Methods
Browse methods directly when you already know the kind of move you need.
Compare fit, output, and setup. Each method page shows what the room is for, what it should produce, and when to leave it alone.
Know the type of move you need? Browse the method clusters below. Not sure yet? Start from Situations → where the blocked moment narrows the field first.
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Method directory
25 methods
Affinity MappingMidYou have at least 5 interviews or 30 distinct observations and need to find patterns across them — the evidence exists but no one has looked at it together45–75 minInsight themes5+ interviews or 30+ observations already collected Assumption MappingMidBefore committing to roadmap items or investment decisions — when the team needs to surface which beliefs are carrying the most weight without evidence60–90 minAssumption heatmapA plan or initiative with testable beliefs behind it Customer Journey MappingEarlyVisualizing end-to-end customer experience and pain points90–150 minCurrent-state journey mapSome customer evidence — at least 5 interviews or observations to anchor the map Impact vs Effort PrioritisationMidA discovery phase produced too many opportunities and the team needs a defensible shortlist before the next planning cycle45–75 minPrioritization matrixDefined initiative list (5+) and at least one person with delivery knowledge in the room Interview Discussion Guide WorkshopEarlyMultiple interviewers need to ask consistent questions — the workshop produces one shared guide that reduces interviewer variation across a research wave60–90 minInterview discussion guideAgreed learning objectives and a defined participant profile Lightning Decision Jam (LDJ Style)MidCross-functional teams are stuck in recurring complaints without a path to action — the method converts venting into an owned shortlist in one session60–90 minPrioritized action listNone — works from participants' lived experience of the problem Pre-mortem / Risk StormingPre-deliverySurfacing failure modes before execution60–90 minRisk registerA plan developed enough to fail in specific ways — scope, team, and timeline defined Problem Framing and How Might WeEarlyA discovery kickoff has fuzzy language and conflicting assumptions — different people in the room are solving different problems without knowing it75–120 minProblem statementObserved symptoms — customer complaints, metric shifts, or team incidents that participants have personally seen or heard Stakeholder MappingEarlyClarifying influence, ownership, and engagement sequence60–90 minStakeholder influence mapA specific decision in scope and basic knowledge of the organisational context Value Proposition Canvas WorkshopMidA new value proposition needs fit clarity before investment — the team has a proposition idea but hasn't stress-tested whether it addresses real customer jobs90–120 minValue proposition canvasA defined target segment and some direct customer evidence — quotes, observations, or data from customer contact Co-creation Opportunity PrioritizationMidPrioritizing opportunities collaboratively with customer stakeholders90–120 minPrioritized opportunity stackExternal stakeholders in room + pre-filtered opportunity shortlist (8–12 items) Concept Poster / Concept CardsMidThe team has multiple concept ideas that need to be compared as communicable narratives rather than as rough sketches or feature lists75–120 minConcept cards/posters2–3 existing concept ideas from prior ideation Crazy 8s IdeationMidGenerating many solution concepts quickly30–45 minIdea setA single agreed problem prompt or HMW statement Current vs Future State MappingMidAligning on where you are now and what better looks like90–120 minCurrent/future state mapEvidence-backed picture of current state (data, observations, or artefacts) Design Principles to MetricsPre-deliveryLinking qualitative principles to measurable outcomes75–105 minPrinciple-to-metric mapAgreed experience principles already being used in real decisions Experience Principles WorkshopMidDefining shared design and service principles for decisions90–120 minExperience principlesReal recent team decisions where a shared reference would have helped Jobs To Be Done Interview Sprint (Lightweight)EarlyUnderstanding purchase and behavior change drivers90–150 minJTBD force mapAccess to recent switchers, adopters, or churned users within the last 3–6 months North Star Opportunity FramingEarlyA team has a stated strategic objective but no shared understanding of what user progress it requires — everyone is optimising toward different proxies60–90 minNorth-star framing sheetA stated strategic objective and at least one person with authority to commit to a discovery direction Opportunity Solution Tree (Lightweight)MidConnecting outcomes, opportunities, and solution options90–120 minOpportunity-solution treeAn agreed outcome metric and prior discovery themes or opportunity areas Persona Hypothesis WorkshopEarlyBuilding draft personas to guide research and design decisions75–120 minHypothesis personasSome prior customer contact — at least a handful of interviews, sales calls, or support conversations Prioritization Framework SelectionMidTeams are using conflicting scoring frameworks and the disagreement is slowing prioritisation decisions45–60 minSelected prioritization framework8+ initiatives to score and clarity on who has to defend the prioritisation outcome Service BlueprintingEarlyConnecting customer experience to backstage operations2–3 hService blueprintOperational staff who deliver the service daily must be in the room Service Safari ObservationEarlyLearning from real-world service experiences firsthand3–4 hObservation notesPhysical access to a live service environment with consent for observation StoryboardingMidVisualizing end-to-end experience concepts before prototyping60–90 minStoryboard artifactAn existing concept or solution direction to develop — not a blank slate Usability Test Plan Workshop (Lightweight)Pre-deliveryDesigning practical tests before prototype rounds60–90 minUsability test planA prototype, mockup, or scenario available for testing with sufficient fidelity to support the planned tasks
Often confused
LDJ vs Impact vs Effort Prioritisation
LDJ
Use when the room's lived experience is the evidence — no prior initiative list needed. The session converts firsthand knowledge of problems directly into owned actions.
Impact vs Effort
Use when an initiative list already exists and you need a defensible matrix rather than a speed prioritisation. Requires at least one person with delivery knowledge to make the effort axis credible.
Assumption Mapping vs Problem Framing
Assumption Mapping
Use when the plan exists and you need to surface which beliefs are carrying the most weight without evidence. You're not questioning the direction — you're making its risk profile visible.
Problem Framing
Use when the direction itself is unclear or contested. You're not testing a plan — you're rewriting the problem statement before any plan is built.
Customer Journey Mapping vs Service Blueprinting
Customer Journey Mapping
Use when the focus is on the customer's experience — what they feel, what they do, where they struggle. Doesn't require operational staff.
Service Blueprinting
Use when you need to connect customer experience to the backstage operations that produce it. Requires operational staff who can speak to what actually happens behind the frontstage. Without them, the backstage layer is speculation.
JTBD Interview Sprint vs Interview Discussion Guide Workshop
JTBD Sprint
Use when the specific question is what drives switching, adoption, or churn. Needs access to people who made a real switch decision recently — the forces only surface in the narrative of a real decision event.
Interview Discussion Guide
Use when the question is broader — understanding user needs, context, or behavior across any topic. Produces a reusable research instrument for a wave of interviews, not a single investigation.
Affinity Mapping vs Persona Hypothesis Workshop
Affinity Mapping
Use when you have raw evidence (interviews, observations) that needs to be synthesised into themes. The input is evidence. The output is patterns the room agrees on.
Persona Hypothesis Workshop
Use when you need a hypothesis to guide upcoming research — not a synthesis of completed research. The input is the team's current knowledge. The output is testable claims about who you're designing for.
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