Design as an accelerator of early-stage technological projects

Design is an important strategic resource for business innovation and growth. Its user-centered approach increases the chances of success of technological projects and is essential for creating a competitive advantage and reducing the risk of market rejection. However, young engineers have few resources and limited time to convince their clients and investors of the potential of their innovations. Therefore, as part of this work, we wanted to understand how to help young engineers accelerate the transformation of their early-stage technological projects into meaningful products for the user through a structured design practice. To answer this question, we (1) studied the design activities that contribute to the development of technological projects in the different phases of growth of startups, (2) put together a toolkit to facilitate collaboration between designers and engineers, and (3) conducted a first test of their effectiveness during a workshop.