+ Human-centred design

Also known as Design Thinking, this is a problem solving approach that puts people experiencing a problem at the centre of the design process, because those experiencing the problem know the issue best.

• This approach gets to better solutions because folks share their experiences, including challenges and ideas for what better looks like, putting value on diverse perspectives and novel solutions.
• Through human-centred design, folks are generally more invested in the process and solutions developed because they are able to take part in and see themselves in the design process.
• Overall, this approach is iterative (going through the design cycle of define, research, ideate, prototype, and test many times) and builds off of the learning that comes from engagement as well as the implementation and testing of new solutions.

+ Engagement foundations

Wherever the interaction might be (in-person, on the street, at the clinic, online), it’s important participants have a clear expectation for what is about to happen.

• Be friendly and clear about what you are doing. Introduce yourself if appropriate, and let them know that their participation will in no way impact their service today.
• Be sure to explain what information you are collecting, how you will use that information, and what information (if any) will be disclosed.
• Write everything down. It’s important we take thorough notes and review them afterward (either individually or, even better, with a team). If you only write down what stands out in the moment, you risk losing nuances and important insights.
• Thank them for their contribution and remind them how you will use the information you have collected. If you are collecting demographics, remind participants that sharing such information is optional.
• If you have the opportunity to have in-person conversation, it’s a good idea to go out in pairs. This provides a bit of security for you and the participant, and means one person can focus on taking notes while the other focuses on the conversation.

+ Open-ended questions

Well-formed questions help us uncover people’s honest thoughts and best ideas related to a specific topic.

• For discovery research, we use open-ended questions and for hypothesis-testing we use closed-ended questions.
• An open-ended question is a question that can’t be answered with a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ (or any one-word static response), and are good to use when we don’t know the answer—they help us find out what the biggest concerns or needs of a group are.
• These questions can be phrased as a statement which requires a response or include keywords such as why and how, leading to open and diverse conversation.
• Close-ended questions on the other hand are great for testing an hypothesis or prototype testing—in other words, when you think you know the answer and want to validate it.

+ Light touch engagement tools

Light touch engagement tools are a great way to collect diverse perspectives and feedback. They require minimal instruction and generally aren’t time intensive.

• Typically, these tools allow the person to provide as much information as they wish through the form of three to five open-ended questions.
• The Street Team Survey is a great example of a light touch tool that we can use for engagement.