Design Sprint - Monday (Map)

We encourage you to read the book... or at least, browse the website thesprintbook.com

Notes

• Start at 10am

• Schedules are approximate. Don't worry if you run behind. Remember to take breaks every sixty to ninety minutes (or around 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. each day).

Key Ideas

• Start at the end. Start by imagining your end result and risks along the way. Then work backward to figure out the steps you'll need to get there. (here)

• Nobody knows everything. Not even the Decider. All the knowledge on your sprint team is locked away in each person's brain. To solve your big problem, you'll need to unlock that knowledge and build a shared understanding. (here)

• Reframe problems as opportunities. Listen carefully for problems and use "How might we" phrasing to turn them into opportunities.

Facilitator Tips

• Ask for permission. Ask the group for permission to facilitate. Explain that you'll try to keep things moving, which will make the sprint more efficient for everyone. (here)

• ABC: Always be capturing. Synthesize the team's discussion into notes on the whiteboard. Improvise when needed. Keep asking, "How should I capture that?"

• Ask obvious questions. Pretend to be naive. Ask "Why?" a lot.

• Take care of the humans. Keep your team energized. Take breaks every sixty to ninety minutes. Remind people to snack and to eat a light lunch.

• Decide and move on. Slow decisions sap energy and threaten the sprint timeline. If the group sinks into a long debate, ask the Decider to make a call.

Write this checklist on a whiteboard.

When you're done, check off this first item.
See how easy that was? Keep checking off items throughout the day.

Introductions

If some people don't know one another, do a round of introductions.
Point out the Facilitator and the Decider and describe their roles.

Explain the sprint

Introduce the five-day sprint process (you can use the slide deck on thesprintbook.com). Run through this checklist and briefly describe each activity.

Set a long-term goal. Get optimistic. Ask:

• Why are we doing this project?

• Where do we want to be in six months, a year, or even five years from now?

• Write the long-term goal on a whiteboard.

List sprint questions. Get pessimistic. Ask:

• How could we fail?

• Turn these fears into questions you could answer this week. List them on a whiteboard.

Make a map.

List customers and key players on the left. Draw the ending, with your completed goal, on the right.

Finally, make a flowchart in between showing how customers interact with your product. Keep it simple: five to fifteen steps.

Eat together if you can (it's fun).

Remind your team to choose a light lunch to maintain energy in the afternoon.

There are snacks if you get hungry later.

Ask the Experts.

Interview experts on your sprint team and guests from the outside. Aim for fifteen to thirty minutes each.

Ask about the vision, customer research, how things work, and previous efforts. Pretend you're a reporter

Update long-term goal, questions, and map as you go.

Explain How Might We notes.

Distribute whiteboard markers and sticky notes.

Reframe problems as opportunities. Start with the letters "HMW" on the top left corner. Write one idea per sticky note. Make a stack as you go.

Organize How Might We notes.

Stick all the How Might We notes onto a wall in any order. Move similar ideas next to one another. Label themes as they emerge. Don't perfect it. Stop after about ten minutes.

Vote on How Might We notes

Each person has two votes, can vote on his or her own notes, or even the same note twice. Move winners onto your map.

Pick a target

Circle your most important customer and one target moment on the map. The team can weigh in, but the Decider makes the call.