Innovation Training That Sticks: What We Delivered to ELM in Saudi Arabia
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In 2023, Design Sprint Academy delivered its first training in Saudi Arabia.
The client? ELM Company—a leader at the intersection of technology, digital services, and public sector transformation.
ELM reached out with a clear intent: they didn’t just want to introduce agile tools—they wanted to embed an innovation mindset into the way their teams work.
For Design Sprint Academy, it marked a milestone: our first time delivering training in Saudi Arabia. Together, we launched a complete, end-to-end program for building innovation capability inside the company.
We trained ELM teams on three essential modules:
- Problem Framing – teaching teams how to stop chasing symptoms and start identifying the real challenges worth solving.
- Design Sprint (Accelerated Format) – guiding teams through a full sprint experience in just two days: from mapping the challenge to testing an AI-powered prototype.
- Design Sprint Facilitation – training selected individuals to lead sprints on their own, manage the room, and keep momentum through uncertainty.
The program combined mindset, method, and practice. It helped shift how teams approached decision-making, experimentation, and collaboration.
By the end of the 2023 program, something became clear: the potential for scale.
- Teams weren’t just learning—they were applying.
- Individuals weren’t just participants—they were stepping into facilitator roles.
- ELM wasn’t just experimenting with innovation—it was preparing to embed it.
The success of that first engagement laid the foundation for what came next.
What Followed: 2024
In 2024, ELM invited us back—to go further.
We delivered the same three-module program to new teams, expanding the circle of capability and deepening the organization’s ability to run sprints without outside support.
The Takeaway
In 2023, ELM took a bet on a new way of working.
By 2024, they were building a culture of innovation from the inside out.
Problem Framing gave them clarity.
Design Sprints gave them speed.
Facilitation training gave them ownership.
And trust—earned on both sides—made it possible.
Curious what this could look like in your organization?
Let’s talk about how to turn training into transformation.
