Top 5 Free Design Sprint Templates

Want to kick off a design sprint with your team, but not sure where to start? Try Notion's design sprint templates to guide you through idea generation and validation.

What Should Design Sprint Templates Include?

Choosing the right Design Sprint template in Notion can streamline your project's workflow and enhance team collaboration. Here are key components to look for:

Clear Objectives: The template should clearly outline the goals of the sprint, ensuring that every participant understands the expected outcomes.
Time Management Tools: Effective templates include tools or sections dedicated to scheduling and time tracking to keep the sprint on pace.
Collaborative Spaces: Look for templates that offer dedicated areas for team brainstorming and feedback to facilitate communication and idea sharing.
Resource Links: A good template should provide links to necessary resources and tools that will be used throughout the sprint, ensuring easy access.

With these components, a Design Sprint template in Notion can significantly contribute to the success of your project by keeping the team aligned and efficient.

What Should Design Sprint Templates Avoid?

When selecting a Design Sprint template in Notion, it's important to be aware of certain features that might hinder rather than help your project's progress. Here are three key components to steer clear of:

Overly Complex Processes: Templates that include excessively detailed or complicated processes can overwhelm teams, leading to confusion and reduced productivity.
Undefined Goals: Avoid templates that do not clearly outline the sprint goals. Ambiguity in objectives can derail the focus and outcomes of the sprint.
Rigid Task Structures: Look out for templates that do not allow flexibility. Design sprints often require adaptability, and a rigid structure can stifle creativity and responsiveness.

Choosing the right template involves avoiding these pitfalls to ensure a smooth and effective sprint. Opt for simplicity, clarity, and flexibility to maximize your team's creative potential.

1Design Sprint

This template is designed to help design teams continuously track and iterate on their projects, from creative sprints to finished projects based on user feedback.

2UX Project Structure

This template provides the perfect starting point for a New UX Project. Use the structure proposed in it to start documenting your project and slowly unpack the design problem space you're solving for.

A template preview for UX Project Structure

3Designers Project Management

A Notion project management template for designers.

This template provides a focused space to manage your daily design projects and tasks.

What's included:

✔ Project management system

✔ Task management system

✔ Project planning

✔ Task tracking

✔ Task prioritization

✔ Task deadline tracking

✔ Project progress tracking

✔ Task progress tracking

✔ Customizable workflows

A template preview for Designers Project Management

4Definition of Ready Checklist

The Definition of Ready (DoR) is a crucial concept in agile development that outlines the criteria a user story must meet before it can be implemented. This checklist will provide teams with a comprehensive framework for effectively defining the DoR and by following it, teams can ensure that user stories are well-prepared, reducing ambiguity and improving efficiency.

A template preview for Definition of Ready Checklist

5Merci Grace's remote brand design sprint

Merci Grace is the former Head of Growth at Slack and Partner at Lightspeed Ventures. Her brand sprint template, inspired by Google Ventures' , turns an intimidating creative process into something collaborative and fun. Kick things off with this sprint and give your remote team the tools you need to start defining your brand.

This template is just one of Merci's many product development templates, all of which .

Closing Thoughts

Utilizing these templates streamlines the design sprint process, allowing teams to focus more on innovation and less on setup. They provide a structured workflow that can significantly cut down on project timelines.

Start implementing these tools today to enhance collaboration and efficiency in your projects. Their adaptability makes them suitable for various project scopes, ensuring your team's success.

What is a Prototype?

A prototype in a design sprint is a scaled-down version of the product, which incorporates the potential solutions identified in the sprint to test and validate ideas before full-scale development.

What is a Facilitator?

In the context of a design sprint, a facilitator is responsible for guiding the team through the sprint process, ensuring that the activities are completed on time and that all team members are engaged.

What is a User Test?

User testing in a design sprint involves observing real users as they interact with the prototype to gather feedback and insights, which are crucial for refining the product.