Project 1

Project-1(Fail fast): A team project (25% weightage)

The project titled "Fail fast" involves the following steps. Please note that how you arrive at the results is more important than the results themselves. So please mention the steps taken to arrive at the results (challenge, ideas, solutions, prototypes, etc). For each of the steps below (1(a), 1(b),… etc.), please provide evidence that you carried it out.

File size limit: max 15 pages, 12 pt font, PDF document.

Step-1: Selection of a challenge theme 

a. Individual team member to start with a Pain-Wave-Waste exercise. Pain (What pains you, your family/friends?), Wave (technology trend you have been curious about?), Waste (What kind of waste bothers you?). What pains you need not be related to wave/waste. For each category (Pain, wave, waste), each team member writes one or more options. 

b. Among these options, the team selects one pain/waste challenge area and one technology trend. Please consider the interests of as many team members as possible. If you choose an area where one team member is an expert and others don’t have much interest, it eventually affects the quality of the work. Please consider the chance of prototyping as a criterion. 

A challenge theme is typically a phrase of 3-4 words – e.g. “too much screen time”, “EV charging time”, or “overeating”. On the other hand, the following challenge themes look too generic – “AI”, “Agriculture”. A challenge theme is NOT a detailed problem statement.

Step-2: 

a. For the pain/waste challenge area, each team member is to interview at least one person outside the team. Please don't try to sell any solution yet. Just try to understand what it means to him/her. 

b. For the technology trend identified in step 1, build a 5-dimensional technology dashboard (class 6, slides PDF page 5, slide 9). Give one line justification and supporting data for rating (L, M, H) on each of the five dimensions (adoption, regulatory tailwind, unit economics, ease of access, performance). Mention which dimension(s) are influencing your decision to consider this technology. Has there been any movement along the dimension(s)? If so, please give evidence (e.g when Siri was founded, iPhone was launched, and the ease of access improved, or when Ather was started, the Lithium-ion battery price dropped significantly, making unit economics more attractive). 

Step-3: Framing of a challenge statement: (Team exercise)

a. Identify 2-3 pain points associated with the identified challenge based on the interviews in step 2(a)

b. Identify bright spots (things working well) and dark spots (things not working well)

c. Identify your focus area and identify a metaphor relevant to your focus

d. Frame a challenge statement with a metaphor and an attribute (eye care delivery as efficient as McDonald's - attribute is efficient, metaphor is McDonald's, making camera as accessible as a pencil - attribute: accessible, metaphor: pencil)

e. For the challenge statement mentioned in step 3(d), identify the crux - what you consider as the most difficult part of the challenge. Why is it the crux? Why do you feel the crux is potentially addressable?

Step-4: Generation of ideas (solutions) to the proposed challenge: (Team exercise)

a. Use the metaphor to generate a few ideas. For example, Tesla metaphor can be used to generate ideas such as: high-tech scooter, luxury brand, over-the-air software upgrade, etc. (min 3)

b. Use Systematic Inventive Thinking (SIT) to generate ideas (min 3) (Use techniques like subtraction, division, etc. mentioned in class 6)

c. Use internal bright spot approach to generate ideas (min 3)

d. Identify a wild idea. It could be one of the ideas mentioned in 4 (a, b, c). Or it could be new. Mention the reason that makes it a wild idea. (min 3)

Step-5: Selection of solutions

a. Use the cost-impact matrix and plot ideas from step 3 on the matrix (Please see this example. Location of the ideas in the matrix is based on the assumptions of the team members. It may be different for different people. Please mention your assumptions.)

b. Select 2 ideas –  at least one idea should involve the technology trend identified in step 2(b)

Let's denote the 2 selected ideas, soln-1, and soln-2, solving the challenge framed in step 2. 

Step-6:   Prototypes

a. Before-and-after storyboard (2, one for each solution, soln-1 and soln-2)

b. Looks like prototypes (2, one for each solution, soln-1 and soln-2)

c. Design of 1-day low-cost works-like prototype (2, one for each solution, soln-1 and soln-2)  

For each of the works-like prototypes, mention:

1. Objective

2. Resources needed and how to procure/access them

3. Cost of the resources (estimate is ok)

4. Duration of the experiment

5. Success criterion

d. Testing result of at least one 1-day works-like prototype (think of Dunzo's WhatsApp experiment, or spice-strips and flavour pills testing) 

Step-7: Testing: Feedback on prototypes from potential customers

Step-8: Refinement for the next iteration: What would you do for the next iteration? Refine the challenge, refine solutions, prototypes,... and briefly mention the reasons.