A case study of introducing innovation through design

Abstract

In September of 2013, senior submarine officers from across the United States Navy Submarine Force converged on Naval Station Pearl Harbor to participate in a collaborative, design thinking workshop. The overarching goal of this workshop, titled the Executive Tactical Advancements for the Next Generation Forum, was to leverage the knowledge and creativity of current and post-command submarine officers to address the unique needs of the commander through the incorporation of new technologies. The result of the forum was 11 innovative solutions to improve command effectiveness. As more of the problems of the world continue to become wicked, it is ever more important to have the ability to generate solutions using a collaborative approach to leverage the wisdom and creativity of the collective. While this technique is useful for determining unique solutions to complex problems, actually incorporating those solutions into an existing organization requires skillful execution of change management. The forum provided a unique opportunity to construct a case study demonstrating that design thinking can be used to spark innovation and change, offering Defense Department leadership an opportunity to explore alternative problem-solving methods and their application to the military environment.