Prof. Francesco Zurlo
Dean of the School of Design, Politecnico di Milano

Design thinking has become increasingly important in recent years. Several organisations are trying to adopt its processes considering the competitive advantage that can be obtained thanks to its adoption. In recent years, design thinking is also assuming an important role in the entrepreneurship landscape. It is impossible to recognise a new typology of start-ups, the design-intensive ones, as opposed to the traditional technology-intensive ones. Moreover, it is possible to recognize that even in technology-intensive startups, design thinking takes on the role of facilitator and accelerator of certain processes. The presentation will discuss the importance of design thinking in the world of start-ups, both through theoretical concepts and investigations of practical cases.

Keywords: Design Thinking, Design Thinking Principles, Innovation