Client Overview

In June 2024, Solveo facilitated a three-day, immersive Design Thinking workshop focused on soft skills development. The session brought together 20 students from FINKI, FEIT, Faculty of Civil Engineering, and UIST, with the goal of helping them develop critical soft skills through a hands-on, design-led problem-solving experience.

Over the course of three days, students not only learned how to use the Design Thinking framework, but also practiced it in teams—moving from empathy to ideation, and from prototyping to testing. The workshop was led by Solveo facilitators Ivan Zografski and Lela Anastasova.

The Challenge

Most soft skills programs still rely heavily on theory. The goal of this workshop was to flip the script: build communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking through doing—not just listening. At the same time, the challenge was to introduce students to the entire Design Thinking process in a short timeframe and help them walk away with practical tools they could apply beyond the workshop.

Our Approach

We designed the workshop as a fully immersive experience across three structured days, combining hands-on activities with interactive collaboration. Participants worked in small teams, guided by a clear framework of activities and tools on Miro, allowing them to map, design, and test real solutions from scratch.

Day 1 focused on building empathy and understanding users. Students started with stakeholder mapping and persona creation, identifying key players in their projects and developing a detailed understanding of user behaviors and motivations. Through research synthesis and the formulation of guiding questions, they laid the foundation for user-centered problem-solving.

Day 2 shifted to framing and idea generation. With insights from Day 1 in hand, participants created user journey maps and used the 5 Whys technique to dig into root causes. They then jumped into idea generation using brainstorming, “How Might We” questions, and prioritization tools like the “How, Now, Wow” and Impact/Effort matrix. Each team synthesized their concepts using an “Idea Napkin” to summarize core solutions.

Day 3 was all about testing and iteration. Teams created low-fidelity prototypes and tested them across teams to gather feedback. They visualized solutions through storyboards and refined them based on user reactions. The day wrapped with final presentations where each team pitched their concept and received feedback from facilitators and peers.

Throughout the workshop, participants actively contributed on Miro, building out empathy maps, conducting field research, and applying every step of the Design Thinking process with real-time feedback and guidance. By integrating practical tasks and reflection throughout the journey, the workshop became a space where abstract skills turned into visible outcomes.

Outcomes

Soft Skills Developed

• Empathy: Gained through stakeholder mapping, persona development, and customer journey mapping
  
  
• Collaboration: Practiced daily through team-based tasks and prototype testing
  
  
• Communication: Strengthened via interviews, presentations, and team discussions
  
  
• Creative Thinking: Encouraged through ideation exercises and rapid prototyping
  
  
• Critical Thinking: Developed using problem-framing tools and root cause analysis
  
  
• Adaptability: Applied during testing and iterative refinement of ideas
  
  
• Problem-Solving: Learned through structured ideation, prototyping, and testing loops
  
  
• Research Skills: Honed via desk and field research during Day 1
  
  
• User-Centered Design: Embedded throughout, from personas to final testing
  
  
• Presentation Skills: Practiced and improved through final pitch preparation
  
  
• Feedback & Iteration: Gained during peer testing and concept refinement
  
  
• Project Management: Applied throughout the 3-day sprint with milestone tracking
  
  

Participant Takeaways

• Empathy is essential in designing real-world solutions
  
  
• Collaboration breeds better, more creative results
  
  
• Testing and iteration is key to refining ideas
  
  
• Design Thinking is practical, not theoretical — and applicable across many fields