GM Gets Product Development Innovator Certification on the first Innovation Design Thinking v2.0 Fundamentals Class of 2018

​GM Gets Product Development Innovator Certification on the first Innovation Design Thinking v2.0 Fundamentals Class of 2018

MAKATI CITY, Philippines- To kick-start the year, School of Design Sprint launched its half-day Innovation Design Thinking v2.0 Fundamentals program. Last February 2, The Sprint King trained 20+ Filipino professionals to generate industry-disrupting ideas in a way that is fast, practical, and appealing to customers via #InnovationThatWorks.

Also on that day, The Philippines gets its very first, Certified Product Development Innovator in the form of Ms. Josephine Ortiz. She was able to discuss her project to the class and inspired the current wave to be an advocate of innovation.

Of course, we wanted to share what we learned from Ms. Ortiz! We asked her a few questions about her journey to becoming the very first to receive an innovation certification and here's what we found out:

Q. How did you become acquainted with the Innovation Workshop?
A. It was part of my Black Belt Six Sigma Program.

Q. What Prompted you to start your project?
A. Our project “Careerhub.Ph” was actually developed a year before I took the Innovation Workshop. The registration of the applicant is high in number but they never proceed to application stage. We were wondering why? What was the cause the problem? Where did we go wrong?

Q. What was your project about?
A. The project is an on-line recruitment website where applicants and employers converge. Employers can post their job vacancies, and applicants can apply online.

Q. What were the results of your project?
A. We realized that our job portal was very strict and that we had so many required fields. Not only that, you needed plenty of clicks before you can begin your job application. What we did was just limited the required fields and lessened the clicks needed.

Q. How was it like for you, starting up and executing your own project?
A. Happy, the months and years of research was cut down to only 5 days.

Q. Among/Aside the Action Items that were done, what were the key elements that led to the success of your project?
A. Our keys to success are our ability to listen, understand and identify the realistic solution to the problem of our customer.
Before, we tried to predict what they wanted, but the truth is we have to ask their needs and hear their voice for the project to be successful.

Q. What was the impact of your project to your company?
A. The project is not meant to create financial impact or profits directly. We developed it to give hope to those we are not able to hire that somewhere out there, there is a bunch of employers waiting for you. At the same time, it serves as a value-added service for our existing customers as part of our customer service.

Q. What was the impact of attending the Innovation workshop to you as an individual / professional?
A. I realized that experts are rightful to their expertise and ignore the customer needs. The voice of the customer should be the backbone of any innovation project.

Q. What would be your message to those who are currently taking / planning to take the Innovation Program or those who are currently conducting their own projects?
A. Put your customer at the center of your project. Because if there’s no customer to serve we have no business to make.
The purpose of this Innovation Program certificate is not to add value to your resume, but to add value to the people who you wish to serve

Q. Is there anything else that you'd like to share about your experience?
A. Never underestimate your customer. They are best solutions to your problem.

There you have it! We hope this story inspired you to be an advocate of innovation.
If you are interested to join our next programs, you may email us at ask@schoolofdesignsprint.com

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