How we conducted a Product & Design workshop at Ounass
TL;DR: This story details how various stakeholders collaborated to address pain points in our catalog chapter and brainstormed the roadmap for the catalog team.
Teams that prioritize effective communication and collaboration often build superior products. Strong communication ensures everyone is aligned and working towards the same objectives, reducing misunderstandings and enhancing productivity. Ultimately, a team culture that values both collaboration and communication goes on to build better digital products whilst taking care of the customer experience.
These are some of the few qualities that we focus on while working and collaborating at Ounass.
A bit about Ounass
Ounass is a luxury e-commerce platform that caters primarily to the Middle Eastern market, particularly the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and Qatar. Launched in December 2016 by the Al Tayer Group, Ounass offers a wide range of high-end products, including women’s, men’s, and kids’ fashion, beauty products, home decor, and gifts.
Ounass prides itself on providing a premium online shopping experience. This includes 2-hour and same-day delivery within the UAE, and express delivery options for other regions.
Ounass has established itself as a leading online destination for luxury shopping in the Middle East, combining high-end international fashion with exceptional service tailored to the regional market.
What’s this story about
This story is about how we conducted ideation workshops for our Catalogue chapter, bringing together 24 members from various departments to collaborate and brainstorm on some key strategic areas. This collective effort significantly helped in shaping our catalogue product strategy for the year.
The primary goal of the workshops was to generate fresh ideas, identify user problems, and propose new product features to add to our backlog. By doing so, we aimed to build these solutions, and simultaneously enhance the buying experience for our customers.
What’s the Catalogue chapter?
The digital e-commerce journey begins when a customer opens the app or visits the website, and it culminates when they receive the product and are satisfied with both the item and the overall experience.
Given the complexity of this journey, with numerous critical components influencing the user experience, we at Ounass have segmented these elements into multiple chapters.
The Catalogue chapter begins when a customer enters the app through the homepage and continues until they reach the Product Details Page (PDP). This chapter focuses on the overall navigation and search experience, ensuring that customers can easily find what they are looking for. Once an item is added to the cart, the journey transitions to the next phase, which is the ‘Checkout’ chapter.
Identifying the problem statement
We gathered numerous actionable insights from our primary and secondary research and identified two key problem statements to address.
- How do we improve ‘feature abc’
- How do we reduce drop-off for ‘feature xyz’
Due to compliance reasons, we cannot disclose more details of the problem statements.
We wanted to avoid working in silos and incorporate the point-of-views of other departments as well. Given that multiple departments contribute to the product, we decided to bring everyone together for an Ideation Workshop. This collaborative effort ensured that we leveraged diverse perspectives and expertise to address these problem statements effectively.
What’s an Ideation Workshop
According to the NN Group,
Ideation is the process of generating a broad set of ideas on a given topic, with no attempt to judge or evaluate them.
An Ideation workshop is a structured, collaborative session designed to generate a wide range of ideas and solutions for a specific challenge or project. These workshops bring together a diverse group of participants, often from different departments, to brainstorm and explore new concepts in a creative and open environment.
While the eventual goal of ideation activity is a design that solves the given problem, the focus of ideation is quantity instead of quality.
Selecting the Ideation techniques
There are various ideation exercises to choose from, depending on the problem statement and the group participants. What works for one group might not work for another, so it’s essential to conduct thorough research, generate personas, and ensure you are addressing the right problem.
In our case, we had two different problem statements, and we used two different Ideation techniques for it.
- Lightning Demos
- Crazy 8s
A few things to keep in mind before the workshop
Since you’ll have people from different departments, it’s crucial to respect everyone’s time and efforts. Make sure that the workshop is not only fun and engaging for the participants, but is also effective and fruitful for addressing the problems at hand.
Have a fun ice-breaker
Start with a fun, non-work-related ice-breaker to make everyone comfortable and get the ball rolling.
In our case, the ice-breaker question was
Your name, your Ounass team, how long have you been working here, and ‘Who would you invite to dinner (dead or alive), and why’?
Solve the right problem
Understand the problems your users are facing through research and insights. Create a presentation that includes data, numbers, and personas to set clear context for everyone.
A problem well-defined is a problem half-solved.
Supporting data
Ensure that you have actionable insights from data that support your problem statements. This helps in confirming that you are addressing the right issues.
Inviting the right audience
Invite the right mix of participants, balancing UX, product, and engineering and other verticals. Cross-pollination between disciplines will lead to a wide range of ideas.
Designate a facilitator
Assign a facilitator to lead the workshop and keep everyone on track. The facilitator can start with a brief presentation explaining the workshop’s purpose and providing an overview of the itinerary.
Choose a suitable location
Choose a comfortable, spacious, well-lit location where participants won’t be disturbed.
Prepare HMW statements
Prepare a list of ‘How might we’ (HMW) statements to turn the original challenge into actionable questions for the ideation session.
The Workshop Day
We booked a meeting room in a different office location from our usual workspace. A new location can enhance an ideation workshop’s effectiveness by stimulating creativity, reducing distractions, and encouraging openness. Being in an unfamiliar environment can spark fresh thinking, minimize everyday interruptions, and create a sense of equality, making participants feel more comfortable sharing their ideas.
We arranged for refreshments throughout the day, including morning coffee, mid-session snacks, and lunch.
We kicked off the session with a fun ice breaker, followed by a presentation outlining our current position in the Catalogue journey. This presentation set the context and discussed the larger team goals for the year. After sharing this with the participants, we moved on to the workshops.
We planned two workshops on the same day, each addressing a different problem. For the first workshop, we used the Lightning Demos method.
Workshop 1: Lightning Demos
Lightning demos are short, focused presentations that showcase a specific idea, product, or feature. They are a great way to share knowledge, inspire creativity, and spark discussions within a team or group. They are great for enabling creativity and setting the ideation session off to a strong start.
The core idea of Lightning Demos is to find as many great examples of other companies solving a similar challenge as possible, and leverage their key aspect in solving your own challenge.
It’s likely that someone has already tackled a similar challenge. By analyzing and implementing their successful approaches, we can transition into solution mode without needing entirely original ideas. The advantage of this activity is its flexibility — you can draw inspiration from any industry or company, not just your own.
Lightning Demos — Steps
Presentation and context setting — 15 min
Buffer — 15 min
Tool used: FigJam
- Demo by the facilitator — 10 min
- Idea generation — 25 min
- Internal group sync — 10 min
- Presenting to the audience — 10 min
- Voting the best idea — 2 min
Total time ~ 1 hour 30 mins
Before starting, we shared our research findings and highlighted observed patterns to set the workshop’s direction and provide context for all participants. With participants from the ‘Data & Growth’ team present, any questions regarding a deeper understanding of the data were addressed there as well.
We divided participants into four groups, each including members from the Product, Tech, and Digital Trading teams to ensure cross-collaboration. Each group was assigned a unique ‘How might we’ problem statement to brainstorm and ideate on.
Step 1: Demo by the facilitator — 10 min
Once everyone grasps the problem statement and has sufficient context from research and data, we proceed to the main activity.
We gave a walkthrough to the participants on how to record their idea using the above template with a live demo. It’s crucial that we emphasize that Lightning Demos are about ‘showing’ and not ‘telling’.
Step 2: Idea generation — 25 min
In the next step, each participant independently researches existing products, services, or solutions that relate to the problem. The goal is to look for examples that are innovative, successful, or relevant.
We shared competitor analysis related to the problem statement for their reference.
We designated 25 mins for the activity (plus some buffer, if needed) for participants to gather their examples. This ensures the process remains quick and focused.
Step 3: Internal group sync — 10 min
In the next step, the participants in each group discussed their gathered ideas among themselves. They explained how each concept relates to and addresses the problem at hand.
Once everyone shared their ideas within the group, they selected the top five ideas that solved the problem statement in the best way. All these ideas were recorded in FigJam.
Step 4: Presenting to the audience — 10 min
After each group finalized their top five ideas, the next step was presenting these ideas to the wider audience. Since each group was given a different ‘How might we’ statement, they each had five unique solutions to share.
During these presentations, the audience engaged in two-way communication, asking questions and providing feedback. The session ensured that ideas were thoroughly discussed and refined through collaborative input.
Step 5: Voting the best idea — 2 min
Once a group presented all their ideas to the larger audience and participants had their questions answered and feedback addressed, we moved to the voting process.
Each participant had one vote to cast for one of the five ideas presented by the group. The idea with the most votes was deemed the winner.
By the end of the activity, we had identified the best ideas for solving the problem statements. These winning ideas will eventually be explored further.
Workshop 2: Crazy 8s
Crazy 8s is a rapid ideation technique often used in design sprints to quickly generate a wide range of ideas. This activity encourages participants to think creatively and push beyond their initial concepts, and is great for both designers and non-designers.
The purpose of Crazy 8s is to quickly iterate on ideas and explore different approaches without striving for pixel-perfect solutions, making it ideal for an ideation session.
In this exercise, participants create 8 rapid iterations of a potential solution to the problem. Each iteration is time-boxed (usually 1–2 mins) to encourage participants to let go of perfectionism and quickly explore alternative ideas.
Crazy 8s — Steps
Presentation and context setting — 15 min
Buffer — 15 min
Tool used: FigJam
- Crazy 8s — 8 min
- Idea selection — 15 min
- Pitch creation — 10 min
- Idea presentation — 5 min
- Idea assessment and discussion — 10 min
Total time ~ 1 hour 20 mins
Before starting, we shared our research findings and observed patterns to provide context for the problem. Participants were divided into four cross-departmental groups from Product, Tech, and Digital Trading teams.
Each member had to come up with eight ideas or solutions that relate to the problem statement.
Step 1: Crazy 8s — 8 min
Once everyone grasps the problem statement and has sufficient context from research and data, we proceed to the main activity.
We provided a walkthrough and live demo on how to record ideas using the template, allowing participants to articulate their concepts in writing without the pressure of sketching. Each participant had to generate eight ideas for the problem statement, encouraging creativity and a broad range of solutions.
Step 2: Idea selection — 15 min
In the next step, the participants in each group discussed their eight ideas among themselves.
Once, everyone has shared their ideas within the group, they selected the top eight ideas (as a group) that solves the problem statement in the best way. All these ideas were recorded in FigJam.
Step 3: Pitch creation — 10 min
The next step was to create a pitch for their best idea that they want to share with the larger audience.
We walked the participants through the pitch creation board, what they should add, while addressing some of the questions like ‘Why will this drive impact’, and ‘Are there any quantitative insights to back this’.
We designated 10 mins for the activity (plus some buffer, if needed).
Step 4: Idea presentation — 5 min
Once all the groups were ready with the pitch for their best idea, the next step was presenting their pitches to the wider audience.
Each group selected a representative to present their ideas. Once one group completed their pitch, we moved to audience feedbacks.
Step 5: Idea assessment and discussion — 10 min
After the idea presentation, the session moved to audience feedback. This two-way communication allows participants from different departments to ask questions, share perspectives, discuss potential limitations, and provide constructive feedback.
Cross-departmental interaction enriches discussions with diverse viewpoints and expertise, leading to robust idea evaluations. After each group’s presentation and audience feedback, the next group presented, continuing until all ideas are thoroughly explored.
By the end, we had solid ideas addressing the problem statement, ready for further exploration and potential implementation.
Next steps post the workshop
After the ideation workshop, we had a wealth of ideas to explore further for both the problem statements. The Design and Product teams collaborated to categorize the ideas, identify the most promising concepts, and develop a roadmap for implementing the best ideas for our Catalogue chapter.
We also created an ‘Impact vs Effort Matrix’ to evaluate and prioritize the pool of ideas generated at the end of the workshop. This tool, commonly used in project management, helps assess tasks, projects, or ideas based on their expected effort and potential impact. By using this matrix, teams can focus on initiatives that offer the greatest benefit with the least amount of work, thereby optimizing resource allocation and enhancing strategic decision-making.
Learnings and Takeaways
This was the first time for Neha (fellow design colleague) and me, managing and facilitating an ideation workshop from start to finish. The workshop proved to be successful in addressing the problem statements we had identified and aimed to solve with our audience.
Some of the key learnings and takeaways include:
- Maintain the scope: Clearly define objectives to keep discussions focused and relevant.
- Strong and actionable research: Conduct thorough research to set context and guide participants effectively. This helps all participants understand why the problem exists and how they can contribute to solving it.
- Specific design challenges: Narrowly defined challenges provide clear direction and focus, allowing participants to channel their ideas toward specific issues.
Wrapping up
In the end, I would like to thank everyone who was involved in the planning and execution of the workshop. The product and design teams, all the participants from the different departments that took time out of their schedule, and dedicated an entire day for the workshop.
A huge shoutout to Ant Milner (Lead Product Manager, Catalogue) for expertly leading and guiding us through the workshop planning.
Thanks to my fellow design teammates, Neha Chavan (Associate Product Designer and fellow facilitator) and Dawid Tomczyk (Product Designer) for their assistance during the workshop.
A special thanks to Dinesh Golani (Head of Product) and Onur Yüksel (VP of Commercial, Product & Growth) for their continuous support.
Congrats, you have made it till the end. Thank you for reading this article. I hope it added some value to your design work and enlightened you with a few processes. Feel free to share your feedback — what you liked and what can be improved upon.
Arrivederci!
