Learning the ​“why” behind a project is essential in understanding success

In our Discovery process, we want to gain a thorough understanding of our clients goals for the proposed project by listening to all stakeholders, gaining consensus and establishing our project drivers. This informs the design strategies and the established project drivers are used throughout the design process to score proposed solutions. Here are some examples of the tools in our Discovery toolbox:

• Survey Questions A simple electronic survey allows us to reach a broader audience before we even step foot on your campus. We will work closely with you to determine what type of input you are looking to receive and can offer examples as a starting point.
• Hopes & Fears Exercise What do you hope will be accomplished with this project? What do you fear will be missed? Most of the time, specific hopes and fears are consistent and repeated. Therefore, we can quickly determine what is most important to our clients.
• Voice of the Customer All viewpoints need to be considered when creating a solution. By asking our clients to step outside their individual role, it allows them to consider others within their organization and the customers that they serve.
• Spectrum Exercise We can determine quickly where individuals rank on different topics, such as ​“I like to work in spaces where the furniture is fixed, adjustable or mobile.”
• Spaghetti Diagramming We review how all occupants use the space by tracing activities or steps from point A to point B. This allows us to identify existing workflows and offer up proposed solutions that may cut out unnecessary steps, so productivity can increase.
• Group Interviews To fully understand the needs and aspirations of the group, a series of interactive group interviews are conducted with appropriate stakeholders.

We use the tools to engage all stakeholders and the results allow us to understand strategic direction, evaluate strategy, define challenges and understand how trends are affecting your future. This information is key to creating an innovative, forward-thinking solution.