Design Thinking for Innovation  Final Assignment  March 20, 2019

Challenge

As a consultant, I’m constantly trying to learn more so I can bring fresh perspectives and innovative ideas to  clients.  This course was particularly timely, as innovation has been top-of-mind for the financial services sector  (my area of focus).  As the regulatory environment has lightened in recent years and digitally-born financial  companies rapidly emerge, the established players in the industry have been working hard to improve customer  experiences and introduce new products and services.  Equally as important has been a focus on improving  internal processes in areas like risk, compliance, technology, and operations.  This is where my challenge enters.

Scenario analysis – the process of thinking through severe “what-if” scenarios – is a common risk management  exercise at most financial institutions, yet it has remained largely unchanged for years in its current manual, time- consuming, arduous form.  Scenario analysis is a vital tool for executives to critically evaluate a bank’s  preparedness in the event of a major risk event, however it’s manual and subjective nature leave it open to  criticism and its effectiveness is often questioned.  I decided to apply a design thinking approach to the question of  how one can modernize scenario analysis and make it a more powerful and effective exercise.  This is my  challenge.

Selection

I chose Storytelling as my tool, because of how rudimentary it seemed, yet so different from a typical ideation tool  used in a business context.  It struck me as great way to think about a situation differently and potentially arrive at  a solution.  As Carlos Alvarez said in the video lecture, “Every great product, every great service, every great  institution has a story behind it.”  Perhaps through telling a story, one could create a great story to tell, and via that  story, find a way to a solution.  On that point, Martin’s quote that “Storytelling is the difference between solving a  problem and creating a cause” also seemed quite prescient.

Application

I began the design thinking process by thinking about scenario analysis in its current form and asking the four key  questions of “What Is?”, “What If?”, “What Wows?”, and “What Works?”.  After getting the ideas flowing and  jotting down some thoughts on paper related to each of the four questions, I decided to take what I’d written  down and present it in the form of a story to my colleagues.

I began by telling the story of a risk manager at National Institute  of Coffee, a large, systemically-important bank with a global footprint  and operational complexity.  From there, I described the scenario analysis process in its current form – one that is  time-consuming, highly-manual, and extremely administrative in nature, particularly at a large institution like Bank  X.  I then posed the question of “what if” – what if there was a better way for the risk manager to do his job; a  better way to manage risk and think about risks in a more proactive, forward-looking manner.

From there, I continued by telling the story of a powerful, digital tool – one driven by artificial intelligence and  machine learning – that could intelligently identify emerging risks and pinpoint areas where scenario analysis  should be performed.  Although this is not something that currently exists, it created an extremely compelling  story and sparked excitement and a profound sense of awe among the team.  I ended the story on the question of  what works and what can we do to make this solution happen.

Insight

I gained immense insight from the storytelling tool.  It removed the constraints of ‘traditional’ thinking by allowing  me to tell an aspirational story which, in turn, revealed an aspirational solution to the problem of how one can  modernize scenario analysis.  I believe storytelling allows one to think in a more bold, provocative way since it is  about creating a compelling journey with a beginning, middle, and end.  Rather than simply creating a list of  potential solutions to a problem, storytelling gives one the freedom to be bold, daring, assertive, and  unconventional, all of which may reveal a possible solution.

Approach

If I were to use the storytelling tool again, I would try to think even more outside-of-the-box.  For example, rather  than telling a story about a risk manager at Bank X – one that is aspirational but practical – I would try to broaden  my thinking further and set a completely different scene in a different environment.  Perhaps tell the story of a  doctor in a hospital or a teacher in a school or a young child at home.  By expanding further outside of the box, I  believe further insights could reveal themselves that could easily be translated into a more practical, financial  services context.


Design Thinking for Innovation Final Assignment March 20 , 2019 Challenge As a consultant , I ’m constantly trying to learn more so I can bring fresh perspectives and innovative ideas to clients . This course was particularly timely , as innovation has been top - of - mind for the financial services sector ( my area of focus ) . As the regulatory environment has lightened in recent years and digitally - born financial companies rapidly emerge , the established players in the industry have been working hard to improve customer experiences and introduce new products and services . Equally as important has been a focus on improving internal processes in areas like risk , compliance , technology , and operations . This is where my challenge enters . Scenario analysis – the process of thinking through severe “ what - if ” scenarios – is a common risk management exercise at most financial institutions , yet it has remained largely unchanged for years in its current manual , time- consuming , arduous form . Scenario analysis is a vital tool for executives to critically evaluate a bank ’s preparedness in the event of a major risk event , however it ’s manual and subjective nature leave it open to criticism and its effectiveness is often questioned . I decided to apply a design thinking approach to the question of how one can modernize scenario analysis and make it a more powerful and effective exercise . This is my challenge . Selection I chose Storytelling as my tool , because of how rudimentary it seemed , yet so different from a typical ideation tool used in a business context . It struck me as great way to think about a situation differently and potentially arrive at a solution . As Carlos Alvarez said in the video lecture , “ Every great product , every great service , every great institution has a story behind it . ” Perhaps through telling a story , one could create a great story to tell , and via that story , find a way to a solution . On that point , Martin ’s quote that “ Storytelling is the difference between solving a problem and creating a cause ” also seemed quite prescient . Application I began the design thinking process by thinking about scenario analysis in its current form and asking the four key questions of “ What Is ? ” , “ What If ? ” , “ What Wows ? ” , and “ What Works ? ” . After getting the ideas flowing and jotting down some thoughts on paper related to each of the four questions , I decided to take what I ’d written down and present it in the form of a story to my colleagues . I began by telling the story of a risk manager at National Institute of Coffee , a large , systemically - important bank with a global footprint and operational complexity . From there , I described the scenario analysis process in its current form – one that is time - consuming , highly - manual , and extremely administrative in nature , particularly at a large institution like Bank X. I then posed the question of “ what if ” – what if there was a better way for the risk manager to do his job ; a better way to manage risk and think about risks in a more proactive , forward - looking manner . From there , I continued by telling the story of a powerful , digital tool – one driven by artificial intelligence and machine learning – that could intelligently identify emerging risks and pinpoint areas where scenario analysis should be performed . Although this is not something that currently exists , it created an extremely compelling story and sparked excitement and a profound sense of awe among the team . I ended the story on the question of what works and what can we do to make this solution happen . Insight I gained immense insight from the storytelling tool . It removed the constraints of ‘ traditional ’ thinking by allowing me to tell an aspirational story which , in turn , revealed an aspirational solution to the problem of how one can modernize scenario analysis . I believe storytelling allows one to think in a more bold , provocative way since it is about creating a compelling journey with a beginning , middle , and end . Rather than simply creating a list of potential solutions to a problem , storytelling gives one the freedom to be bold , daring , assertive , and unconventional , all of which may reveal a possible solution . Approach If I were to use the storytelling tool again , I would try to think even more outside - of - the - box . For example , rather than telling a story about a risk manager at Bank X – one that is aspirational but practical – I would try to broaden my thinking further and set a completely different scene in a different environment . Perhaps tell the story of a doctor in a hospital or a teacher in a school or a young child at home . By expanding further outside of the box , I believe further insights could reveal themselves that could easily be translated into a more practical , financial services context .