IGNITE INNOVATION.
DesignShops: World-famous design sprints
Born out of Artiles's Masters thesis at MIT, the DesignShop is Darte's proprietary "design sprint" format for learning and applying the design process to any "wicked problem". Stemming from an MIT hands-on approach to learning the fundamental principles of design, Darte provides a customized experience to the audience and their challenges ahead and leverages the multitude of IDEO et. al design thinking resources so participants' learning is supported beyond the DesignShop.
Service
Hands-on Training; Design-based Problem-solving
Year
Est. 2014
Clients
MIT,
Credit Suisse,
Boston Society of Architects, Koru Strategy, Beyond the Agency,
Seven Arrows and Little Dolphins Academy,
Estácio de Sa,
Gustavo Couto,
Mingdao International High School,
Hong Kong's Catalyst Education Lab,
RisOn
At Darte, we like to build capacity to help you get there, during our time together and beyond. Each DesignShop is curated to harness insight from the expert, the user, and the designer-in-training. Our tools come from working as engineers, designers, makers, lawyers, advisors, dance instructors, and from traveling the world working with different personalities and cultures.
Our secret sauce is research-based and gosh darn delicious when you see us in action. Here are some favorite mantras:
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topic definition increases engagement;
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pre-game interviews are gold;
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team design can be optimized;
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keep mentors flat;
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playtest daily;
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show me in 3D.
hands-on thinking
There's a method to our madness: to engage both brains—head and gut— and design from a comprehensive and fully informed center. Design solutions are ever-lasting when they are practical and intuitive, and we can tap into that place with you. Mindfulness + awareness + design = a better world, no doubt.
from coach to quarterback
With Darte's background in design education at MIT, we are able to serve you in a number of roles. Darte can jump in as your:
Instructor,
Facilitator,
Co-Designer,
Quarterback,
Teammate.
DESIGN Principles
You will leave our design sprint with a foundation n the principles and mindsets, and with a set of design tools to take back to your every day. Building capacity through the Power of Design— that's awesome.
Consulting
This isn't your father's consulting service. DesignShops serve us as a hands-on briefing into the problem. We'll roll-up our sleeves and make progress on your goals while unravelling the complexities before we co-design an informed path forward. Hands-on strategy design— we live in the future.
DesignShops around the world
As of 2019, The DesignShop model has served communities in Colombia, Brasil, India, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, and all over the U.S.
No matter where we land, one pattern continues to emerge: people are people, and people are creative.
Get in touch with us– we love talking about how our model can be customized to serve you or your organization. We love all shapes and sizes— even with a screen in between us on a remote virtual sprint!
Knowing your market, doing your research
Our first DesignShop was an experiment in how to communicate the new innovation platforms Artiles was building for her thesis that would later go on the road all over the world and ultimately become the foundation for Darte Design. This wasn't going to be just any Professional Development Workshop, and we needed to make that clear to our users— some of them flying in from Brasil to attend! We conducted a series of video interviews of experts and of users within the education system and synthesized our design research into three main themes to work out during the weekend. This Trailer told our participants we were designing with them in mind, not taking their valuable time for granted. From the three topic videos that we synthesized (available at edudesignshop.mit.edu), participants were given the agency to rank their preferred theme for the week-long experiment.
The Results
25 teams innovating in education and what do you get? Lots of food trucks.
These Final Presentations show how well teams applied and incredibly internalized a process-based innovation approach in just two days.
We're humbled to continue receiving connections with participants thanking us, sharing how they're still using what they learned back in 2014!
TESTIMONIALS
“ANYONE THAT MEETS JESSICA ARTILES CAN PROBABLY AGREE THAT HER INFECTIOUS ENERGY AND OPENNESS MAKE HER AN UNFORGETTABLE HUMAN BEING. SHE BRINGS THIS SAME ENERGY TO HER DESIGNSHOP SESSIONS. WHEN JESS LED OUR SESSION SHE MANAGED TO KEEP THE ENTIRE AUDIENCE ENGAGED AND CURIOUS THROUGHOUT, SOMETHING I’D NEVER WITNESSED BEFORE IN THAT ORGANIZATION. I FELT EMPOWERED TO CONTINUE MY JOURNEY IN DESIGN THINKING THROUGH EVERY DAY PRACTICES AFTER OUR SESSION, AND THOROUGHLY ENJOYED THE EXPERIENCE. THE TOOL I HAVE MOST OFTEN USED SINCE DESIGNSHOP IS SKETCH-NOTING, I AM GETTING MUCH MORE OUT OF MY NOTES THESE DAYS!”
CAROLINA BELMONTE / COGNITIVE & DIGITAL SERVICES, AVP OF INTERACTION DESIGN / GLOBAL FINANCIAL SERVICES ORGANIZATION
"TAKING A DESIGN THINKING WORKSHOP WITH DARTE WAS A TRULY ENJOYABLE EXPERIENCE. JESSICA PROVIDED GREAT GUIDANCE AND HELPED OUR TEAM DISTILL COMPLEX PROBLEMS INTO ACTIONABLE SOLUTIONS, WHICH IS PARTICULARLY USEFUL IN OUR CREATIVE INDUSTRY. WE APPRECIATED THE ATTENTION TO DETAIL AS SHE ADDRESSED ALL QUESTIONS THAT CAME UP DURING THE SESSION, ANSWERING THEM WITH CLARITY AND CONTEXT. WE NOW ACTIVELY LOOK FOR WAYS TO APPLY DESIGN THINKING INTO OUR PROCESSES AT THE AGENCY ON A DAILY BASIS."
DAVID VERJANO/ CREATIVE DIRECTOR / BEYOND THE AGENCY