Our Approach
From strategy to development, our product design process is intended to push creative boundaries while ensuring client goals are always achieved.
Scope
From the initial conversation with a client about a project, we must understand our customer's goals and define what we will do to allow them to be successful. We consider aspects of timing, scheduling, documentation, and other logistics that allow our team to mobilize.
Asking the right questions to develop the greatest alignment from the start of the project, aligning all team members, both at Bally Design and our client.
Asking the right questions to develop the greatest alignment from the start of the project, aligning all team members, both at Bally Design and our client.
Discovery
We want to gain insights into what is truly important to customers. We need to understand what works well and what the pain points are in the context of their work environment. Ideally, we gain true empathy. Internal stakeholder perspectives are also important. Combining this with secondary research is critical to learn about competitors, products and industry trends, etc. We process and document the information so that we can fully understand how the user, technical, and business needs inform the opportunity space. Looking for insights and help to create or refine requirements.
Concept Exploration
In this divergent phase, we generate ideas that are inspired by the knowledge we've gained, pushing boundaries, and stretching conventional thinking, while maintaining a vision for what is possible. These ideas will evolve into full concepts that address multiple requirements in a creative and meaningful way. We will establish a vision for the product for the team to get behind. As we enter the design execution phase, we must define the vision so that it can be maintained moving forward.
Concept Development
A concept direction has been established. We need to apply our user centered design process, principals, and vision to all components or parts of the system.
We refine and finalize all aspects of function, usability, and aesthetics while maintaining the original design intent.
Detail Design
Once the final design has been approved, we develop the assets needed for production. Either taking the product to a manufacturer or interfacing with an engineering team - either mechanical engineers or software engineers. We develop style guides, design systems, digital assets, CAD, techpacks, drawings and mechanical specifications. These all come together in preparation for production.
Transition to Manufacturing
We focus on maintaining the design intent as a partner to the manufacturer as they implement the design in their factory. We review first parts, iterating and working through any challenges that may arise. The hard work performed earlier in the program in designing for manufacturability pays off in this stage.
Project Close
At the end of every project, we take the time to learn - from what we did and from one another. What knowledge should be shared across the team? What did we do well? What can we do better? Excellence demands a critical look and the humbleness to continue to improve.