Strategy Design Sprint

Strategy is one of the most commonly misused words in business and design. Some people use it for a high-level approach to things (“we need a different strategy for attracting talent”) and some use it as a synonym for a structured approach (“let’s strategically approach this and first prepare a plan”). However, in the context of business, strategy has a very different definition.

Strategy is choosing what to do and what not to do. 

The Strategy Design Sprint is our attempt to involve design in strategic decisions within companies so we can contribute to the highest level of decisions.

What is the Strategy Design Sprint?

Design is hard to explain. And when something is hard to understand, it is hard to adopt (and sell). It turns out that sprints were a great packaging that helped us better explain design to the business community, which led to its greater adoption. At the d.MBA, we started exploring how we could apply this great format to designing business topics. We were particularly interested in the topic of business strategy because most designers crave more strategic work. So, finding a format that will open the door for such work seemed like a worthy project.

But designing a strategy is complex and takes time, right? How could it fit into a sprint format? Well, designing a strategy might feel like a big, imposing topic that takes months to design and implement, but the core strategic ideas can actually be designed and tested in just a few days.

The Strategy Design Sprint is an open-source, Strategy Design Sprint format, which you can adapt, change, and sell to your clients.

Who is it for?

Strategy Design Sprint is for you if you want to

• bring together design and business professionals,

• host structured conversations about a company's or organization's strategy,

• come up with actionable strategy initiatives in only one week,

• set the foundation for successful company directions.

How does it work?

The Strategy Design Sprint builds on the process and mindset of the Design Sprint book by Jake Knapp but applies it to the topic of business strategy.

We broke down the activities into two weeks.

Week 0

In week 0, you will take some time to prepare the materials and conduct research.

You will:

• explore and identify who you are competing against,

• understand how products (or services) are made in a company, and

• identify the biggest cost drivers of a company.

Week 1

Now, that you've done your research and have prepared materials, it’s time to move on to week 1 and start with an actual sprint.

You will:

• understand how different strategic groups compete in the arena,

• identify the most important trade-off decisions of a company,

• create prototypes to test the strategic directions, and

• summarize your ideas and observations into actionable and meaningful strategic recommendations.