Exploring Design Thinking in the Public Sector: A case study on collaboration as a way to develop the Design Thinking mindset

Jakobsen, Marie

4. term

Service Systems Design, Master

2024

2024-05-24

157 pages

This study examines the relevance of design thinking in public sector organizations through a case study of Citizen Service Development (CSD) in Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. The primary objective is to explore the potential value that a design thinking mindset can bring to non-design public sector entities. Within a design thinking framework, insights were gathered through interviews with Expert Designers, employees, and the department manager in CSD, supported by general research, observations, and a survey. The findings revealed a lack of internal collaboration among CSD employees. Given that collaboration is a central element of design think-ing, this presented an opportunity to promote a design thinking mindset in CSD through formalized collaborative initiatives. The study tested various prototypes using existing collaborative forums within CSD and ultimately proposed a solution based on three key initia-tives: creating time for collaboration, creating space for collaboration, and creating a framework for talking about projects. The case study points out that the design thinking framework is fundamentally different from the project framework in Copenhagen Mu-nicipality. In conclusion, however, the case study highlights that the principles of the design thinking mindset are highly relevant to the public sector as a way to be innovative and tackle increasingly complex challenges.

design thinking ; offentlig sektor ; servicedesign ; samarbejde

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