Schiphol Innovation Hub

The aviation industry had been hit hard by the world pandemic. The industry was desperate to fill the planes with passengers again. Schiphol has set up a task force to develop a COVID-19 safe travel journey through a validated test regime. The end goal was to avoid quarantines and to make people feel more assured, comfortable and confident.

 

A user research study to unravel the problem and find the most suitable solution. How might we verify that all passengers at the airport are COVID-negative in an accredited way? This project is a great example of how Industrial Designers can use their knowledge, mindset and methods for Innovation.

 

This Internship has been an opportunity to learn from experienced people working in the field of innovation during the most uncertain period of the century. I collaborated with the innovators of Schiphol, learned their way of working, got familiar with user research, future prospecting, hosting meetings and innovation strategies in a real-world situation. During this internship my soft skills were strongly acknowledged; e.g. listening, complex problem solving, creativity, flexibility, innovation methods. I realized that hard skills could expire when need methods, tools and technologies become available, while soft stay relevant.