Why Failure Matters in Human-Centered Design

Lessons from a Workshop with The Failure Toy

Dominique Mungin, Senior Program Manager Lead of Universal Product Development at Google, shares why she brought Twenty One Toys' Failure Toy® Workshop to Google's Products for All team.

The Products for All team is responsible for helping ensure Google's products work for everyone, including people with disabilities, temporary impairments, and situational challenges. Bringing together program managers, engineers, and product leaders from across the organization, many of whom were meeting in person for the first time, the workshop created an opportunity to explore collaboration, experimentation, and innovation through the lens of failure.

Why Failure?

For teams building products in a fast-moving environment, failure isn't something to avoid, it's part of the process. As Dominique explains:

“Launch & Iterate is a constant refrain that you hear often. I think within the concept of iteration is known failure, even if we call it a different name. It's really built into the process of progression.”

The Failure Toy® Workshop was particularly compelling because it created space for conversations that are often difficult to have in traditional work settings.

“A Failure Workshop is exciting because it makes it more normalized to have regular conversations when things don't go well.”

Once the Games Began...

As participants worked through increasingly challenging puzzles, they encountered many of the same dynamics they experience in their day-to-day work: uncertainty, changing conditions, different perspectives, and the need to collaborate under pressure.

For Dominique, what stood out most wasn't competition, but connection.

“There was a little bit of a competitive spike here and there with some teams, but mostly it was laughter, idea sharing, collaboration, and folks being really attuned to what was going on.”

The workshop also highlighted the value of diverse perspectives when tackling complex problems.

“Everyone literally had a different angle on the problem, and so had a different suggestion for how to solve it.”

Failure, Leadership, and Innovation

The experience sparked meaningful conversations about leadership and the role failure plays in growth.

“It definitely takes courage to make mistakes."

For Dominique, the leaders she admires most are those who are willing to acknowledge mistakes openly and learn from them.

“When I think of the leaders that I respect the most, they're people who do make mistakes publicly, own up to them, talk about them, talk about what they're doing next, and how they're responding to those mistakes."

Key Takeaways and Insights from the Participants

As the games unfolded, participants reflected on how fear of failure can limit experimentation, innovation, and learning.

“My fear of failure made me less likely to experiment."

At the same time, they observed how curiosity, humour, and openness can help teams navigate uncertainty more effectively. As Dominique reflected:

“You can see around you the varying degrees of how to meet those moments with grace, with levity, with curiosity, and with excitement."

And perhaps the most powerful takeaway of all:

“I will not be frozen by the fear of failure."