Introduction

Design thinking is essentially an iterative process where innovative solutions form the
outcome of in-depth understanding of user needs and behaviours and subsequent
prototyping as well as testing to deliver an improved user experience. Most useful to tackle
problems that are not well-defined or unknown at the initial stage. Design thinking’s unique
ability to address latent human needs is what makes it stand out.

This method focusses on the consumer the product is being creating for. In employing
design thinking, one pulls together what is desirable from a user’s point of view with what is
viable or feasible both technologically and economically.
This method encompasses the following 5 step approach (These stages may not always be
sequential and can be run in parallel, in a different order and repeated iteratively) :-

Empathize
This step allows you to set aside your own assumptions or pre-conceived notions
and gain insight into the actual user need and behaviour pattern. Typically done via
user research.
In our project, through observation and interactions with the students at IMT, our group
came to the realisation that there are several issues related to hygiene and basic facilities
which is affecting the students. Hence to provide a viable solution, we went to the second
phase of the process, i.e., defining the problem statement.