4 Steps Design Process:

Step1: Requirements Gathering
Understanding the user and what her goals are.
What are the current practices?
This step can also be thought of as understanding the “problem space”- what is hindering the completion of the task and how can the task or process be improved
A whole host of techniques are presented that allow the designer to collect data about the user, her goals, and current practices
Step 2: Design Alternatives
Once you understand the users, their goals, and their current practices (e.i., the problem space) you are able to take this data and develop various design options that will improve the user experience
Step 3: Prototyping
Techniques for modeling the novel designs before a final version is produced
Step 4: Evaluation
A set of techniques for ascertaining that your design meets the needs of the user

Source: Georgia Tech, User-Experience-Design, Coursera