Introduction

Design refers to solving and settling issues involving humanitarian methodology to the invention. This method mainly understands what the people want and need, reevaluates the case better, creates helpful ideas, sample and examine resolution and gives services and products that align with the consumers’ wants. For any business to be able to settle problems, be innovative and compete with other companies in the current business environment, it should consider the significance of design thinking.

The Covid-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted the real estate industry, which has experienced significant disruptions in its operations. The pandemic has led to new challenges and opportunities for the real estate industry. The Stanford School design thinking process provides a framework for addressing these challenges and identifying innovative solutions to the industry’s problems. This essay applies the Stanford d.school design thinking process to identify and solve a contemporary issue in real estate management related to the COVID-19 pandemic and propose possible solutions.

Empathize Phase

The Empathize phase, being the first step, is crucial in the design thinking process as it involves a deeper understanding of the users’ needs and perspectives. In the context of real estate management and the COVID-19 pandemic, the Empathize phase requires real estate managers to understand the changes in customer behaviour and expectations that have arisen due to the pandemic. The clients who often visit real estate properties need to be sure they are safe, and that their health issues can be handled (Sanderford, 2021). This issue is left to be the responsibility of the estate companies. This has led to a shift towards virtual tours and online property sales. Real estate companies need to understand these changes to provide better services to their customers. The Empathize phase also requires a thorough understanding of the underlying issues associated with the pandemic, including the economic recession, unemployment, and social distancing guidelines.

Covid-19 has affected the real estate business so much. It has led to decrease in the number of clients renting and buying the properties (Lim & Tan, 2020). It also led to isolation and some alterations in the behaviours of the customers. The only way that the managers of real estate businesses can do to understand the encounters that the workers and consumers face is to carry out a secondary research to reveal the primary difficulties related to the problems (Tan, 2021). This research can involve analyzing industry reports, customer surveys, and social media conversations to understand the impact of the pandemic on the industry. By deeply revealing the hidden issues related to the problem, they can come up with advanced ways to resolute the problems that the workers and the consumers meet. The Empathize phase is a crucial step in this process as it provides real estate managers with the insights they need to develop user-centric solutions that are responsive to the changing business environment.

Define Phase

The entire project in design thinking is staged by the second phase; define phase. In the context of real estate management and the COVID-19 pandemic, the Define phase involves identifying a clear problem statement that reflects the challenges faced by customers and employees in the industry. One potential problem statement could be how real estate companies can adapt to the changing customer behavior and expectations in the context of the pandemic and provide better services to their customers (Park & Byun, 2020). Nevertheless, it is vital to go past a wide problematic account and investigate deeply into the particular encounters confronted by the real estate business. This involves synthesizing the insights from the Empathize phase and reframing the problem statement in a more meaningful way (Seiler & Womack, 2020). For instance, a more focused problem statement in the context of the pandemic could be “How might real estate management create a safe and effective way to show and sell real estate properties during the pandemic?”

This problem statement reflects the challenges faced by the industry in conducting property tours and facilitating sales in a safe and socially distant manner (Novak & Crutchfield, 2020). Another possible problem statement in the context of the pandemic could be “How might real estate management provide affordable housing solutions for those affected by the economic recession caused by the pandemic?” This problem statement reflects the challenges faced by low-income communities and individuals who are struggling to find affordable housing during these uncertain times (Wang, Hu, & Li, 2020). Overall, the Define phase is