How do you evolve a customer journey map from a tool that inspires and explains to one that creates action? In this episode of our Creative Confidence Series, hear tips for this and other service design challenges, and learn how IDEO Partner and Managing Director Melanie Bell-Mayeda and her team are evolving the practice of service design with stories from the latest work at IDEO.

Didier Elzinga, CEO and Founder of culture analytics platform Culture Amp, joined us on the Creative Confidence Series to talk about applying design thinking mindsets to culture and people operations, turning culture insights into actions, and making change happen from wherever you sit.

People and culture leader Margo Downs joined us for an episode of the Creative Confidence series to share lessons learned from her years as a leader in people operations at Stitch Fix, Starbucks, and lululemon athletica—companies well known for their distinctive cultures. We dove into the building blocks of culture, her framework for operationalizing culture at scale, and how to impact culture regardless of your seniority or title.

What do you want to change? Even if you know in your bones that change in your organization or your network is desperately needed, it can be hard to put into words what it is exactly that needs to shift...and why. Defining this change and the desired outcome you seek is the first step toward building a plan that will deliver lasting change. Bryan Walker, IDEO partner and managing director and head of the Design for Change studio, says that before embarking on a change journey, you need to write a change statement to guide your work.

In this episode of our Creative Confidence Series, hear from Bryan Walker, a Partner and Managing Director at IDEO who leads IDEO’s Design for Change studio. He shares what’s different about IDEO’s human-centered approach to change and lessons from his work with clients across the world to inspire change—from culture shifts to growing innovation capabilities—in organizations big and small.

In this episode of our Creative Confidence Series, Joe Gerber, Managing Director of IDEO’s CoLab, talks about how to connect the dots between a vision of the future and a business that can make that vision a reality. Joe shares how the team at CoLab are using design fiction and cross-organizational stakeholder collaboration to uncover meaningful innovation and launch new ventures in the world of emerging technology, the Circular Economy, and more.

In this episode of our Creative Confidence Series, IDEO U Dean Suzanne Gibbs Howard speaks with Mighty Networks CEO and Founder Gina Bianchini about how to launch and lead a business when the future of that business is yet to be defined. Gina shares the story of how she spotted the market opportunity for Mighty Networks, built the business through experimentation and co-creation with the community, and continues to lead her team to push the boundaries of innovation.

In this Office Hours episode of our Creative Confidence Series, David Kelley, founder of IDEO and the Stanford d.school, chats with IDEO U Dean Suzanne Gibbs Howard and answers questions from our community on design thinking, creativity, and leadership. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. Listen to this episode on our podcast, and check out their full conversation to hear more of David’s thoughts on the core abilities of the most successful design thinking practitioners.

As an IDEO Partner and a Managing Director in the Tokyo office, Mike Peng has developed an ability to collaborate with all kinds of teams across many cultures and markets. With a background in neuroscience and wide-ranging personal interests including hip-hop dance, tennis, and the occasional reality TV show, Mike sources inspiration from many places. Leading up to the launch of our Cultivating Creative Collaboration online class, which Mike teaches, we caught up with him to chat about his passion for understanding human motivations, the role of creativity in teamwork, and what’s inspiring him lately.

Journey mapping is a tool central to service design. It helps you better understand the interactions people have with your company and identify the moments that matter most. But journey maps can also serve another function—they’re an ideal guide for identifying parts of your customer’s journey where partnerships can play a key role.

In this episode of our Creative Confidence Series, IDEO Partner and Managing Director Mike Peng chats with IDEO U Dean Suzanne Gibbs Howard about creative collaboration—the method IDEO teams use to come up with innovative new ideas. Mike gives insight into our new course, Cultivating Creative Collaboration, that teaches you how to guide others through the creative collaboration process. He also shares tips for overcoming common challenges, why this way of working is necessary in today’s world, and how tension can be harnessed to unleash creative ideas.

In this episode of our Creative Confidence Series, IDEO Executive Design Director Chris Nyffeler chats with IDEO U Managing Director Coe Leta Stafford about the value of prototyping, how to create low-fidelity prototypes for digital products and services, and the role of technology in design.