6D Team from 6D Varsity conducted an intensive Faculty Development Program (FDP) on Design Thinking for Problem Solving (DTPS) for 25+ Ph.D. scholars and Post Doctoral faculty at GRG PSGR Krishnammal College for Women (GRGKCW), a premier institution in Coimbatore, ranked among the top private colleges in India.

The FDP was designed as a hands-on, immersive learning experience, enabling faculty to move beyond theory and actively apply design thinking methodologies to real-world challenges across campus, community, and industry contexts.

Learning by Solving Real Problems

Unlike conventional training programs, DTPS emphasized self-selected problem statements, allowing participants to work on challenges they personally related to. This approach ensured deeper engagement, relevance, and practical understanding.

The program blended conceptual foundations with immediate application, guiding participants through:

• Understanding design thinking as a structured problem-solving methodology

• Identifying real-world challenges and uncovering root causes

• Applying empathy-driven research to gather user insights

• Framing problems effectively for solution development

• Generating ideas through structured ideation techniques

• Building and refining prototypes for user-centered solutions

Faculty collaborated in teams to develop and present practical solutions, reflecting their design thinking journey from insight to implementation.

Powered by 6D.Thinking Framework

At the core of the FDP was 6D.Thinking, the signature learning model of 6D Varsity—a meta-cognitive framework designed to develop higher-order thinking, empathy, and purpose through real-world problem solving.

Inspired by both ancient Indian wisdom and modern innovation practices, 6D.Thinking guided participants through six dynamic stages:

• Discover – Build empathy through observation and immersion

• Define – Frame the core problem using insights

• Design – Ideate and conceptualize human-centered solutions

• Derive – Map feasibility and translate ideas into workable models

• Develop – Prototype, test, and iterate solutions

• Deliver – Implement solutions and reflect on impact

This structured yet flexible approach enabled faculty to experience innovation as a journey, rather than a linear process.

Empowering Faculty as Problem Solvers

The FDP aimed to transform faculty roles—from content deliverers to facilitators of innovation and problem-solving. Participants gained:

• A practical toolkit for integrating design thinking into teaching and research

• Skills to mentor students in solving real-world challenges

• Exposure to interdisciplinary and application-oriented learning models

Learning Across Campus, Community & Industry Contexts

A distinctive aspect of the FDP was its multi-context engagement model, where faculty did not limit their exploration to theoretical or classroom scenarios. Instead, participants actively engaged with problems across:

• Campus – Identifying academic, administrative, and student experience challenges within the institution

• Community – Exploring real societal issues in nearby communities, understanding grassroots realities

• Industry – Mapping practical challenges aligned with business, operations, and emerging market needs

This approach ensured that faculty experienced design thinking in authentic environments, interacting with real users, gathering insights, and co-creating solutions grounded in reality. The immersion across these three dimensions enabled a holistic understanding of problem-solving, bridging academia with real-world complexity.

Hands-On Activities and Learning Flow

The FDP followed a structured, highly interactive journey blending concepts with real-time application. Faculty engaged in key stages such as purpose-driven innovation, empathy building, user research, problem definition, ideation, prototyping, testing, and storytelling—using tools like user journey maps, persona maps, and affinity diagrams.

This hands-on approach ensured participants actively practiced the complete design thinking cycle, culminating in practical, user-centered solutions.