What I learned from running a Design Sprint (pt. 2)

Continuing on from my previous article on the preparation and first day, this part touches on general tips and key takeaways from Tuesday to Friday.

Trailblazing Tuesday

After finishing up our many “Ask the Expert” sessions on Monday at around 6pm, it made no sense to stick around to make key decisions on frazzled brains. We therefore started fresh on Tuesday with the voting step. This was also beneficial as one of our key stakeholders was out on Monday, therefore, having him involved in this stage on Tuesday made more sense.

Yes, we broke the rules of the Design Sprint format. It is not dogmatic, it is a guideline, and shit happens.

The demo effect

Wrapping up from the morning votes, we had everyone demo other apps which they were familiar with and loved, looking for ideas and inspirations from those that had come before us. This exercise helped to get the team comfortable talking about features and design and also proved fundamental in aligning the team on what worked and what didn’t. It was a solid way for everyone to form a baseline of standards and expectations.

Set the (drawing) bar

Some tasks during the week are going to be more uncomfortable for some. This is…