Whole View Perspective

The Whole View model is a tool produced by Whitney, in collaboration with the ID community. While Owen’s “Structured Planning” tool facilitates the optimal beginning to a project, the Whole View Model provides a tentative structure for knowledge of design, as well as a pathway for design teaching, research, and practice. The context of different design education types and The Whole View evolved out of ID’s efforts to identify stronger economic drivers for human-centered design than merely uncovering unmet needs — and the hope that clients would pay for whatever novel idea emerged to satisfy those needs. Over time, it became clear that the solution was not to construct a convincing argument for one outcome or another, but rather to create a way for various individuals and organizations to come up with their arguments within a holistic, coherent structure. The novel yet simple framework of the model helps organizations see how innovations in capability, business models, and user understanding can support each other to increase the chances that great new ideas are fully realized.