A facilitated 3-5 day sprint for UK organisations that need to test a new product, service or process before committing serious money to it. You leave with a working prototype, real feedback from the people it is for, and a clear go or no-go decision.
A design sprint is a structured process, first developed at Google Ventures, in which a small team takes one well-defined challenge, sketches possible solutions, chooses one, builds a realistic prototype and tests it with real users - all in a few days. It replaces months of debate and guesswork with evidence.
Echelon runs design sprints for leadership and product teams in the UK, in person or virtually. Every sprint is designed and facilitated by Dr Andrew Greenland, a medical doctor trained in design sprint and workshop methods who runs large, high-stakes working sessions where expert groups must produce work that stands up to scrutiny.
Not sure which you need? Read design sprint or decision workshop? Comparing providers? See how to compare design sprint agencies in the UK.
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Map | Agree the long-term goal, map the challenge and choose the single most important part to focus on. Experts in the business are interviewed so the team starts from what is known. |
| 2. Sketch | Everyone sketches solutions individually and silently, so the best idea wins rather than the loudest voice. |
| 3. Decide | Solutions are reviewed, voted on and the decider chooses which to prototype. The reasoning is written down. |
| 4. Prototype | The team builds a realistic-looking prototype - just enough to test the idea, not a finished product. |
| 5. Test | Five people from your target audience try the prototype in one-to-one interviews while the team watches and records what works and what does not. |
| Format | Standard price | Founding client price |
|---|---|---|
| Design Sprint (3-5 days, 5-8 people) | £10,000 - £16,000 | £7,500 |
Prices are for the whole team and exclude VAT where applicable. The price depends mainly on length (3 or 5 days). It includes the diagnostic call, sprint design, facilitation, the decision log and a 30-day follow-up call. Venue, catering and travel outside Greater London are extra. See all prices.
Echelon's facilitated design sprint costs £10,000 to £16,000 for the whole team, depending on whether it runs for three or five days. Founding clients pay £7,500. The price includes preparation, facilitation, a written decision log and a 30-day follow-up call.
A full design sprint takes five days. A compressed version takes three days and suits teams that have already defined the challenge well. Either way, the team leaves with a tested prototype and a decision.
A decider with the authority to choose, plus 5-8 people with the expertise the challenge needs - usually a mix of product, operations, customer-facing and finance roles. Everyone needs to be available for the full sprint.
A design sprint solves one defined problem by building and testing a prototype. A strategy or decision workshop gets a leadership team to agree priorities, trade-offs and ownership. If leaders disagree about the problem itself, start with a decision workshop.
Yes. Virtual sprints use online whiteboards and video calls and follow the same five stages. In-person sprints are usually faster to run, especially for the sketching and deciding stages.