* The Designer Coder in today’s online, app-based economy, the preferred prototyping medium is increasingly code * The Design Entrepreneur Just look at Uber or Airbnb. If you have the design skills to craft the right product—and the entrepreneurial grit to see things through * The Hybrid Design Researcher more traditional methods are now being combined with real-time data to reveal user behavior. * The Business Designer In truly disruptive innovations, all aspects of the business are up for grabs. Think about the early days of Google.

She envisions it serving entrepreneurs that want to get out of Starbucks or a home office and into a more professional work space, as well as small companies that have established offices but perhaps want to spend a day at an off-site location for team building exercises or strategic planning. It’s Racine’s first free co-working space, Niemiec said. She said she hopes it will encourage networking, idea sharing and create a buzz among Racine’s entrepreneurial community. “Job creation ultimately is what we’re hoping (for),” Niemiec said. “I’m hoping it’ll be a benefit to downtown.”

The Ultimate Kit Guide also includes an essay by MIT research fellow Michael Schrage on how kits drive technological innovation — and have since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. Here’s Michael reading an excerpt from this revolution-minded essay, for your podcast-listening enjoyment. And, of course, if you’re looking for gift ideas this holiday season, kits are a great alternative that offers engagement, skill-building, and pride instead of passive consumerism.