The focus on creating solutions with the explicit intention of improving experience, meaning, and functional performance within a clearly defined culture.
Culture shapes how people live, think, behave, decide, and interact.It is the deepest influence on human experience — and therefore the most important frame for any design challenge.
In this method, every use case is explored inside its cultural context.
We identify what truly matters to people within that culture and use this understanding to navigate both familiar and unknown challenges.
The process follows Six Preset Stages. While the stages are structured linearly, the overall journey can be dynamic — stages may overlap, run simultaneously, or be repeated as insights evolve.
In this first stage, we observe culture as a living constellation.
A system made visible around a culture center with Artifacts, Mentifacts and Sociofacts.
●Culture Center ●Artifacts ●Mentifacts ●Sociofacts
By examining how these elements connect, overlap, and influence one another, we uncover the culture’s Image: Structure and Dynamics.
A holistic map of meaning, practices, and material expression. Through a semiotic and analytical approach, we reveal deep needs, hidden motivations, and meaningful tensions. This understanding becomes the foundation for designing products and services that are not only functional, but culturally resonant and future-ready.
Who are the culture carrier?
Where are the mechanics and dynamics of This culture constellation?
As an expert of people, a designer should read the potential market like a semiotician and becomes aware of the sign system, called culture.
The challenge is to master all signs to get the true power of design and make dynamics and relationships within an existing system visible.
In this second stage, we interpret the culture image by mapping the complete user journey.
The resulting map does not describe a linear process toward a solution, rather reveals the dynamics of cultural elements.
●Culture Center ●Artifacts ●Mentifacts ●Sociofacts
How does the user journey look like?
Where are the conflict areas?
How they emerge, interact, and evolve over time. It makes visible how different actors move through the culture, how meanings shift, and where tensions arise. The journey itself is not merely a path to a solution; the experiences, struggles, and interpretations along the way are the real insight.
In this third stage, we interpret the culture image by mapping the complete user journey.
The resulting map does not describe a linear process toward a solution, rather reveals the dynamics of cultural elements.
●Culture Center ●Artifacts ●Mentifacts ●Sociofacts
How does the user journey look like?
Where are the conflict areas?
How they emerge, interact, and evolve over time. It makes visible how different actors move through the culture, how meanings shift, and where tensions arise. The journey itself is not merely a path to a solution; the experiences, struggles, and interpretations along the way are the real insight.
Everyone generates and present a broad range of ideas for consideration. Do everything to convince everyone of the Positive Impact of your design solution. The winner convinced all and leads the direction of the concept to be developed.
Where does the culture develop to?
How can you support and influence their path positively?
Design is a matter of knowledge. The Law and Order of your culture Image brings you to the perfect design solution. If you can break it down to a simple thought, you are almost there.
Establish a realistic interactive representation of your concept. Nothing more. Work fast and dirty, but realistic enough to prototype the concept. You better have experts and masters of improvisation in your team.
Which requirements are mendatory to answer the user needs?
Which not?
Improvisation as a basic for new product development. Done is better than perfect. Start at the end, and how the test will look like. Just Prepare your prototype for the test only.
This is a make or break occasion. It' about Implementation and Acceptance, if your solution will be successful. The Level of Satisfaction to your design solution is the key performance indicator to your improvements. If there is no satisfaction to your concept, the solution is simply useless.
Does your solution improve the status quo?
Does your design support their future development?
Implement the design solution inside your defined culture and start to observe again. (like the first stage) Give no instruction or comments. Only see and listen and go back to the stage inside the design process until it’s convenient enough to replace the frustration with a start of an improvement.
A culture-centered project begins with a clear understanding of the cultural image.
This acts as a compass for the entire journey and enables confident decision-making, even when facing unexpected challenges. To establish this compass, we explore a culture through three interconnected layers:
WHY
The WHY represents the Engine.
It defines:
- purpose
- values
- worldview
- internal meaning system
- identity
Get the purpose and meaning that hold everything together!
HOW
The HOW describes the Lifestyle,
that is expressed through:
- behaviours
- rituals
- norms
- processes
- mentality and social logic
Follow their motion, all behaviors, practices and their expressions.
WHAT
The WHAT captures Creation.
The identity carries:
- tools
- objects
- products
- systems
- experiences
Take what is made tangible, all creations, artifacts and experiences.
Design operates primarily in the WHAT.
But it is guided by and only becomes meaningful through an understanding of the WHY and HOW.
A culture-centered approach sees people not as isolated “target users,”
but as participants in a shared system of values, behaviors, and meanings. This perspective allows designers to work beyond mood boards and personas, grounding their decisions in cultural logic rather than assumptions.
By understanding the engine of a culture and how it is lived, designers can create outcomes that truly resonate, integrate, and transform.
