Design thinking templates, built for AI projects
Run a workshop from a first question to a tested idea. Every method comes with a facilitator guide and a printable canvas.
- 30free methods
- 41printable canvases
- 49prototype prompts
A guide page and a canvas for every method
Each method is one page you can read in a minute, and one page you can print or paste onto a shared board. Facilitating gets easier because every page is laid out the same way.
Before the workshop
When to use the method, when to skip it, the group size, the time and the setting. You can tell in seconds whether it fits.
In the room
Timed steps to run, what to watch for, and an AI lens that keeps the question of the AI solution in view without turning the session into a tool demo.
After the workshop
What you leave with, so the group knows what a good result looks like, and a blank canvas the group can fill in on paper or on screen.
The free Workshop Toolkit
Five PowerPoint decks that take a group from a first question to a chosen idea. 30 methods, each with a guide page and a printable canvas. Nothing is locked inside.
Choosing and running a workshop
How to pick the right method, run it, and keep the AI question in view.
8 methods
Learn how the work really happens and who it touches.
- Stakeholder and Impact Map
- Empathy Map
- Current-State Workflow Map
- Journey Map
- Day-in-the-Life Walkthrough
- Interview Guide
- Write, Pair, Share
- Pains and Gains Board
9 methods
Turn what you learned into a problem the group agrees on.
- How Might We
- Problem Statement
- Jobs-to-be-Done Statement
- Five Whys
- Is / Is-Not
- Issue Tree
- Fishbone
- Affinity Clustering
- Success Criteria and Constraints
8 methods
Generate many options, then shape the best few.
- Structured Brainstorm
- Crazy 8s
- SCAMPER
- Reverse Brainstorm
- Headline from the Future
- What Would Have to Be True
- Borrowed Ideas
- Idea Card
5 methods
Narrow to the one or two worth testing, and know why.
- Dot Voting
- Value and Feasibility Placement
- Automation Fit and Trust Cost Placement
- Assumption Map
- Decision Criteria Matrix
Get the free toolkit
Enter your email and we will send you the download link. We will also ask you once for feedback on the templates.
Design thinking methods for AI projects
A plain-language guide to 41 methods across six phases: what each one is, when to use it, how to run it step by step, and what to watch for.
Understand
A picture of the people, the work and the pain.
8 methods
Phase 2Frame
A statement and questions to answer.
9 methods
Phase 3Ideate
Many ideas, then a few cards.
8 methods
Phase 4Select
Ideas placed and ranked on agreed criteria.
5 methods
Phase 5Prototype
Something people can react to.
6 methods
Phase 6Test
What held, what did not, what changes.
5 methods
Guide: design thinking for AI projects Guide: how to run a workshop All methods
Which method should you use? Five answers.
Tell us what you are trying to do, how many people, how much time, where you are working and who is in the room. We list the methods that fit, free ones first, and you can add them to a workshop plan.
The Prototype and Test Pack
For the step after you have chosen an idea: make it tangible, put it in front of real people, and decide whether to build, change or stop. Prototype before anyone builds.
Prototype and Test Facilitator Guide
11 methods across prototyping and testing, each with a guide page and a printable canvas. A PowerPoint deck of 26 slides.
Prototyping Guide
How to show an AI-led idea at the right level of fidelity, from paper sketch to role-played service, and which question each prototype can answer. A PowerPoint deck of 19 slides.
Prompt Library
49 ready-to-adapt prompts that produce the parts of a prototype, such as a workflow sketch, a simulated assistant or a draft screen. Filter by question tested, fidelity level or tool type. An Excel workbook with safe-use guidance.
- 11 methods, each with a guide page and printable canvas, plus 49 prompts to build the prototype
- Yours to use and adapt for your own work and your clients
- Download link to the entire Pack will be provided after payment
Three prompts from the library
Output outline
- Prompt
- List the sections and headings of the document an AI solution would produce for [ROLE] about [TOPIC]. For each section write one line saying what it contains and where the information would come from. Mark sections that need a person to check.
- You get
- An outline of the output and its sources.
- Check before using
- Is every source real? Remove sections you could not support.
Finished sample output
- Prompt
- Write the finished document the AI solution would produce for [ROLE] about [TOPIC], using this invented data: [DATA]. Include a summary, three findings, a list of what the AI solution is unsure of, and what a person should check before using it. Label it "Sample using invented data" at the top. Use only the sample data given. If something is missing, say so and ask. Do not invent real names, figures or policies.
- You get
- A realistic sample people can judge.
- Check before using
- Check each claim against the invented data. Where it goes beyond, fix it.
Prompt Prototype Sheet draft
- Prompt
- Draft a Prompt Prototype Sheet for an assistant that helps [ROLE] with [TASK]. Include: the role it plays, what it may do, what it must never do, the information it needs, the format of every answer, how it shows its confidence, when it hands over, and five test questions with the answer you expect to each.
- You get
- A written specification of the AI solution’s behaviour.
- Check before using
- Read it aloud to a frontline person. Every unclear rule becomes a test.
What should we publish next?
Tell us which templates, frameworks or tools would help your work. We read every request, and what you ask for shapes what we publish.
- Name and email are optional. Add an email if you would like a reply.
- Be as specific as you like about the situation you are in.
You can also write to hello@groundworkkit.com.
Questions
Who is this for?
Consultants, facilitators and internal transformation or change leads who run workshops about AI projects and want ready-made, well-structured templates instead of building their own.
What format are the files?
The facilitator guides are PowerPoint decks. The Prompt Library is an Excel workbook. Print the canvas pages, or copy them onto a shared board.
Is the Workshop Toolkit really free?
Yes. We will send the download link to the email address you provided. Leave the box ticked to receive updates, including new published templates.
Can I use the templates with my clients?
Yes. You may use and adapt them for your own work, including engagements with your clients. You may not resell, redistribute or publish the original files. The full wording is in the terms.
Can I ask for a template you have not published?
Please do. Use the form above. Requests decide what we publish next.