Co-sketching workshop

Design method

Sketching the first screens on paper in a co-sketching workshop

Still rooted in co-design with the various stakeholders (users, project team, tech team, business representatives, and so on), the co-sketching workshop is where the first screens are shaped on paper and structured. To test solutions, think collectively and bring up new ideas, nothing beats the good old paper-and-pencil combo. It's collaborative work, useful for sharing and prioritising ideas, with the big upside of aligning everyone's view before entering the design phase.

What is a co-sketching workshop for?

To share ideas by getting them down on paper
To structure pages and place components within interfaces
Working as a group involves every stakeholder
To align everyone's views during the voting and screen-prioritising stage

Why run a co-sketching workshop?

To shape the solutions on the table and feed the thinking collectively
To run a playful session with mixed teams
To design website or app interfaces, and also as part of a service-design approach

Pick the setting

A co-sketching workshop can happen in person or remotely thanks to online tools like Miro or Mural. On the participants' side, you can invite different business profiles to compare perspectives during the session and broaden the range of ideas.

Set the frame

Time pressure usually means prioritising the screens participants will work on. Like many co-design workshops, the co-sketching session needs adapting to the project, the participants and the conditions, but you'll most often find these phases:

Fuel the discussion

The method needs to rest on a shared baseline. That can be a review of the existing platform, an audit, user journeys, a list of identified and prioritised needs. Ideally, it's worth offering a benchmark to participants (or dedicating time to that step).

Facilitate the exchanges

Clear instructions are part of what makes the exercise work. You can, for instance, follow a three-step flow: an individual sketching step where each participant draws their ideas on their own; a step to share and discuss the options put on the table; a final vote that lets everyone settle on the best compromise, taking technical constraints, business needs, user feedback and so on into account.

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Related methods

Wireframes

Mockups with no graphic styling, describing the zones and the essential components an interface should hold. They keep the focus on the functional and informational side of the interface.

Site map

A hierarchical, logical way of organising pages and features. A sound site map categorises content to fit the mental model users already have.

User flows

A visual representation of the paths users take across the various screens and steps. It surfaces the specific needs of different user profiles along the journey.

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