Design Better Podcast Episode Summary: Jake Knapp on "Click—How to Make What People Want"

In this enlightening episode of Design Better, hosts Eli Woolery and Aaron Walter engage in a deep conversation with Jake Knapp, the author of the new book "Click: How to Make What People Want." Knapp, renowned for pioneering the design sprint methodology at Google Ventures, delves into his latest venture—foundation sprints—and shares insights on building products and companies that resonate with customers from the ground up.

Jake Knapp’s Journey and Character Capital

Jake Knapp opens up about his trajectory since his last appearance on the podcast in 2018. Following the release of his books Sprint and Make Time, Knapp transitioned from Google Ventures to co-founding Character Capital, a venture fund designed to support startups at the seed stage. He explains:

"What I think is kind of my life's calling accidentally, which is to help with the beginnings of projects, to help people use their time as well as possible by pointing the thing in the best possible direction, building in the best possible team DNA at the very, very first moment." [02:24]

Character Capital focuses on early-stage companies that aim to change behavior through innovative solutions. Knapp emphasizes the importance of supporting founders who are obsessed with their mission and possess unique insights and capabilities to bring impactful products to market.

Foundation Sprints vs. Design Sprints

While design sprints have become a staple for prototyping and testing solutions rapidly, Knapp identifies a critical gap when it comes to starting new products or companies from scratch. This gap is bridged by his introduction of foundation sprints, a two-day workshop designed to establish the fundamental hypothesis of a project.

"Every project has a hypothesis behind it, but that hypothesis is usually not specifically defined when you define it... when you make it really explicit like that, you kind of can't hide from it." [02:24]

Foundation sprints aim to clarify the core assumptions about the product, ensuring that teams have a clear direction before delving into the more intensive design sprints.

The Foundation Sprint Process

Knapp outlines the structure of a foundation sprint, breaking it down into distinct phases over two days:

1. Day One: Establishing the Basics

   • Morning Session: Define the essentials—target customer, problem being solved, and competitive advantage.
   • Afternoon Session: Determine the product’s differentiation—how it stands apart from competitors and reframes the customer's perspective.

2. Day Two: Choosing the Approach

   • Morning to Afternoon: Identify and evaluate potential approaches to execute the differentiation.
   • Conclusion: Formulate a founding hypothesis that encapsulates the project’s core premise.

Knapp emphasizes the structured nature of foundation sprints, utilizing techniques like note and vote to ensure that each team member contributes individually before collectively deciding on the best path forward.

"We have a framework so similar to in the Design Sprint process... we are identifying different options and then evaluating them through different, what we call magic lenses to then choose one approach." [32:55]

Case Studies and Practical Applications

Knapp shares compelling case studies from his book to illustrate the effectiveness of foundation sprints. One notable example involves Orbital Materials, a startup founded by Johnny Godwin, a former Google DeepMind engineer. Orbital Materials leverages AI to design new molecules and materials, aiming to revolutionize industries like pharmaceuticals and sustainable energy.

"They poured all their energy into that differentiation, then finally the chemical manufacturers started nodding their heads and saying, like, okay, maybe we'll try a pilot program." [23:59]

Another example is Reclaim, a calendar software that uses AI to optimize scheduling and preserve focus time for users. Through foundation sprints, Reclaim was able to clearly define its target customer and differentiate itself from existing calendar tools by offering a more reliable and reproducible scheduling process.

"Their motivation, when you combine someone who's got great capability and they've got an interesting insight about the world... that's what unlocks it." [27:31]

Defining Hypotheses and Principles

A central theme in Knapp’s methodology is the explicit definition of hypotheses. By articulating clear, testable hypotheses at the project's inception, teams can avoid wasting resources on misaligned efforts. This clarity facilitates effective decision-making and aligns the team’s vision.

Knapp also discusses the importance of principles that guide product development. Drawing inspiration from Google's own principles like "Fast is better than slow," he advocates for creating actionable and survival-oriented principles that help teams maintain focus and consistency.

"If you can create a principle that helps the product survive and that helps people make decisions that continue to help the product survive, that's really useful." [40:50]

Application Beyond Startups

While foundation sprints are tailored for startups, Knapp asserts their applicability within larger organizations. He notes that clarity in hypotheses and principles can help navigate the complexities of larger teams and cross-departmental collaborations, reducing internal friction and enhancing project alignment.

"Having clarity around the hypothesis and being able to put that on, you know, it's one sentence that you can show to anybody and say, like, look, this is what we're doing." [37:58]

Personal Insights and Inspirations

Beyond his professional insights, Knapp shares personal anecdotes that highlight his dedication to continuous learning and creativity. He discusses his experience with homeschooling and discovering opera through his child's curriculum, drawing parallels between the enduring nature of opera and the sustainability he seeks in product development.

"I just don't want to settle for just going through the motions of things. I want that kind of joy in my work and that kind of joy in the people who I work with." [50:25]

Conclusion

Jake Knapp’s discussion on foundation sprints offers a transformative approach to launching products and companies with a clear, customer-centric hypothesis. By integrating structured decision-making and emphasizing differentiation from the outset, foundation sprints empower teams to create products that truly click with customers. For those interested in harnessing these methodologies, Knapp’s upcoming book, Click, provides a comprehensive guide and is available for pre-order at theclickbook.com.

Notable Quotes:

• "Every project has a hypothesis behind it, but that hypothesis is usually not specifically defined..." – Jake Knapp [00:02]
• "What motivates a founder is a powerful lever for building a product that's much better than anything out there." – Jake Knapp [05:25]
• "Fast is better than slow." – Jake Knapp [40:50]