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Industrial Design Masters Theses

The Master of Industrial Design program explores design as a vehicle for addressing social, cultural, environmental and other concerns, recognizing that design is not simply a professional service, but rather a way of connecting individual interests and values with a social framework. Students with undergraduate degrees in other fields or with limited design experience are invited to enter the program during Wintersession as a means of preparing to begin the two-year master’s program the following fall.

ID covers a broad range of fields, from product and furniture explorations to design for aerospace and medical applications. Graduate students work independently under the guidance of a faculty advisor and thesis committee, and present their final work verbally, visually and in writing. They also participate in the RISD Graduate Thesis Exhibition , a large-scale public show held annually.

“Graduate candidates in ID don’t necessarily need an undergraduate degree in the field, but they do need strong visual communication skills. For those without an ID background, learning CAD, drawing and model making can be beneficial, and taking a general product design course can provide insight into the design process. Materials-based courses in a medium such as metal, glass, textiles, ceramics or wood also provide a good basis for work in ID.” - Andy Law, Graduate Program Director

Graduate Program Director: Andy Law

These works are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License .

Theses from 2023 2023

Kole , Isaiah Aladejobi

Fungi in Flux | Designing Regenerative Materials and Products with Mycelium , Arvind Bhallamudi

MILITURE , Bingdong Duan

POSTINDUSTRIAL PLAYBOOK++ , Maxwell Fertik

Freedom is a Leaky System: Living Together in the Mess , Calgary Haines-Trautman

Food, Drink, Time, New Year and Cloth , Jian Li

Making That Carries Over , Jae Nam

How to make a hybrid workplace more human? , Ray Sun

Unveiling Pain: Wearables for Objective Pain Measurement , Hanqing Tang

A PRELIMINARY GUIDE TO BUILDING NEW FUTURES IN THE NARRAGANSETT BAY , Maximilian Werner

Knot, Just Craft It , Qingxian Xu

Theses from 2022 2022

Ready made, made ready: everyday objects for everyday emergency , Dara Benno

Memories unboxed: connecting people with stories of our possessions , Megan Tzu-Hsien Chao

To be seen to be heard: embracing social anxiety in the workplace , Jingxuan Chen

Attuning the viewfinder , Ian de Silva

Disoriented: navigating the nuances of communication , Ann Dinh

Sobremesa , Charlie Herbozo-Vidal

Vulva gazing: power and the gendered body , Aaliya Jamal Zaidi

A fleeting landscape: resurrecting the edges of the estuary , Vrinda Mathur

Material Illumination , Lauren Mikaela Glenn

Extended reality interface , Neil Nelson

Breaking | Grounding | Growing: Expanding the Rhode Island gardening reentry programs as a pathway towards stability , Juliana Soltys

We got this... , Julian Wellisz

Sub Sequence : building a participatory infrastructure , Aaron Wright

Theses from 2021 2021

Designing for space; exploring ways of simulating nature and everyday activities in zero-g environment , Sayit Alisan

Psychological well-being through music listening , Majed BouGhanem

Shoes for advanced urban surfaces , Karan Buasakdi

After plastic waste : plastic bottle knitting machine - design for value of recycling plastic , Du Cheng

Katti-Batti : a digital tool for young adolescents to transgress the limitations of gender socialization through empathy & friendship , Chetan Dusane

Beyond conscious: the knowing of self-owned anxiety , WenYu Du

Rebuilt the fading vicinity , Yifan Du

The portal : a tool for uncertain times , Sophie Engel

Inter - : design for fostering action-oriented awareness towards sustainable transition , Elena Danlei Huang

Move in the internet , Jennifer Ziyuan Huang

Living objects , Katie Tzu Hua Huang

The art of microbe maintenance: value and applications in design , Yujin Hwang

Distilling the Narragansett Bay , Parker Ives

Kitsch study and Chinese kitsch market , Jiaqi Ellie Liu

Beacon Public Library: expanding radical civic care for an uncertain future , Katrina Machado

Ars Technica , Bayan Mashrequi

Inside the bubble 2.0 , Sunny Yuqing Ma

Wild things: outdoor toys for nature play , John Mawhorter

Indefinite origin: decentralizing knowledge , Tong-June Moon

No winners: transgender athletes in cycling , Max Pratt

Zoomorphic extended body , Nicholas Tamas

Uncertainty wanted: deconstructing gender gap in parenting mentality , Zimeng Xiang

A family game: tell the stories that shape us , Zhuoyan Xie

Theses from 2020 2020

Sol , John Beck

Repairer's recipe : volume 0 , Joyce Chang

Experience the world: How the ever-present accessibility of hands-on opportunities & play enhance logistical learning , Mary E. Chavez

Ocean state food stories , Charlotte Clement

Beautiful dirt : exploring the American taboo of death through the things we leave behind , Jake Dangstorp

Designed body , Jingwei Deng

Acute , Alex D'Haeseleer

Mimesis : human-centered digital profiling visual identity , Yangyang Ding

Voran Test Lab : An exploration of teaching collaborative problem solving and critical thinking through emergent gameplay , Taber Gifford

inVisible: a guide to understanding & designing for introverts , Ashesh Gohil

Through the labyrinth , Rebeca Gonzalez Morales

+ one : a new companionship , Vivien Mengjiao Han

Lift a life , Vidur Madhav

Night Knights: reminding children that their nighttime fear isn't something they have to face alone , Ji Hyung Moon

Fifty fifty: redefining domesticity , Ziying Qiao

The objects around us. , Rohit Sen

Accessibility to possibilities : discover the unknown unknown worlds , Yutong Shen

Totem: An embodiment of human character and personality in footwear design , Sushant Shivaram

Togather: To gather together , Kyungah Sohn

Surviving in a gregarious world , Shiyang Yao

Ether: a social design , Zihan Zhou

Theses from 2019 2019

Biomatters : future of biology as material source , Tareq Alzawawi

Mindful interactions , Shreyans Bhandari

Unimproved : land observation at the edge of progress , Adam Somers Bowen

Bitter son , Adam Chuong

Pekka : social software to improve in-game dynamics , Yu Mo

Theses from 2018 2018

Autonomous vehicle futures : designing experiences that enable trust and adoption , Jeremy Bass

Foodways for earthlings : recipes and tools for eating in extreme environments , Maggie Coblentz

Curious things , Allison Davis

Idiosyncratic uniform , Erica Efstratoudakis

Really clean no problems at all , Christina Johnston

Letsqube , Biniam Assegid Kebede

For a better normal : fostering the informal sector in post-hurricane Puerto Rico, as a pathway for economic stabilization , Jonathan W. Melendez Davidson

Harmless Studio , David Thomas Pittman

Dispatches from planet nowhere , Aaron Field Simmons

Radically normal : the menstruation issue , Kathryn Smiley

Talking to computers , Jen Spatz

A place for plastics : bioplastics, bacteria and our thoughtless acts , Megan Valanidas

Memory.zip , Yu-Hsing Wu

Theses from 2017 2017

Communicatronics , Adi Azulay

Balance speaker : efficient work and break , Jin Cao

Talistones : a handful of help for homecoming soldiers , Atulya Changanty

Magkasama , Christina Chen

Retooling : experiments in digital apprenticeship , Ryan Ferguson

Body (less) fitness , Dan Gioia

Love view , Wudi Hong

Connections : a new model to customizing everything , Shao-Hsuan Hou

Motivated motivation : a consulting tool to find new platforms for business , Xiaoxio Jin

Embracing traditional Chinese culture through design , Jiaxuan Li

P-Lax : toys for adults, to play & relax , Zhizi Liu

Empowerment of people of all abilities , Kasia Matlak

Jettison all stories : experimenting with our relationship to the physical , Alyssa R. Mayo

Transitions : designing acceptance in a world of change , Hanna McLaughlin

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Product Design Research: A Review

• First Online: 27 May 2018

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• Steven Chen 2  

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The second literary domain of design management research has to do with product design and consumer behavior. Product design refers to the process and outcomes of developing product (or service) offerings. This chapter summarizes the vast product design literature. Specifically, the literature review summarizes several product design streams: product form and consumer behavior, service design, cross-cultural design, and design analytics.

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Chen, S. (2019). Product Design Research: A Review. In: The Design Imperative. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78568-4_3

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1. Transitional design histories

Author : Maria Göransdotter ; Johan Redström ; Kjetil Fallan ; Molly Wright Steenson ; Umeå universitet ; [] Keywords : HUMANIORA ; HUMANITIES ; design ; design research ; design theory ; design history ; history of design ; industrial design ; participatory design ; co-design ; user-centered design ; Scandinavian design ; Swedish design ; history of ideas ; design ; designforskning ; designteori ; designhistoria ; industridesign ; deltagande design ; samskapande ; användarcentrerad design ; skandinavisk design ; svensk design ; folkhemmet ; idéhistoria ; design ; design ; industrial design ; industridesign ; idé- och lärdomshistoria ; History Of Sciences and Ideas ; History ; historia ;

Abstract : Design practices are to a large degree conceptually and methodologically based in ways of designing rooted in the 20th century. Some of the challenges that arise in contemporary design stem from an unawareness of design’s historicity, and the discrepancies between what design methods and concepts once were made to handle, and what we presently try to apply them to. READ MORE

2. Arrangement Design Studies : the introduction of the digital wall in domestic environments

Author : Morteza Abdipour ; Erik Stolterman ; Mikael Wiberg ; Umeå universitet ; [] Keywords : HUMANIORA ; HUMANITIES ; Digital Walls ; Large Displays ; Ambient Display Environments ; Arrangement ; Domestic Environments ; Design Research ; Research Through Design ; Design Studies ; Design Research Lab ; Constructive Design Research ; Participatory Design ; User-centered Design ; industrial design ; industridesign ;

Abstract : This research focuses on the emergence of 'digital walls' that can project images onto almost all or even the entirety of interior (and perhaps exterior) walls, and what implications this might have for how we arrange our rooms. It demonstrates the arrangement, i.e. READ MORE

3. Design as sociomaterial navigation : a performative framework for action-oriented design

Author : Brendon Clark ; Jacob Buur ; Pelle Ehn ; Thomas Binder ; Ilpo Koskinen ; University of Southern Denmark Mads ClausenInstitute for Product Innovation ; [] Keywords : HUMANIORA ; HUMANITIES ; design anthropology ; design methods ; participatory design ; design ; design ;

Abstract : .... READ MORE

4. Opening Up Design : Engaging the Layperson in the Design of Everyday Products

Author : Guido Hermans ; Erik Stolterman ; Ron Wakkary ; Umeå universitet ; [] Keywords : HUMANIORA ; HUMANITIES ; democratisation of design ; toolkits ; 3D printing ; layperson participation ; post-phenomenology ; research through design ; design ; design ;

Abstract : This dissertation in industrial design focuses on the gap between the context of design and the context of use. It aims to open up design to the layperson and investigate an active role for the layperson in the design of everyday products. READ MORE

5. A Material Framework for Product Design

Author : Charlotte Asbjørn Sörensen ; Valentina Rognoli ; Lund University ; [] Keywords : HUMANIORA ; HUMANITIES ; SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP ; SOCIAL SCIENCES ; TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER ; ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY ; experiential learning ; material practices in design ; pedagogic framework ; higher education ; product design ; material selection ; sensorial characteristics ; technical properties ; material criteria activities ; case study ;

Abstract : A new paradigm is slowly making its way into society, affecting our material practice as designers. Materials selection in design and product development has for a long time been dominated by a purely technical approach, mainly focusing on properties and performance. READ MORE

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Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Method of product design'

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Simpson, Timothy W. "A concept exploration method for product family design." Diss., Georgia Institute of Technology, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/17508.

Taabodi, Amir. "Implementing an Integrated Product Service Offering Design Method for Complex Products and Systems." Licentiate thesis, Linköpings universitet, Industriell miljöteknik, 2014. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-106785.

Fulkerson, Sarah (Sarah Hampton) 1969, and Anna 1969 Halpern-Lande. "Product design and innovation : exploring breakthrough products (breakthroughs : a method and a madness)." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/9619.

Corbett, Brian. "Configuration design methods and mathematics for product families." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/17283.

Wright, Philip Solvang. "«Vision in Product design» as a method for universal design : «Vision in Product design» som metode for universell utforming." Thesis, Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet, Institutt for produktutvikling og materialer, 2014. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:no:ntnu:diva-26087.

Fitch, Peder Erik. "Design forecasting : a method for performing DFX analyses in complex product design /." Thesis, Connect to this title online; UW restricted, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/7135.

Nykänen, Arne. "Methods for product sound design." Doctoral thesis, Luleå tekniska universitet, Drift, underhåll och akustik, 2008. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-26577.

Carone, Michael Joseph. "Augmenting the product platform constructal theory method for multiple objectives." Thesis, Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2004:, 2003. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/etd-04062004-164618/unrestricted/carone%5Fmichael%5Fj%5F200312%5Fms.pdf.

Sethebe, Keaboka M. "The development of product design guidelines based on a new conceptual framework." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2012. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/11173.

King, Adam J. (Adam Jack) 1970. "A method of comparing the costs of platform and unique product design." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/80003.

Torkelsson, Olle, and Markus Dauksz. "DFMA : A Methodology Study and Method Development." Thesis, Högskolan i Skövde, Institutionen för ingenjörsvetenskap, 2014. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:his:diva-9562.

Chen, Chien-Bang. "An approach to empathic design for assistive technology." Thesis, De Montfort University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/2086/9027.

Lee, Abraham. "A Hybrid Method for Sensitivity Optimization With Application to Radio-Frequency Product Design." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2014. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/4358.

Houldsworth, Austin. "For money's sake : introducing Redefinition Design - a method to break out of the ubiquitous monetary paradigm, in the hope of finding genuine alternatives." Thesis, Royal College of Art, 2018. http://researchonline.rca.ac.uk/3537/.

Bradley, Donald Albert. "A Method to Relate Product Tolerancing Decisions to Environmental Impacts and Costs in Manufacturing." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/11607.

Eigner, Martin, Thomas Dickopf, and Hristo Apostolov. "Interdisziplinäre Design Methodik." Thelem Universitätsverlag & Buchhandlung GmbH & Co. KG, 2019. https://tud.qucosa.de/id/qucosa%3A36964.

Muteki, Koji MacGregor John Frederick. "Mixture product design using latent variable methods." *McMaster only, 2006.

Rosengren, Hellman Jonas. "Modular Battery Base Unit : A Method-Based Design Approach." Thesis, KTH, Maskinkonstruktion (Inst.), 2013. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-183421.

Lewis, Patrick K. "Multiobjective Optimization Method for Identifying Modular Product Platforms and Modules that Account for Changing Needs over Time." Diss., CLICK HERE for online access, 2010. http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/ETD/image/etd3580.pdf.

Corbett, Kramm Sandra M. (Sandra Maureen) 1972. "Web-enhanced customer design and configuration as a method of informing the new product development process." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/91768.

Sanchez, Norberto. "Designing Engagement: A Method for improving Multisensorial Properties of Products." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1554373954791942.

Paine, Helen. "Laser shaping : a method for controlling the elastic behaviour of stretch fabrics for a targeted and graduated compressive effect on the body." Thesis, Royal College of Art, 2016. http://researchonline.rca.ac.uk/1805/.

Hogberg, Dan. "Ergonomics integration and user diversity in product design." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2005. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/7772.

Carrião, Renato Lewenthal. "Method to represent IoT solutions during the Business Model Design of a Product-Service System (PSS)." Universidade de São Paulo, 2018. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/18/18156/tde-12112018-141032/.

Dickinson, Rebecca. "Statistical Methods for Improving and Maintaining Product Reliability." Diss., Virginia Tech, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/50516.

Smith, Ariadne G. (Ariadne Geneviève). "New product development methods : a study of open design." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/78500.

Abdul, Kudus Syahibudil I. "The value of personalised consumer product design facilitated through additive manufacturing technology." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2017. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/34616.

Watkins, Matthew. "An investigation into effective methods for teaching social sustainability within product design in British and Irish Universities." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2014. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/14155.

Mitchell, Valerie A. "Mobile methods : eliciting user needs for future mobile products." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2005. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/15740.

Chaigne, Hoel. "Accelerated Testing: Development of a Normative Lifespan Method for Water-Sports Products." Thesis, Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Institutionen för maskinteknik, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:bth-20331.

Bare, Marshall Edwin. "Structuring Emperical Methods for Reuse and Efficiency in Product Development Processes." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2006. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/1032.

Koltookian, John H. (John Haynes). "The Government has a method to get product to soldiers fast - big defense needs to catch up." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/106254.

Bare, Marshall Edwin. "Structuring empirical methods for reuse and efficiency in product development processes /." Diss., CLICK HERE for online access, 2007. http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/ETD/image/etd1676.pdf.

Chen, Yuan-chen, and 陳淵琛. "Optimality Design Method on Product Form Design." Thesis, 2000. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/86466758959534713748.

Van, Wie Michael James. "Designing product architecture a systematic method /." Thesis, 2002. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/utexas/fullcit?p3110695.

Ko, Hui-An, and 柯惠安. "A Product Design Method Of Technology-Driven Innovation." Thesis, 2018. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/t4k45m.

Shih-WeiWen and 溫是瑋. "Meaningful-function Forming Method for Innovative Product Design." Thesis, 2011. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/03040162490905497281.

Chih, Wu Tung, and 吳東治. "A Product Design Method of Re-design Derives from Human Experience." Thesis, 2010. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/33348265241062613397.

Li, Yi-Le, and 李以勒. "Apply Environmental Footprint Impact Assessment Method in Product Design." Thesis, 2017. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/cgi-bin/gs32/gsweb.cgi/login?o=dnclcdr&s=id=%22105CYCU5030057%22.&searchmode=basic.

Chang-LinLee and 李昌霖. "Using Biomimetic Design Method to Develop Innovative Product Design Method for the Bottom of the Pyramid." Thesis, 2016. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/49027270853692707821.

Lyu, Syuan-Yi, and 呂宣誼. "The Study of Product Design Method Integrating Contradiction Matrix with Eco-Design." Thesis, 2011. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/15311863066232486428.

LUNG, SYUE-TING, and 龍學婷. "Game Controller Product Design by Combining Kansei Evaluation and Generative Design Method." Thesis, 2018. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/5h7tw2.

Chang, Cheng, and 張晟. "Studies on Modularity for Product Design by Assembly Evaluation Method." Thesis, 2008. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/52732127710824601274.

Yang, Yi-tzu, and 楊一慈. "The Composition Method of Poetry Image Converts to Product Design." Thesis, 2009. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/70368077621010348471.

Liu, Meng-Chang, and 劉孟昌. "Morphing Method for Shape Generation and Synthesis in Product Design." Thesis, 1999. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/70803654862462533397.

Bohan-Lee and 李柏翰. "The Research of Product Development Using Fuzzy Axiomatic Design Method." Thesis, 2013. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/91783731548702783587.

Wang, Bo-jin, and 王伯晉. "A Design Method Based on Product Analysis and Blending Theory." Thesis, 2012. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/9mmypk.

Lee, Lin-Chien, and 李林兼. "Studies on Cooperative Generative Design Method for Product Shapes Development." Thesis, 2018. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/cd44jj.

Hsueh, Ching-Fang, and 薛青芳. "A Method of Design-by-Analogy for Innovative Product Concepts." Thesis, 2018. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/cp3wqq.

Lin, Zhi-Ying, and 林治穎. "A strategic framework toward product innovation using design thinking method." Thesis, 2016. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/pmfp5n.

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Every Product Has a Thesis

Every successful product has a central thesis—a reason for existence. Let’s analyze the foundations of the iPhone, Alexa, and other widespread products to highlight their core theses.

By Alex Cox

Alex is a product manager at the intersection of design and commerce, helping clients convert leads into sales.

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Every successful product has a reason for existence and a justification for why people love it—a so-called central thesis. If a thesis is not aligned with users’ needs, the product tends to do a lot of different things but ends up doing nothing well. When Amazon released the Fire Phone in 2014, its failure was partly due to the fact that “ consumers considered its smartphone effort utterly misguided .” Another example is Google+, which was launched as a Facebook clone with “ big aspirations but no well-defined purpose for users .”

Product thesis is crucial for targeting the proper market successfully and showcasing a product’s uniqueness to users. In this article, I will analyze the foundations of four well-known products to highlight their core theses and the lessons learned from their introduction to the market.

What Is a Product Thesis?

A core thesis is similar to a product vision, it is a solution to a problem. Each new feature intends to support that solution and thus strengthen the thesis. Every item, be it hardware, software, or a physical item, has a thesis. The mug sitting next to you, the pencil, or the wallet in your pocket—they all represent a solution that solves a certain problem.

Some products seek to solve several problems. For example, a social media platform like Facebook offers different solutions, including the news feed (showing relevant information for users), messenger (easy chat), or marketplace (selling and buying things within communities). They all are solutions to certain user problems.

Spotting a Thesis

Spotting the core product statement is crucial to determining the initial market entry . By researching a market, you can grasp the customer’s problems and their solutions. When you find a problem without a solution or you can prove that your idea is advanced, it is the right time to crystalize your initial product’s thesis.

When I worked at the travel platform Expedia, I had to build a travel app for college students. First, I immersed myself in the research: I downloaded every app that my customers were using and tested it to determine its thesis. By doing this, I was able to predict the product’s roadmap, as its trajectory derives from the thesis. For example, an app designed to make rapid multi-platform flight comparisons would likely expand into additional comparison verticals, such as hotel or car rental comparisons; an app designed to negotiate hotel prices would likely scale to more cities with a focus on offering the best hotel price. As a new player in the market, you can predict the competitors’ strategy and outperform them.

Spotting a thesis requires immersing yourself in a product to grasp its features and discover the prevailing patterns. If you cannot detect them, most likely there is no central thesis. Typically, this implies a risk of failure, however, there are some well-known products that proved to be an exception to this rule.

The First Story: iPhone

When Apple introduced its first smartphone in 2007, it was the first entirely touch-based smartphone, later recognized as a prototype for current cell phones. It entered the market with the thesis that phones are the perfect use case for touchscreens . This revolutionary idea resulted in major hardware and software changes. Mini scroll wheels or physical keyboards were replaced by finger navigation. The iPhone was designed with more screen space, which was a game-changer for taking images and using apps. Although there were touchscreen phones prior to the iPhone, it was the first phone fully designed around it.

However, the device was not perfect. Switching from Blackberry’s physical keyboard to a touchscreen keyboard meant users lost the ability to type without looking at the keyboard and had to learn to type on smooth glass. In addition to this input shift, the original iPhone did not have the bells and whistles we take for granted in today’s smartphones. There were no games or the App Store, so the default apps were the only ones the user could have. However, they were designed to use a doubled screen to its capacity—the keyboard was allotted by showing either the letters and symbols or the number pad. By being dead set on perfecting touch and aligning the entire user experience around it, Apple’s product team convinced the world that touchscreens and the larger screens they afforded were the future of smartphones.

The Second Story: Alexa

Big enterprises with a long runway can take the risk of launching products without a clear thesis and crystalize or adjust the thesis afterward, based on data showing what feature set users value the most. It is an expensive and risky method but an effective way to understand users’ needs and preferences. If users find the initial product valuable, a company can reorient its feature set around the key incentive and turn it into a successful product.

A good example is the Alexa home assistant that Amazon launched in 2014, three years after Apple released Siri. Initially, Alexa’s thesis was that the best place for a voice assistant was the kitchen counter. At launch, it had eight microphones (which was a lot) to catch every single sound in the house and was chock-full of features that were considered to be helpful to a household.

As people slowly began to adopt and love Alexa in their homes, a few clear patterns came into view. Rather than using Alexa to buy things, people mostly used this device to play music, set timers, ask fact-based questions, and get weather forecasts. Unlike the Siri voice assistant on the phone, designed to do personal tasks like calling friends or setting calendar appointments, Alexa was created for family members to share. The focus on assisting everyone rather than a single person seems to have inspired some of Alexa’s unique features such as bedtime stories, jokes, and news briefings. Over time, the Alexa product team also invested in what their users seem to care about: great sound quality at an affordable price to help with simple tasks. This shifted the thesis from the kitchen-based assistant for purchasing products to an affordable speaker that helps the family , making this product one of the market leaders.

The Third Story: Apple Watch

When the first iteration of the Apple Watch was released in 2015, it had no discernible thesis. Smartwatches had existed for years before Apple introduced its product. The Pebble watch was showing notifications and Garmin was an activity tracker for running. The Apple Watch seemed to cover everything—it had apps, notifications, and heart rate, but did none of those things particularly well. In addition, it was tethered to the iPhone, so users needed to carry both their watch and phone with them, which was not ideal for running. After a couple more iterations, with the Apple Watch Series 3, the watch’s thesis became squarely about health . With each subsequent iteration, Apple added more features focused on health, from electrocardiography to heart irregularity detection. The company untethered the watch from the phone, increased health tracking accuracy, and brought the product to the forefront with new interface complexity.

Fourth story: Minut Smart Home Sensor

Although it is a natural temptation for product managers to build many features, the thesis concept suggests they should not be overworked—more does not mean better. A good but not so widely known example is Minut Smart Home Sensor . It analyzes sound at home to identify safety concerns such as break-ins, fire, carbon monoxide leaks, or even mold growth, and then sends notifications to the owner. If you rent your apartment with a “no party” rule, and someone throws a big party, the Sensor will send you a message about a possible party going on based on its sound analysis. It also measures temperature and humidity, and on top of that, tracks motion in the house, so you can know when your guests check out.

At a glance, the Sensor has many different features. However, its thesis is constructed around home security: analyzing sounds to detect threats to home safety . The additional sensors that identify temperature, humidity, and air pressure broaden the home safety concept to protecting the home from mold, sudden temperature peaks and drops, or air pollution.

People do not seek to interact with home security every day; they prefer to be alerted only if issues arise. Minut’s product team took this insight seriously, laying the product’s foundations on this user preference and not overworking with smart features. For example, inserting a voice assistant, alarm clock, or screen to display temperature and weather could confuse the thesis, because these are features we use every day. Also, the functions of an assistant, alarm clock, and security system would compete with each other and risk fulfilling many tasks ordinarily rather than one exceptionally well.

Make the Thesis Flexible

The thesis is not a rigid concept, it is a flexible product vision that needs constant adjustments. Some companies adjust their thesis with every major iteration. The first iPhone version was focused on the screen, later it shifted to better apps, and finally to the camera. When customers and the market validate a product’s thesis by making it a success, competing companies typically adopt it as well and start copying the product. The thesis was compelling, customers bought it, and now that feature set is table stakes. Each iteration of a successful product will now need a different reason to exist—a new thesis—in order to differentiate itself from the imitators.

Sometimes, products with a strong thesis fail. To avoid this, conduct comprehensive user research and make sure your team is ready to pivot into building a new product. While working for a travel platform, I found that almost a third of college-aged people ranked group bookings as one of their biggest travel frustrations. We also discovered that a high number of solo travelers had trouble finding the cheapest itinerary. Both were significant problems—one applied to a huge number of trips, the other to far fewer trips but had a much larger payout per trip. My team was divided. Half of them sought to solve group trips, while the other half wanted to recommend tailored trip itineraries. I encouraged my team to answer the question: “If every solution failed, how would we pivot?” The answer, which led us to focus on recommending itineraries, was that pivoting from a trip comparison platform to nearly any other travel product would be smoother than pivoting out of a group travel coordination product. Collaboration requires many features and tools that are not travel-related, such as polling the group, listing itinerary updates, and inviting group members to share itineraries.

The Big Picture

Composing a product thesis is an essential responsibility of every product manager. The thesis allows teams to get acquainted with a global picture of the market and position their product accordingly. Presenting the thesis to users is another challenge. While some products launch with a solid thesis that immediately matches customers’ needs, a host of companies do not crystallize the thesis until after launch. Both approaches can lead to success as long as you are prepared to tweak, or in case of failure, shift the product’s thesis to meet customers’ needs.

Further Reading on the Toptal Blog:

• Product Managers vs. Project Managers Part II: Situational Analysis
• Design Problem Statements: What They Are and How to Frame Them
• How to Lead Remote Product Teams: Key Traits for Success
• The Importance of Human-centered Design in Product Design
• Product Managers vs. Project Managers: Understanding Core Similarities and Differences

Understanding the basics

What is a product statement.

A product statement, also known as a vision statement or thesis, is the imaginary future that you wish to achieve with a product. It is an ambitious and inspiring statement that immerses you into using the product and suggests a great experience.

What is an example of a vision statement?

Good examples of a vision statement are the following: 1) A world where you can belong anywhere (Airbnb, home rental platform); 2) Make second-hand as a first choice worldwide (Vinted, second-hand clothing marketplace); 3) From traveling alone in the urban jungle to having a friend to guide you through (Trafi, mobility platform for cities).

Why is a product vision important?

A product vision aligns a team with the product’s goal and gives the north star to which team members can constantly refer. The vision also inspires the employees and suggests the best possible user experience.

What are the desirable qualities of a product vision?

The desirable qualities of a product vision should cover users’ and company’s perspectives. From the company’s perspective, it should set standards with its philosophy, guide, and inspire employees. From the users’ perspective, it should help people to sympathize with the brand and encourage them to use the product.

How do you write a product statement?

If you want to write a product statement, first define what is unique about your product that differentiates it from others. Second, imagine the future that you want to achieve with your product: What is the best-case scenario? Third, combine it with a product’s features in order to make a short, appealing, and inspirational statement.

• MarketEntry
• ProductVision

Washington, DC, United States

Member since October 31, 2019

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Finishing Touches

Visual Arts Majors Thesis Exhibition

Posted in: Announcements

Celebrate the accomplishments of our Visual Arts majors in this vibrant thesis exhibition, the capstone of their BA Degree. Finishing Touches is a collective exhibition reflecting the diverse viewpoints of 32 rising graduates. This showcase represents the culmination of their cross-disciplinary research in art. This exhibition will be held in Finley Gallery & Calcia 207 from May 2nd to May 8th with an opening reception on May 3rd from 6pm to 8pm.

Each student presents a cohesive body of work, offering fresh perspectives through a range of media and approaches. Come visit the galleries and connect with their paintings, room-sized installations, crafted sculptures, prints, and photography on display throughout Finley Gallery and first-floor exhibition spaces in Finley Hall, and also in Calcia Hall 207. We invite you to spend time with the critical themes explored in this exciting display of capstone projects.

Featured Artists:

SECTION 1 Deborah Akingbala, Joanna Benito Rosas, Kelsie Black, Nina Bogaenko, Meghan Brennan, Dylan Danuser, Veronica Enny, Brenna Frawley, Emma Hands, LaChelle Harris, Grace La Vergne, Rayjan Luly, Vanessa Marone, Jennifer Melendres, Fatima Peguero, Sean Santos

SECTION 2 Kenia Akridge, Thomas Brockman, Jenna Bukowski, Josh Dela Cruz, Francesca Esposito, Philip Esquite, Mike Ezpeleta, Aaliyah Mancero, Kain Orsini, Kevin Pineros, Giannie Rodriguez, Ethan Shluper, Wolfgang Smith, Jenifer Szuba, Karolina Tejada, Jahné Williams

• F inishing Touches
• BA Visual Arts Thesis Exhibition
• On view: May 2 – May 8, 2024
• Reception: Friday, May 3, 2024, 6:00 – 8:00 pm
• Location: Finley Gallery, Annex, 1st floor galleries, & Calcia 207
• Light refreshments will be served
• Gallery Hours: Mon-Fri 10-8pm, Sat 10-3pm

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Research: Why People Really Buy Upcycled Products

• Sara Caprioli,
• Christoph Fuchs,
• Bram Van den Bergh

Creativity is more of a selling point than sustainability.

Researchers who analyzed consumer feedback from Etsy discovered that what consumers value most about upcycled products is not their sustainability but their creativity. Their findings offer some guidelines for companies who hope to design and successfully market upcycled products: 1) Designers should consider using components from other industries to enhance the appeal of their products and encourage cross-industry collaboration; 2) Product designers and managers should identify new uses for product components; 3) Marketers should emphasize creativity, as well as sustainability, in their messaging about upcycled products; and 4) Companies can boost the appeal of new products by emphasizing design elements that remind consumers of upcycled products.

Upcycling — the creation of new products by reusing one or more components from ones — is having a moment.

• SC Sara Caprioli is a postdoctoral researcher at the TUM School of Management in Germany. Her work focuses on the effects of creativity and artificial intelligence on human behavior.
• CF Christoph Fuchs is a professor of marketing at the University of Vienna in Austria. His research is situated at the interface of marketing, technology, and human behavior.
• BB Bram Van den Bergh is professor of marketing at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam. His research focuses on decision making and persuasion.

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