Reilly & Riehs are design thinking consultants based in Boston, Massachusetts.

We want to help your team solve difficult problems by empowering stakeholders who are often left out of decision-making processes. In our highly-interactive workshops, you’ll learn design thinking by doing—tackling real challenges from your organization. Everything is customized for your organization, and we’re always making improvements, so…

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What is Design Thinking?

Design thinking is a process aimed at solving problems that focuses on empathy, experimentation, and feedback. It works best when you have a messy challenge and you’re open to creative solutions. It’s also a great way to foster ownership and spur action on long-simmering projects.

 

What Kind of Design Do We Offer?

Our clients tend to be organizations that have been introduced to design thinking in some way, but aren’t sure how to actually use it in their work. We have no desire to move in and “design think” your company. We specialize in giving organizations the tools and intuition they need to start practicing design thinking on their own. Participants learn the process by working through a real challenge from their organization. Our “no-toolkit toolkit” lets new design thinkers easily customize each step of the process to fit their own needs and constraints.

  • Design thinking workshops can be a great activity for department retreats or team-building events. Participants become more comfortable sharing innovative ideas, and practice brainstorming and collaboration methods that encourage participation from everyone. We can even include creativity exercises and improv games to help participants get to know each other and build trust as a team.

  • You’ll never hear us say, “This would be different in a real-world situation.” All design thinking takes place amid constraints (and in the real world!) We designed our “no-toolkit toolkit” to help you develop an intuitive sense for planning a design thinking process within your constraints:

    • Virtual or in-person

    • How many people can participate?

    • How much time can you spend on the project?

 

  • Our Process

    Sometimes clients come to us because they’re already facing an intractable challenge, which is great! If you’re just looking for an intro workshop, we’ll still help you pick a real challenge from your organization to work through. Participants learn design thinking by doing. It’s not an “example,” or a “demonstration,” it’s the real thing.

    We give all participants our one-page “no-toolkit toolkit” that provides a framework for developing design thinking workshops. It’s the same framework we use when developing workshops for our clients, and is meant to be customizable to fit almost any design thinking challenge.

  • Empathy Fieldwork

    “Empathy fieldwork” is the stage of the design thinking process where participants learn about the needs of stakeholders. We think this step is critical to design thinking, particularly in its ability to involve people who aren't usually included in decision-making processes. We normally start with an “identity lens” activity, where participants reflect on their own identities, followed by participant interviews, where attendees pair up to share how they've been affected by the challenge.

  • Prototypes

    Popsicle sticks and pipe cleaners are great tools for prototyping widgets, but what if you’re looking to prototype a process, service, or organizational change? We developed the “GREG” system to help groups better imagine how prototyping can apply to them. Good prototyping is about starting small. Instead of a large pilot project, we’ll help you consider a five minute conversation, a drawing, or a quick “choose your own adventure” with index cards.

    Give

    Roleplay

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Let’s Get Started

  • The Proposal Process

    Once you reach out, we’ll schedule a free Zoom call to learn more about your goals and requirements. After the meeting, we’ll write a proposal that includes a suggested workshop agenda and fee. We generally charge per workshop, rather than per hour, so there won’t be any surprises about the cost. We customize every workshop for our clients, and we’re always making improvements, so your workshop is bound to be our best yet!

  • Modalities

    There are lots of benefits to practicing design thinking in-person, but the process works great in virtual and hybrid environments as well. Let us know about your constraints, including how much time you have, and how many people you’d like to participate. We’ll help you decide the modality that’s best for your team.

  • Location

    We’re happy to come to you for an in-person workshop. The more wall space and natural light, the better! If you’re looking to get away from your normal working environment, we can help you find a suitable location.

Contact Us

Interested in setting up a workshop? Have questions? Reach out to get started.