IGNITE INNOVATION.
Remote Design Sprints à la Carte
Client
MIT’s J-WEL (Jameel World Education Lab)
2021, Remote
Tags
Product Strategy; Product Roadmap; Workshop Facilitation; Prototyping Coaching; Learning & Development
 I created a high level product strategy for our engagement, mapping objectives to design thinking concepts to activities and outcomes. |  A participant prototypes how she wants to see her students- as brave knights defending values and mindsets. |  We created a Padlet page for asynchronous collaboration and further learning. |
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 I encouraged participants to show, not tell, us about their ideas and lo and behold, their sketches made remote collaboration much easier. |  After encouraging teams to let loose throughout our week together, I celebrated their hard work during their final presentations with a little pizzazz. |  I guided my intern, Jamie, in the creation of this tool, describing to participants what all the ways we'd use design thinking. |
 Team spaces on Padlet were prepared with instructions and examples that allowed them to self-pace during our breakout sessions. |  The final report to J-WEL included a collection of key participant feedback framing the conversation. |  I mentored our intern, Jamie, as she illustrated this diagram to exemplify what makes a good prototype. |
The Challenge
Because of COVID, MIT’s J-WEL team needed to transition their signature conference event to an online platform, so they hired me to create a custom Design Sprint series that would activate their international member base. The goal was to create prototypes of innovative solutions that would further the teaching and learning experience of teachers and students all around the world.
The Process
I created a unique on-boarding experience that revealed user needs from the get-go. I created a custom application process to screen participants into optimal teams. I created a self-guided instructional portal for members to follow along at their own pace that complimented my live instruction during the Design Sprint. I created a product roadmap that aligned expectations and client needs with our schedule of delivery. I delivered key lessons in design thinking with an emphasis on reaching across language barriers. I coached and mentored teams on creating hands-on prototypes and on mapping to user needs and I inspired teams to integrate design thinking in post-Sprint functions. I authored accompanying audio lectures for participants to further their learnings and an online studio space where they could transition into seeing the world through a designers’ lens.
Results
J-WEL discovered key insights about their customers and I incorporated these into follow-up strategies for engagement with their user base. Members left with implementation-ready prototypes eager to take to their superiors for next-level funding. Members left activated and proud of their new design thinking skills, asking J-WEL for help to introduce these concepts at their school-wide level.
TESTIMONIAL
"Working with Jessica was one of the most valuable experiences for our group... Jessica went above and beyond to tailor an experience that not only challenged the participants but also our team of organizers to identify and find true value in the experience we wished to bring! Final comments from folks who joined ranged from excitement over trying this method for the first time to requesting how to better bring Jessica's practice into their local organizations. In a time of great uncertainty, Jessica was a beacon of light, not only with her joyous energy, but also with the hope she inspired with everyone she met."
—Joe Diaz, MIT J-WEL