Using Design Thinking, to Bring Michigan Out of Its Doldrums

It's hard to sell a service no one understands--just ask Nate Young, CEO of NewNorth, a fledgling non-profit education center that's using design thinking to help companies innovate. When Young makes his pitch, he gets a lot of head scratching in response--and that's precisely why he believes he's needed.

It's no secret that Michigan, and its generations of blue-collar factory workers, was one of the hardest-hit states by globalization. Fast-evolving technologies have left many companies...