary researchers and practitioners that can answer to the challenges ahead. In terms of urban planning and architecture, the influences relate back to our discipline, requiring a change in both the content of planning education as well as its delivery.