The Double Diamond - Still a Great Framework!
- Daniel White
- Oct 10
- 3 min read
Over the years, I’ve tried a few different design and strategy frameworks — design sprints, lean approaches, agile blends (or what I like to call 'Wagile' — you name it. But no matter what new model comes along, I always seem to return to one: the British Design Council’s Double Diamond - recently celebrating 20 years in existence!
It’s been a reliable reference point throughout my career. Simple, flexible, and surprisingly resilient. The two diamonds — Discover, Define, Develop, Deliver — form a clear path for tackling complex problems with structure and creativity.
Discover, Define, Develop, Deliver — and Everything in Between
The first half, Discover and Define, is about understanding the problem: stepping back, questioning, and listening. The second, Develop and Deliver, is about making ideas real — prototyping, testing, refining, and learning.
It’s straightforward, but it captures something essential about how creative work actually happens. We rarely move in straight lines. We wander, connect dots, and shape clarity from the mess. The Double Diamond makes space for that, while keeping us anchored to an outcome. It's also simple enough to easily introduce into most software organisiations that haven't worked with a design team or focussed heavily on the discovery process before.
I’ve seen how this framework can work in so many different situations — from product design to organisational strategy — and it always holds up. It reminds teams that defining problems matters as much as solving them, and iteration is part of progress, not a sign of failure. Also let's not forget Prodiuct Discovery. It fuels the right sort of structure thinking to a software problem.
Most modern frameworks feel like variations of the same underlying logic the Double Diamond set out years ago. It endures because it reflects how real creative problem solving unfolds.
How it works - in a nutshell
1. Discover — Understanding the Problem
This is the exploration phase — where you try to understand the landscape before jumping to conclusions. It’s about learning, listening, and questioning.
What happens here:
Researching users, customers, or stakeholders
Observing how things really work (not how people say they work)
Collecting data, stories, and insights
Why it’s easy to work with:It doesn’t demand fancy tools — just curiosity and good listening. It encourages teams to slow down, look wider, and see the bigger picture before deciding what to build. It’s open-ended, but simple: find out what’s really going on.
2. Define — Framing the Problem
Once you’ve explored broadly, this stage is about narrowing focus. You make sense of what you’ve learned and decide where to act.
What happens here:
Synthesising research into themes or patterns
Identifying needs and opportunities
Writing clear problem statements or design challenges
Why it’s easy to work with:
It’s a natural step — after you’ve explored, you summarise. It helps teams align, choose direction, and get clarity before investing energy in solutions. Even a simple “we thought it was X, but it’s really Y” moment can make all the difference.
3. Develop — Exploring Solutions
Here, you open things up again — generating ideas, prototyping, and experimenting to see what might work.
What happens here:
Brainstorming and sketching ideas
Building low-fidelity prototypes
Testing and learning quickly
Why it’s easy to work with:It’s hands-on and energising. You don’t need a full design system to start — just a willingness to try, test, and iterate. It turns abstract thinking into something tangible fast, which helps teams learn and adjust before committing to a final path.
4. Deliver — Making It Real
This is where ideas become real, usable, and launch-ready. You refine, finalise, and implement the solution — then measure its impact.
What happens here:
Refining prototypes into final designs
Testing at scale
Releasing, learning, and iterating again
Why it’s easy to work with:
It fits naturally into most delivery models (Agile, Lean, etc.). You can keep iterating without losing sight of the outcome. It turns creative work into real impact — closing the loop from insight to execution.
A Framework Worth Keeping
New frameworks come and go, but the Double Diamond is one I still trust. It’s clear, flexible, and practical — more a way of thinking than a step-by-step method. For me, that’s what makes it timeless.
I've often used the following diagram based on Design Thinking and this shared many things on common with the Double Diamond.
