Opportunity assessment

In this assignment you need to identify an opportunity that can be framed and potentially solved by applying design thinking. DT is not suitable for every challenge. It is an approach to solving problems especially suited to conditions of high uncertainty. (Example: Think about Zipcar, the innovative car-sharing service. The original creation of Zipcar was an ideal fit for DT, because the firm set out to create a new category of transportation service: car rental by the hour, with an element of social responsibility through resource sharing.) While searching for the opportunity, you can think big (e.g. poverty, high infant mortality rates, poor infrastructure, low levels of economic activity that affects employment) or small (turn Boston campus into fully sustainable one, encourage Hult BBA students to exercise daily for 30 minutes). Once you have a particular opportunity area in mind, I need you to draft a design brief: describe the project briefly, clarify its scope, identify the target group, list key questions that will need to be answered through research in order to come up with potential solutions. (We will cover the design brief framework in class.) Your brief should answer the following questions:

What is the challenge?
What is driving or causing it?
What are the environmental factors prevalent? (if applies)
Who are the people most impacted (general characteristics and main pains)? How do they behave?
Are there any unique circumstances that need to be identified?
How might we solve this challenge (initial thoughts and ideas on how this problem can be addressed)?
Your brief should utilize a framework, design thinking principles, wide research, and your own interpretation of the critical issues necessary to address the underlying complexity.

This brief should be a well-developed and edited 500-750 word text, using 1.0 vertical line-spacing, in Word format with 12 Times New Roman font with 1 inch margins. It is not required, but if you decide to use any external sources, you must refer to them according to APA referencing guidelines. Feel free to include relevant images, graphs, charts and tables in appropriately labeled appendices.