Design teams have been collaborating virtually due to the increasing demands of the globalized industry. The COVID-19 pandemic made virtual collaboration a necessity due to social restrictions imposed globally in 2020 and 2021. Design teams use virtual Design Thinking to collaborate remotely in real-time. The outcomes of Virtual Design Thinking rely on team composition, planning, the structure of activities, time management, and the choice of space and tools. While these factors have been researched in the context of traditional Design Thinking workshops, research on the selection of tools in virtual workshops is scarce due to the sudden increase in popularity and demand.
This thesis investigates the experience of participants in virtual Design Thinking workshops with a focus on the collaborative environment and the tools used within. Existing literature and participatory observations revealed that remote teams collaborate primarily in two-dimensional (2D) virtual environments using a combination of virtual whiteboards and video conferencing software. Participants face challenges due to the lack of 'presence.' Presence is an emerging topic in recent literature, especially in the context of immersive virtual environments such as three-dimensional (3D) and Virtual Reality (VR). However, these virtual environments are still in their infancy and require further development for conducting virtual Design Thinking.
Qualitative research in the form of participatory observations of four virtual design thinking workshops and in-depth interviews of seven participants revealed the challenges participants face due to the lack of presence. Approaches to mediate presence were explored with the design of a 2D experimental virtual collaborative environment designed to support virtual Design Thinking methods based on the findings. The environment was tested with seven participants.
Results indicated an improvement in participants' experience compared to existing virtual collaboration environments and reported the overall experience to be on par with traditional Design Thinking workshops. The outcome of this thesis has vital implications on the choice and future development of virtual collaboration tools in the post-pandemic world
