Designing co-design workshops: Methods and techniques for designing with users

Full day workshop. 6 Nov, 9am – 5pm.

Description

In co-design those impacted by the proposed design are actively involved as partners in the design process. Co-design approaches are increasingly being applied within government, community and health sectors to extend traditional consultation methods and increase program impact. The corporate sector is also recognising the potential for co-design to offer new ways to engage both internal stakeholders and customers, as well as identify new service opportunities and improve existing ones.

This workshop will provide participants with a hands-on introduction to designing successful co-design workshops, covering key methods and activities and the principles behind them. We’ll look at what it means to become a ‘design facilitator’: enabling participation, designing the right triggers, questions and scaffolds in which meaningful and effective participation, contribution and co-design can occur.

Co-design methods go beyond traditional market and user research techniques such as interviews, focus groups and observation. Co-design techniques include visual, designerly tools and activities such collage, scenarios, mapping, sketching and prototyping with users.

In this workshop participants will try out and deconstruct different techniques. We will walk through the process of designing a co-design workshop and the outputs it delivers, as well as review how co-design activities can be used to drive and inform design.

Specifically the workshop will cover:

  • Frequently used co-design methods and the principles behind them
  • The benefits and risks of taking a co-design approach
  • How co-design methods might fit into your future projects
  • A framework for planning and designing co-design workshops
  • Tips for planning, designing and facilitating workshops
  • Props and tools you need in your co-design workshop toolkit

The workshop will also touch upon opportunities and challenges for embedding co-design beyond workshops into the everyday workings of the organisation.

Who should attend

The workshop is aimed at anyone with an interest in using creative and participatory methods to better understand the lives and contexts of their users and to engage them in the design process. It will be particularly relevant to organisations looking for ways to engage users to ensure services and programs are designed in ways relevant, meaningful and effective for those users. It will also be valuable to those looking to foster a more collaborative design process internally or with clients and stakeholders.