Seasons of Design Innovation Accelerator Program

Part immersive learning challenge. Part innovation competition.

Seasons of Design is a seasonal experience in the design thinking community to equip innovators with the skills, mindsets, and behaviors they need to make positive changes in their organizations.

As a “Seasons of Designer”, you will grow your creative capacity, learn new tools to jump-start innovation, and collaborate with fellow design thinkers and innovators to make our world a better place.

Innovative Thinking > Your Comfort Zone

Every year we collaborate with an All-Star line-up of community partners which includes weekly skills-based workshops facilitated by Karen Hold, Author of Experiencing Design - The Innovator’s Journey and Director - DT:DC, access to weekly instructional videos provided by the University of Virginia Darden School Foundation, curated by Jeanne Liedtka, Author of Experiencing Design - The Innovator’s Journey and Designing for Growth, and professor of Business Administration at the Darden School of Business; an online community for learning and engagement; and a Seasons of Design Certificate from the University of Virginia Darden School Foundation.

We hope you will join us!

Our next sprint kicks off later this year

  • After learning and growing with this group I have gained a tremendous amount of expertise in Design Thinking which helps me think about new and novel approaches to problem solving. It allows me to think about people with loads of empathy that need help (a new product, software, or solution) in new ways.”

    Deputy Director, NavalX

  • "I thoroughly enjoyed Summer of Design and would recommend it to anyone who is open to a new perspective on creative problem solving."

    Kimberly Winfield, Director, Science Policy, Labeling and Standards, Grocery Manufacturers Association

  • "The Summer of Design helped me think about problem-solving from a very holistic perspective. The course is made up a variety of diverse participants who are full of energy and ready to innovate solutions to real-world challenges. I would definitely recommend this course to anyone interested in personal and professional leadership development!"

    Jared Dial, Travel Program Manager, National Parks Conservation Association

  • "The Summer of Design was amazing. It opened my eyes about how solutions to different situations could be addressed with the end user in mind, rather than from the organizations view point. I learned so much about my selected industry that I would have not learned otherwise. I'm already looking forward for the next Summer of Design!"

    Lizannette Velez, Communications Specialist

  • "Thanks so much for terrific course! I really appreciate it, and it reflects so well on the design thinking community here in DC. It was rigorous and challenging, which is a great thing. It really expanded my knowledge of design thinking, and so great to meet people in wide-ranging fields. And the guest speakers were terrific."

    Benjamin Bloom, Web Developer, Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery

Leadership

Karen Hold is the Director of Seasons of Design. She is an author of Experiencing Design - The Innovator’s Journey which was published by Columbia University Press in July 2021. She is the founder of Experience Labs, an innovation strategy consulting firm. She is a visiting professor at École des Ponts Business School in Paris, France and Casablanca, Morocco and an Executive Lecturer at the University of Virginia Darden School Foundation. Karen is also the Director of DT:DC, a 5,200 member Meet Up group of design thinkers in Washington, DC.

A look back through the years

  • 2021

    Summer of Design 2021 collaborated with the Transportation Security Administration to consider “How might we integrate advanced air mobility vehicles into urban and suburban neighborhoods and airports by August 27, 2030?”

  • 2020

    Summer of Design 2020 collaborated with several US Federal Government Agencies to consider “How might we create government policy that positively impacts how federal employees get back to work now and and into the future using policy design and policy prototypes?”

  • 2019

    Summer of Design 2019 collaborated with Booz Allen Hamilton to consider “How might we improve the taxpayer experience for women-owned, minority-owned and veteran-owned businesses?”

  • 2018

    Summer of Design 2018 collaborated with Capital One Bank to consider "How might we improve the financial health of vulnerable DC residents through entrepreneurship and/or public-private partnership?"

  • 2017

    Summer of Design 2017 collaborated with the Retail Industry Leaders Association to consider "How might we accelerate DC citizens' participation in innovative circular economies through entrepreneurship and/or public-private partnerships to improve the well-being of our city?"

  • 2016

    Summer of Design 2016 collaborated with Amerihealth, The Milken School of Public Health at George Washington University, and the George Washington University School os Business to consider, “How might we improve the health of Ward 7 & 8 citizens through entrepreneurship and leverage public-private partnerships in innovative ways?”

  • 2015

    Summer of Design 2015 collaborated with PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) to consider, “How might PBS better equip and empower educators of at-risk youth?”

  • 2014

    Summer of Design 2014 collaborated with Three Birds Foundation to consider "How might we bring renewable energy technology to schools to show kids how things work?" and the National Capital Planning Commission to consider "How might we activate Pennsylvania Avenue?".

  • 2013

    Summer of Design 2013 collaborated with DC Action for Children to consider "How might we leverage open data to drive better policy-making?", Internews to consider "How might we accelerate rapid information gathering in crisis situations?" and the Performance Improvement Council to consider "How might we inspire government performance?"

Need docs to share with your leadership?

FAQs

  • The ideal Seasons of Designer is someone who is seeking a unique experience to collaborate and share a creative experience with others, is committed to the process, is eager to learn and practice design thinking behaviors and mindsets (regardless of pre-existing knowledge and experience), is a passionate soul and is a team player.

  • It depends. It depends on the commitment you want to make to your experience. The minimum time commitment per week is roughly 10 hours. The breakdown of time is about 1 hour of video preparation per week, 2.5 hours for a skills-based practice lab, and 6.5 hours to complete your Team assignment. However, the time flexes with the type of assignment you have, how well your group distributes the workload, and how your Team organizes meetings.

    Past participants will tell you that the program is a fast-paced high-energy experience. Smart teams will set up a meeting schedule at the beginning of the program so that they are not spending a lot of time trying to clear calendars for group work at the last minute.

  • The time to complete each assignment varies depending on the complexity of the assignment and the work distribution across the Team. Here is a rough guide to how much time your Team can expect to spend on each assignment.

  • Every participant will fill out a "Letter to my Team" that details information about their skills and abilities. We try to create teams with a diversity of skills, mindsets, and experience.

  • Yes! Upon successful completion of Seasons of Design, participants are eligible to receive a Seasons of Design Certificate from the University of Virginia Darden School Foundation.

  • Here are the requirements you need to receive a statement of accomplishment:

    1. Attendance at 9 of 11 workshops. (Participation in the Final Pitch Night is mandatory.)

    2. Completion of ten assignments: You and your team must complete and upload every assignment following the directions provided: Team Meal, Observational Research, User Poster, Journey Map, Insight Statements, Idea Half Sheets, Napkin Pitch, Prototype, Test Card/Learning Card and Pitch Presentation.

    3. Completion of all required Peer Evaluations, which will be conducted twice during the course.

    4. Peer evaluation score greater than 50%.

    5. Completion of the end-of-course survey.

    6. Respectful communication with the faculty and fellow participants, and compliance with all applicable rules, instructions, requirements, and terms of the program and service.

    Seasons of Designers who complete all requirements by the end of hte program will be eligible to receive the Seasons of Design Certificate at the Seasons of Design Graduation Ceremonies. All other participants must complete the requirements before the course close date.

  • You will join a small team at the beginning of the program but will have the opportunity to interact with all Season of Designers during the weekly skills workshops. Weekly practice labs will be held in a virtual environment using Zoom breakout rooms. Most participants find that they want/need to spend a lot of time with their Team during the first half of Seasons of Design.

  • Yes! We strongly encourage you to collect, document, and archive your assignments from the beginning of Seasons of Design to create a design thinking portfolio. Many past participants have pivoted their careers based on their participation in the program. The assignments are a tangible and valuable way to share your professional development.

  • Yes! As a Seasons of Designer, you will gain knowledge and further develop your leadership skills that are critical to your organization's success. The skills that you will learn include:

    Problem Solving // sorting through complex data and integrating data from a variety of sources to solve problems better.

    Creativity // facilitating discovery and searching and reapplying proven ideas into new solutions to get better results.

    Communication // organizing thoughts clearly and concisely to express ideas in a way that builds commitment to them.

    Collaboration // building and maintaining productive relationships and persuading others across disciplines and functions.

    Leadership // recognizing opportunities to form a vision and make an impact on a meaningful community in a meaningful way.

    Priority-Setting // thinking in terms of creating value and quality for users and working with the end result in mind.

    Decision-Making // recognizing ambiguity and overcoming obstacles to keep moving towards the end result.

  • You do not need to be a subject matter expert in the challenge topic in order to succeed in Seasons of Design. We will offer you secondary resources to learn about the challenge topic, however, our goal is for you to apply the tools of design thinking to solve your challenge and flex new skills to sort through complex data, analyze inferences, and integrate data from a variety of sources to solve the challenge better. We will encourage you to facilitate the discovery of new data sources, think in terms of creating value and quality for your end-user, and express your ideas in ways that build commitment to them across your team. This may require you to stretch your skills and practice problem-solving in completely new ways. We know that it may be uncomfortable at times but we also know that applying design thinking skills to a real problem will help you master the process.