The Experimentation Field Book: A Step-by-Step Project Guide

Experimentation is an essential part of innovation. It is the link between generating new ideas and putting them into practice. We are constantly experimenting in our daily lives, and organizations place great value on testing new products, services, and strategies. Yet there is a shortage of actionable guidance on how to design and execute high-quality experiments for practical purposes.

This book is a hands-on manual for crafting and conducting useful experiments in real-life settings. It guides readers from any background or discipline through the fundamentals of identifying testable ideas, selecting an evidence base, prototyping, and testing, building users’ skill sets and channeling their creativity through an interactive, exercise-oriented format. The book details a step-by-step framework, with user-friendly instructions and a case study illustrating the process at work at each step, as well as templates for readers to customize in their own projects. It draws on design thinking as well as other practical business approaches. From the classroom to the practice world, The Experimentation Field Book is a vital tool kit for all problem solvers and innovators seeking to address today’s pressing challenges.

Jeanne Liedtka is the United Technologies Corporation Professor of Business Administration at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration at the University of Virginia and a leading expert and author on design thinking.

Elizabeth Chen is the design thinking lead at Innovate Carolina, the unit for innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Natalie Foley is the director of advisory services for Opportunity@Work, a startup social enterprise, where she uses experimentation to launch new products and services. Previously, she was the CEO of Peer Insight, a venture studio and innovation consulting firm.

David Kester is the managing director and founder of the strategic design consultancy DK&A and the executive training school Design Thinkers Academy London. He is a former CEO of the UK Design Council and honorary professor at Warwick Business School.