Design Process

In a multi-year collaboration, IDEO and Marvin partnered as a combined team from early concept design through market launch. IDEO led the design team efforts at the onset and identified opportunity space in the skylight market as well as where homeowners sought out ways to bring notions of well-being into their homes.

As concepts shifted into low-fidelity prototypes, the Marvin team’s deep expertise in manufacturing at scale was critical in identifying what would be feasible on the factory floor. Yet, the skylight contained novel mechanical and digital components that needed to be designed, tested, and iterated faster than Marvin’s typical product development cycle allowed. IDEO’s multidisciplinary team of architects, mechanical and electrical engineers, and software designers provided multiple design “boosts” to the Marvin team during beta testing that ultimately pushed the product off the page and into market.

Further description of “Making the Marvin Awaken Skylight” can be found on Marvin’s blog, Inspired.

Digital Transformation at Marvin

Marvin's new skylight pushed the boundaries of their in-house capabilities. In addition to electronics and connectivity, Awaken required the company to launch and maintain an app that would take them into the smart home market. The design team led the Marvin team through how to create a cohesive mechanical, electrical and digital ecosystem in a building construction product.

Personal contributions: Over two years, I served as the client leader for the Marvin client relationship. I regularly advised the Chief Marketing + Experience Officer on board presentations for go/no-go decisions and funding, establishing an in-house design team, and how to bring a practice of creative leadership into a traditional, risk-averse family company. Further, I partnered with a fellow IDEO leader with expertise in software design to help coach Marvin’s CIO on how to incorporate digital products into their existing organizational structure.

Design Outcomes

The Marvin Awaken Skylight won the Best Window and Door Product category at the 2020 International Builder Show. It was also a finalist in the Best Home Technology Product category and is notable for being the largest electronically-operating skylight in the market.