They’ve done their research, brainstormed ideas, tested a range of solutions, and gathered feedback. Now it’s time to execute on one winning idea to improve campus life at Western University. For today’s Ivey Design Project assignment, students refined their prototypes and prepared a video submission. Here are some takeaways.
DAY FOUR
The faculty perspective – What did the students do today and why is it important?
They started out broad, but today they narrowed down to a specific solution idea. The students created a video that walks you through their solution, the evidence that sparked the idea, and customer/client reaction.
Mary Weil, Management Communications Lecturer and Faculty Director of the HBA Program, said the project draws on a broad range of skills.
“In terms of usefulness and practicality, the Ivey Design Project is an amazing project,” she said. “Students are interacting to consider how to improve campus life. They are gaining empathy in their discussions with campus stakeholders, they are gaining experience in understanding and articulating problems, and they are putting their skills in all their courses together in building a solution.”
The student perspective – What did you do today and what was the key takeaway?
Today, we took all of the empirical knowledge that we’ve built over the last few days and put it into practice to find solutions to tackle real-life problems. Specifically, our group made a chatbot from scratch after watching videos to learn how to do it.
“It’s a good bridge between theory and practice. Once we graduate and start working, we’ll be able to use these skills to have a more tangible impact on the workplace.”
– Nicolas Theriault
“Our specific idea, a chatbot, is important because we are moving toward a very technologically advanced world and use of digital is growing exponentially. The more we understand how to do these things and implement them, the better-equipped we are to participate in the workplace in the future. ”
– Samantha Rizzi
