In short: You can use individual steps (like the 4-step sketch or the expert interviews) or bundles (problem framing, ideation, prototyping) from a Design Sprint in other work situations.

Remember a Design Sprint is a recipe

To me, a Design Sprint is like a recipe with many steps. And if there's one thing I've learned from cooking, it's that recipes often have similar steps. Breaking an egg appears in many recipes. Putting something in the oven at 200 degrees is common too.

Once we see the Design Sprint as a recipe with steps that we can apply elsewhere, it opens up new possibilities. Most of us won't do a Design Sprint every week. But each week, we might use one of its steps to help with a task.

So, most tasks in a Design Sprint can be used outside of it. There are also mini-bundles of tasks that can serve as mini-workshops. Here are some examples:

Problem Framing Workshop

For a mini-problem framing workshop, you could condense the first day of a Design Sprint. Clarify the goal and the questions you want to answer. Invite experts to help think through these questions. Map the user journey and choose a focus. By the end, you'll have more clarity on the opportunity or problem you want to tackle.

Ideation Workshop

The lightning demos and four-step sketches make for a solid Ideation Workshop. To enhance it, you could add expert interviews for more inspiration.

Prototyping Workshop

For a Prototyping Workshop, take the solution sketch element from the four-step sketch process. Add storyboarding and prototyping moments as outlined in the Design Sprint Process.

Use single activities

You can use single activities like doing crazy eights during a meeting to open up possibilities.

Written with AI help
This article is based on an audio recording I took while walking that was then transcribed and cleaned using Audiopen. I then reviewed and improved the text by hand.