Frame: agree the problem
A statement and questions to answer.
Frame turns what you learned into a problem the group agrees on, and a set of questions worth answering. The methods range from writing a problem statement to finding root causes and agreeing what success looks like. For AI projects, the discipline is to describe the problem and the outcome without naming AI, because AI is one possible answer.
You leave with: A statement and questions to answer.
9 Frame methods
- How Might WeA problem turned into an open question30 minutes · 3 to 15 people
- Problem StatementWho needs what, and why it matters30 minutes · 3 to 10 people
- Jobs-to-be-Done StatementThe progress someone is trying to make30 minutes · 3 to 10 people
- Five WhysRoot cause, by asking why again and again20 minutes · 2 to 8 people
- Is / Is-NotThe boundary of the problem30 minutes · 4 to 15 people
- Issue TreeA problem split into parts that do not overlap45 minutes · 3 to 8 people
- FishboneCauses grouped by category40 minutes · 4 to 12 people
- Affinity ClusteringMany notes sorted into themes40 minutes · 5 to 30 people
- Success Criteria and ConstraintsWhat good looks like, and what limits the answer30 minutes · 3 to 12 people
Free in the Workshop Toolkit
Every Frame method has a guide page and a printable canvas in the Frame deck.
Get the free toolkitQuestions
What is the Frame phase of a design thinking workshop?
Frame turns what you learned into a problem the group agrees on, and a set of questions worth answering. The methods range from writing a problem statement to finding root causes and agreeing what success looks like. For AI projects, the discipline is to describe the problem and the outcome without naming AI, because AI is one possible answer.
What do you leave the Frame phase with?
A statement and questions to answer.
How many methods are there in the Frame phase?
There are 9 methods in the Frame phase: How Might We, Problem Statement, Jobs-to-be-Done Statement, Five Whys, Is / Is-Not, Issue Tree, Fishbone, Affinity Clustering, Success Criteria and Constraints. Together they take about 295 minutes if you run them all.
See also design thinking for AI projects and how to run a workshop.