Course Brochure '25
Course Brochure '25
“Our experts will guide you through a structured approach and establish a new way of working to sustain innovation. ”
Design Thinking Foundations & Storytelling
Hello, we're DesignThinkers, but you can call us "DT"
Design Thinking is a widely recognised framework to development innovative and relevant solutions for complex challenges. It is a hands-on method and mindset with emphasis on teamwork and iterative learning through continuous end-user and stakeholder involvement.
Our goal is to unlock your challenges and create lasting impact. With our practical approach, we empower you to lead change, providing the tools to identify beneficial opportunities and nurture valuable solutions. Our worldwide team combines global reach with invaluable local expertise, strategically assembling professionals to train, guide, and develop your team and organization, ensuring you thrive in the everevolving landscape. With over 25 years of experience, we bring leading-edge expertise from Europe to drive meaningful change and create lasting impact.
Now, let's get started!
Now, let's get started. Table of Contents
Why choose us?
Our worldwide team combines global reach with invaluable local expertise, strategically assembling professionals to train, guide, and develop your team and organization, ensuring you thrive in the ever-evolving landscape. With over 25 years of experience, we bring leading-edge expertise from Europe to drive meaningful change and create lasting impact.
05
Take a look at all the key learning objectives, topics covered, practical applications, and detailed course structure of the upcoming training.
page 08
Find out if this training matches your learning journey, which tools will be used, and practical details such as location & pricing. Learning
& Official Certification page 11
Outcomes
What are the expected learning outcomes and their benefits. You will receive an official certificate, toolkit & exclusive access to our L&D library.
: We
to guide your
journey page 20 We' re happy to help you on your professional learning path! Aside from our courses, we offer bespoke programs. Contact us for more info.
Design Thinking Foundations & Storytelling
This hands-on course blends the essentials of Design Thinking with Storytelling to help you turn user insights into meaningful narratives and impactful innovation. Over three dynamic days, you ’ll learn how to apply key tools such as Stakeholder Mapping, Personas, Customer Journey Mapping, and Prototyping. Simultaneously, you will also be exploring how stories shape understanding, build empathy, and inspire action.
3 days of 8 hours Involvement See full calendar Dates
"The course was a great introduction to the concepts of Design
Thinking, Customer Journey and Persona Mapping
Andrew Lyall, Adobe
Capabilities:
. "
You’ll work in small, cocreative teams guided by expert facilitators, tackling a real challenge from multiple angles. Along the way, you ’ll gain practical techniques for framing compelling narratives, choosing the right story to tell, and communicating ideas that stick. This course equips you to lead with empathy, think creatively, as well as bringing your solutions to life through story. Is the message you communicate about your product, service or idea presented in a way that is memorable and impactful?
Design Thinking Foundations & Storytelling
Sign up
*AI Included
Problem Space
09:30 Kick-off
Introduction to Design Thinking Methodology & cases
Present team-specific challenge
Stakeholder Mapping Research Guidelines
Design Research
Solution Space
09:00 Kick-off
Design Phase: Ideation
Brainstorm Techniques
ABC Avalanche
Prototyping and Validaton
Priority Mapping Service Scenarios
Prototyping
*Integrating AI in brainstorm techniques
Discover Phase: Briefing and Research
Stakeholder Map & Persona
Define Pase: Reframing and Opportunity Areas
*Using AI in research
Wrap-up day 1 & Reflection round
Problem Statement
Customer Journey Map
Opportunity Areas & Reflection Methods
Deliver Phase
Pitching
Wrap-up day 2 & Reflection round
12:30 Lunch break 18:00 End 17:30 Certification & Drinks
Testing & Validation
Iteration
Persuasive Selling
Now-Next-Future Personal Action Plan
Design Thinking Foundations & Storytelling
*AI Included
Storytelling
09:30 Kick-off
Learning Objectives - DT & Storytelling
Storytelling Principles & Structures
Building Blocks for Impactful Stories
Strategy Development
Story Gathering
ABT Structure Clapboard Being Hollywood Hero's Journey
3 Act Structure
Hands-On Tools
Art Cards
Skeleton Origin Story
Your Storytelling Occasion
Define Target Group
Crafting Your Story & the Art of Visual Thinking
Protytyping & Testing your Story
Showtime: Pitch your Story
Audience Persona
Audience Mapping
Steller Storytelling Framework
Story Mountain
6 Stickies in a Row
6 Word Story
Storytelling Feedback
Participant Profile
Working professionals and field experts
…looking to understand their customers and users, and who want to gain confidence in using Design Thinking and storytelling to do so.
NGO's and Government workers
…who want to understand their audience' s needs and create impactful solutions for the public.
Executives or decision makers
...looking to strengthen their ability to lead innovation and enhance the organization’ s innovation capability.
Freelancers and consultants
…who want to understand the needs and behaviour of their target groups, and how to help them kickstart innovation.
Steakholder Mapping Skeleton Origin Story
Customer Journey Mapping
Audience Mapping Personas
ABT Structure
15-30 minutes
Individual or in groups
Sticky notes, sharpies
The “And, But, Therefore” structure helps you build a compelling and logical story. It prevents dull, episodic storytelling by ensuring each event leads to the next in a meaningful way. This structure keeps your audience engaged and invested in the outcome.
Skeleton Origin Story Freitag's Pyramid
30-45 minutes
+4 people
Sticky notes, sharpies
Your origin story is a powerful way to define who you are and what has shaped your journey. In the workshop, we explore this in pairs, but it can also be done individually. Understanding your own story helps clarify your values, motivations, and unique perspective.
Audience Mapping
45-60 minutes
Core team
Sticky notes, sharpies
Audience Mapping helps storytellers tailor their message to the right people. Not every story fits every audience—this tool ensures your story resonates by aligning it with the motivations, needs, and challenges of different stakeholder groups.
Stellar Storytelling
15-30 minutes
Core team
Sticky notes, sharpies
Stellar Storytelling helps you craft compelling stories that stick. This method is powerful because it connects your message to real human experiences, making it easier for your audience to care, remember, and act, while providing you with the foundational structure of expose, climax and resolution to create an impactful narrative.
20-60 minutes Core team
Sticky notes, sharpies
The Service Scenario Map is a tool which will help you visualize the steps and actions your persona takes when using the service or product of your company. It is a visualization of the user experience, using the service designed based on the ideated ideas.
Storytelling Feedback
The Storytelling Feedback Form is designed to enhance the effectiveness of your story. It invites structured, constructive feedback from peers or audiences, helping you understand how your message lands. Storytelling is both an art and a skill, and this form offers valuable insights on clarity, emotional impact, credibility, and structure.
Outcomes & Objectives
What to expect Learning Outcomes
What's Included?
Your
A Designer's Mindset, AI-empowered
We base our approach on the Double Diamond, developed by the UK Design Council. This is a visual model frequently used to describe a process flow of design and innovation. We have adapted this model to integrate the latest AI.
The first Diamond focuses on problem finding while the second Diamond provides the tools and mindset for generating value increasing solutions.
CONNECTIONS & RELATIONSHIPS
People-centered design empowered by AI
LEADERSHIP &
Our AI-enabled, humancentered design raises awareness and harnesses progressive AI research to enrich the human experience.
We leverage the latest AI tools to uncover innovative solutions, ensuring that every angle is explored and no stone is left unturned.
Meet some of our Facilitators
Our coaches and facilitators are all subject matter experts in th Human-Centred Design, and have extensive experience in pro assistance and trainings in Design Thinking. You can find all o and facilitators on our website.
*Dr. Robert Collins is a business consultant and educator who has been delivering courses through the University of Oxford for over 25 years.
About what we do Expertise
We focus on creating value for people as the most effective way to drive project success and inspire.
"A
refreshing and
engaging experience that went beyond my expectations."
Tupo Muocha, UNICEF
Our worldwide team combines global reach with invaluable local expertise. We approach every challenge from the user ’ s perspective. We focus on creating value for people as the most effective way to drive project success and inspire growth for our clients’ businesses and organisations. inspire growth for our clients’ businesses and organisations. inspire growth for our clients.
Schuurman, Founder DT Academy
Joey Piliero, Senior Facilitator
Adela Cristea, Leadership Expert
Certification
We value quality! DesignThinkers is accredited by the Dutch Council for Training and Education, underscoring our commitment to delivering high-quality education and training experiences globally. This accreditation is a testament to our unwavering commitment to delivering high-quality education and training experiences to our global community.
After the successful completion of one of our courses, participants are awarded with a DesignThinkers Academy Certificate. All tools and materials will be available after the course in our Learn & Develop Library (accessible to alumni only).
'
Ihaveparticipatedinatleast
softskillsinthepast
15 courseson
20 yearsofmycareer, but
thecourseofDTAstandsoutasthebest
. '
Javier Sanchez Millan, Banque Pictet & Cie SA
Price list*
Whatwe provide
Culture
An AI-aware innovation cultu
Our experts will guide you structured approach that in emerging technologies like establishes a future-proof w working to sustain innovat
Content
Relevant results
We provide the means to bring real and viable solutions to your challenge, using AI-driven insights and validating those with real customers and key stakeholders through masterful presentation.
Capability
An AI & innova
ready team
Through hands-on trainin
we empower your team to adopt a solution oriented mindset and build confidence in applying emerging AI learning technologies to drive innovation.
Culture
Capability
Content
Steppingstones forinnovation
Your Bespoke LearningJourney
We help you navigate through a diverse array of customized routes, integrating both content and capability services and ensuring a bespoke approach to meet your unique needs and unlock your potential.
and find your bespoke route. We explore stepping stones together,
Other courses that may interest you
Immersive DT
Bootcamp for Innovators (AI)
Strategy for Innovation Training Foundations of Innovative Design (Inc
Learn from highly experienced Service Design & Design Thinking practitioners by Masterclasses and experiencing DT with a real case.
In this training, you will learn how to approach problems more systematically and detect emerging trends to transform them into innovation strategies.
T fundamentals of Design Thinking with hands-on applications of AI to help you innovate smarter, faster, and with more impact.
Deep-Dive
Thinking and Facilitation in just 4 days. Work in co-creation in small teams to learn from participants with diverse industry backgrounds.
skills to being a leader of the future while learning to guide your organization through disruptive and dynamic conditions, with the support of AI. * includes latest AI techniques
Getintouchvia Whatsappfor questionsbig orsmall,
Send a Whatsapp now just drop our team a message and we'll get you what you need. Hey, DesignThinkers here, how can we help you today? I have a question about the AI & Strategic Thinkng Course. Of course!
Some companies we're proud to team up with
See all cases
From startups to global enterprises, we ’ re privileged to support teams of all capabilities in solving complex challenges through innovation. By equipping organizations with the right tools, mindset, and strategies, we help them foster creativity, drive meaningful change, and stay ahead in an ever-evolving world.
We operate with a high energy, action oriented approach to make sure you walk away with tangible outcomes. Together, let’ s shape a future that truly benefits everyone. Looking for a bespoke program? Let' s connect! Email us via info@designthinkersacademy.com.
