• Executive education

Innovation: A Design Thinking Approach

Cultivating a new generation of innovation champions — equipping leaders with the mindset, creative tools and design thinking frameworks to transform bold ideas into viable commercial propositions.

Course key facts

  • Date

    2 - 5 November 2026

    7 - 10 December 2026

    5 - 9 July 2027

  • Duration

    4 days

  • Credits

    Non credit bearing

  • Format

    In-person

  • Fee

    £5,450

  • Location

    On Campus (South Kensington)

Overview

This Design Thinking course is built for leaders who want a clear, human centered approach to innovation and problem solving in business. Imperial’s Innovation: A Design Thinking Approach is a four-day programme that guides participants towards becoming champions of innovation within their organisations. The programme delivers hands-on learning experiences that give participants the mindset and practical tools to develop business ideas into commercial propositions, while strengthening skills in problem solving. 

Business ideas, design thinking & innovation
Participants will emerge with a solid understanding of how to be entrepreneurial within their organisations, inspire innovation from others, and develop creative problem solving skills. This management course will help maintain and grow innovative thinking within business; it will help attendees deal with the complexities of change in uncertain times; it will improve methods for creative thinking which benefit product and service delivery design; and it will help attendees succeed in their own role while moving business forward through stronger problem solving, customer focus, and a clearer approach to the design thinking process in strategy.

Learning journey

Across this course, learners follow the design thinking process from discovery and research through ideation, prototyping, and testing, with structured collaboration and hands-on work.

Leading in Disruption

Disruption, Innovation and Uncertainty
Explore how rapid change challenges innovation—and how uncertainty, when understood and embraced, can become a powerful driver of strategy and competitive advantage in a fast-moving world.

Responses to Uncertainty: Leading with Ambidexterity
Learn how ambidextrous leaders orchestrate innovation, and how structure, culture and leadership practices can enable organisations to adapt and thrive in complex environments.

Leading and Working with People for Innovation                       
Craft a compelling innovation narrative and inspire key stakeholders to join your journey.

Building High-Performing Teams
Build high-performing teams that embrace creativity, trust, and adaptability, strengthening collaboration across the organisation.

Video

Programme Testimonial

Peter Hannam, Head of Data and AI at Virtuoso Partners shares his experience after studying with Imperial Executive Education.

What participants say

The provided innovation frameworks emphasised the significance of diversification and calculated risk-taking. If you're seeking to understand clients better and revolutionise your approach, this course is a game-changer! Highly recommend it. Othman Mohammad Said Executive Design Systems, Petronas Digital Sdn. Bhd.

Course instructors

Anu Wadhwa

Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship

Anu Wadhwa is a Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship and the Programme Director of the Imperial Innovation: A Design Thinking Approach programme at Imperial Business School, University of London, and leads executive training on innovation. Anu’s research helps established organisations examine patterns and processes of entrepreneurship, the impact of corporate entrepreneurship on organisational innovation, how entrepreneurial actors make decisions under extreme uncertainty and how pre-entry experience and knowledge impact post-entry innovation choices and outcomes.

Ileana Stigliani

Professor of Design and Innovation

Ileana Stigliani is Professor of Design and Innovation at Imperial Business School and an expert in human centered innovation. She received her PhD in Management from Bocconi University, Milan. Her research focuses on the cognitive aspects of innovation. In particular, she studies how material artefacts and practices influence cognitive processes – such as sensemaking and sensegiving, categorisation, and perceptions of organisational and professional identities – within organisations, supporting learners’ understanding of creative work.

Bart Clarysse

Visiting Professor at Imperial Business School

Bart Clarysse is visiting professor at Imperial Business School. Following his PhD studies, Bart was an advisor in technology policy at the European Commission and he still consults on innovation and technology matters for various European governments and agencies. He is founding partner of Inceptum, a company that offers support to build a business plan out of an initial idea; and he sits on the board of Siruna, a mobile internet start-up. He also is an advisor in innovation policy to the Flemish Government, the Belgian Government and European Commission.

Dr Sankalp Chaturvedi

Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Leadership

Dr Sankalp Chaturvedi is a Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Leadership at Imperial Business School. The central focus of Sankalp’s research is in the areas of organisational citizenship behaviour, leadership, and interpersonal trust. In addition, Sankalp is interested in examining the “nature vs. nurture” debates with regard to behaviours in organisations. He is active in executive education where he has been involved in program design and delivery for a wide range of clients including Royal Society, Saif, EDF, and others, delivering training that helps leaders develop skills.

Contact us

Asmik Magakian

Senior Partnerships Manager