Last month, I introduced design thinking, a process many nonprofits and community groups are using to generate engagement with communities. Empathy is the first step in the process, and the user persona is an outcome we can use to develop programs and services for the ideal communities we want to reach.

Today, let’s focus on the second step in the design thinking process: Define.

After creating a user persona based on the empathy interviews and observation we’ve conducted, we begin to define the problem we want to solve, based on the insights of the intended user. Let’s do this by creating a Journey Map.

The goal of a Journey Map is to give a holistic view of what a stakeholder is going through from their point of view. In the case of creating a program or service, having a variety of stakeholders (a potential program participant, a program facilitator,  and the program manager, for example) can yield insights into how a program may work from various perspectives.

Here’s what you need: 

• A stack of large Post-It notes in one color
• Two smaller stacks of Post-It notes in two different colors
• Some Sharpie markers
• White butcher paper (or a clean white board wide enough for multiple Post-Its)

The steps:

Let’s go back to the user persona we created:

This example is “Nicole”, a nonprofit worker that works at a nonprofit that provides services for formally incarcerated women. She wants to create an awareness campaign that teaches formally incarcerated women about the Reproductive Justice framework and teaches advocacy skills to help formally incarcerated women advocate for accessible reproductive healthcare, both during incarceration and during the transition process. Nicole has now been given the OK to create the program from the executive director. Now, she can work on introducing the RJ framework to staff to generate buy-in for the program and campaign.

Each person get a stack of large Post-Its and 2 stacks of smaller Post-Its (each in different colors) and a Sharpie. The larger Post-Its will be the steps, and the smaller Post-Its will be the “pain points”.

Next, have each participant map out the process of creating this program from their perspective. For this example, let’s have Nicole create her journey map by mapping out her ideal steps needed to create a Reproductive Justice 101 presentation for staff and steps needed to recruit staff to help develop the program and campaign.

Using the large Post-It notes, Nicole creates the following steps and places them on the butcher paper:

Next, let’s identify the “pain points” Nicole may experience in this process. A pain point is a potential hiccup that may arise. Taking one stack of the smaller Post-Its, Nicole identifies two pain points:

Organizational programs may receive separate funding, and during the RJ 101 presentation, Nicole’s supervisor may have questions on how to make this program and campaign financially sustainable. Also, staff capacity is always a concern for many nonprofits, even when the idea sounds relevant and interesting. While Nicole may not be directly responsible for funding resources and addressing staff capacity , she may be interested in helping with identifying solutions.

Now, let’s identify potential solutions to Nicole’s paint points using the second stack of smaller Post-Its:

Applying for funding (be it programming funding or capacity building) can assist with hiring a staff member who will work directly with Nicole in implementing this program and campaign. A capacity building grant, such as Third Wave Fund’s Grow Power Fund can provide general operating and capacity building support.

Key takeaway

Your journey map can simple, or it can have multiple steps, a number of pain points, and a variety of solutions. No two journey maps are exactly the same. Depending on the stakeholder’s experience, the solution you will design will be different.

Using this activity can help your staff and community visually see what their pain points are and what solutions are at their disposal. Try this activity and let me know how resonates with you.