IBM SkillsBuild

Designer

Design thinking is a powerful approach to innovation and brand differentiation, focused on creating experiences that delight customers. Complete these activities to understand and apply knowledge of design thinking principles to develop solutions that deliver exceptional user experiences. Start by reviewing the toolkit and taking the Enterprise Design Thinking Practitioner course to earn the badge

Beginner Design & UX Self-paced Earn a Certificate

About This Course

What this course is about

Design Thinking Essentials introduces you to the human-centered principles that are reshaping how people and technology interact.

You’ll learn what makes design truly human-centered — focusing on empathy, creativity, and experimentation — and why design thinking is a powerful approach for solving complex problems in modern digital environments. You’ll also see how design thinking and agile practices complement each other to support innovation, collaboration, and better user experiences.

As you complete the course, you’ll earn certificates and digital credentials that you can add to your resume, LinkedIn profile, and Credly account to highlight your design thinking skills.

You’ll learn how to:

Apply human-centered thinking to solve problems creatively

Collaborate effectively in team-based innovation activities

Use design thinking tools to improve products, services, and workflows

Understand how design thinking supports digital work and agile practices

What you will learn

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

Understand the foundations of design thinking

Explain what makes design “human-centered”

Recognize why design thinking is valuable in digital and innovation-oriented workplaces

Collaborate and solve problems creatively

Improve teamwork, communication, and adaptability

Use collaborative methods to generate ideas and improve how work gets done

Understand how design thinking contributes to delightful user experiences

Explore design thinking in practice

Understand the structure and flow of design thinking workshops

Learn the activities used in each stage of the design process (empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test)

Use common tools and methods such as brainstorming, journey mapping, prototyping, and user feedback

Build core design thinking skills

Conduct design research and gather meaningful insights

Synthesize findings to define user needs and opportunities

Create prototypes to test ideas early

Use storytelling to communicate ideas and align teams

Showcase your learning

Earn relevant certificates and digital credentials

Add them to your resume, LinkedIn, and Credly profile to demonstrate your design thinking capabilities

Category

This course is part of the Job Roles learning path.

Who This Course Is For

  • Anyone looking to build skills in Design & UX
  • No prior experience required
  • Career changers, job seekers, and upskilling professionals
  • Self-motivated learners who want flexible, self-paced learning

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