Challenges in Problem Solving Today


Despite significant strides towards achieving a more sustainable and equitable future, such as investments into more customer-centric capabilities, fostering cultural shifts, and embracing agility to expedite solutions-to-market. While these efforts have propelled us closer to delivering the right value at the speed customers demand, they often fall short when it comes to addressing overarching challenges.

Systemic problems, grand challenges, and wicked dilemmas need novel ways of problem-solving. These issues transcend boundaries, exist in diverse ecosystems, and involve a multitude of stakeholders. 

What's missing today are practical tools, methods, and replicable approaches to tackle these wicked problems at their core.

Wicked Acceleration Labs provides a platform that equips learners, innovators, and experts with the ability to adapt to confront unprecedented levels of complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity in solving these global problems. 

The Need for Innovative Approaches to Complex Problems


The world faces pressing challenges, but solutions have been elusive. The response to complex global issues such as the ongoing pandemic, health crises, biodiversity loss, CO2 emissions, climate change, and plastic pollution has been slow and inadequate.

Governments or private entities alone cannot address these problems effectively.

Breaking Free from Conventional Methods


Dominant innovation heuristics such as the Lean Startup method, Agile Development and Design Thinking fall short.

While excelling in developing solutions to customer-centric challenges, they’re inevitably tied to immediate problems.

The Necessity of Adaptation and Collaboration


Today, we face a constraint of time, and in order to achieve impact the way that we need, we must take adaptive, collaborative actions that involve multi-stakeholder ecosystems.

These actions span international borders, industries, governments, and policies, to benefit everyone.




Understanding Wicked Problems

Wicked problems are substantial, systemic challenges that impact a wide array of people. These challenges are defined by complex interdependencies that raise the risk of unintended consequences and require a multi-dimensional lens to assess the right solutions. Addressing Wicked Problems calls for collaboration across power structures, stakeholders, and ecosystems. 

Simply get in touch and start a discussion!

If you have a wicked problem to solve, a shift to circular economy, a complex ecosystem to navigate, a sustainability challenge or simply wish to discuss how you can get involved as a potential collaboration partner, then get in touch so we can explore next possible steps.

Who we are

Our team of experts bringing their wealth of skills and expertise from a wide range of background.
Executive Education and Knowledge Exchange Lead at Royal College of Art

Nick de Leon

Executive Education and Knowledge Exchange Lead
royal college of art

Erkko Autio

Chair in Technology Transfer and Entrepreneurship
Imperial college london
Nicolas Rebolledo Service Design

Nicolas Rebolledo

Design for Policy Platform Leader
royal college of art

Cristobal Garcia Herrera

Research associate & Corporate Acceleration Lead
imperial college business school

Mike Pinder

Honorary Practice Fellow and Lecturer
imperial college business school

Christopher L Tucci

Professor of Digital Strategy and Innovation
imperial college business school
John Makepeace Service Design research associate

John Makepeace

Service Design Research associate
royal college of art
Mattia Gobbo Service Designer

Mattia Gobbo

Service Design Research associate
royal college of art
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