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Rethinking Services
A user-centred approach
Organisation
User
Service
Organisation
User
Service
About This Booklet
02 01
This booklet questions our approach to services
and advocates a user-centred approach. It has
4 sections:
Why rethink Services?
About Service Design
The Service Design Toolbox
References and Appendix
This booklet was produced by Una McGrath while on assignment at The
Studio in Dublin Ci ty Council .
Contact [email protected] or s tudio@dublinci ty.ie
?
SD
Contents
04 03
The Service Design Toolbox • Brainstorming………………………………………………………………56
• Business Model Canvas………………………………………………..58
• Context Interviews………………………………………………………60
• Customer Journey Map………………………………………………..62
• Desktop Walk-through…………………………………………………63
• Expectation Maps………………………………………………………..64
• Five Whys…………………………………………………………………….65
• In the User’s Shoes………………………………………………………66
• Observation of Users……………………………………………………67
• Role Play………………………………………………………………………68
• Scenario Building…………………………………………………………69
• Service Blueprint………………………………………………………….70
• Six Thinking Hats………………………………………………………….71
• Storyboards…………………………………………………………………72
References and Appendix References…………………………………………………………………………….74
An Inventory of Dublin City Council Services………………………….76
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SD
Contents
Why Re-think Services? Why we Need Good Services……………………………………………………………..08
The Problem with Services – Organisation-centric vs. User centric…...10
The Problem with Services – Staff Morale………………………………………...12
What Happens when Customers get Angry……………………………………....14
The Limits of Operational Efficiency…………………………………………………..16
Who Designs the Service?.....................................................................18
Bad User Experiences– Examples……………………………………………………...20
The Customer Says…………………………………………………………………………….26
Dublin City Council Services……………………………………………………………...28
The Voice of the Customer in Dublin City Council……………………………..30
Questions to Ask……………………………………………………………………………… 32
About Service Design Introducing Service Design……………………………………………………………….36
Service Design – an analogy……………………………………………………………..38
Service Design – key principles………………………………………………………...40
The Service Design process……………………………………………………………….42
1. Set up Project……………………………………………………………………………….44
2. Understand…………………………………………………………………………………..46
3. Develop Ideas and Solutions………………………………………………………...48
4. Test……………………………………………………………………………………………...50
5. Specify/ Implement/ Review………………………………………………………...52
Why Re-think Services?
06 05
?
Why We Need Good Services
08 07
Good, customer-oriented services must be a priority for any
organisation with a services remit. Why?
Because services are a key means to connect with and build
trust and satisfaction among customers, citizens and
stakeholders - or lose it.
Because the service interface is the key space in which
impressions are made in the eyes of service users.
Because the service experience will let the user know
whether or not they have been well-considered.
Because years of investment in delivering good cost-
efficient services can be undone by a bad service
experience.
Services build trust.
Or break trust.
It takes years to build …
and seconds to break
The Problem With Services
10 09
Successful service delivery results from balancing user
satisfaction of expectations, staff happiness and operational
efficiency.
Most service organisation start out with the best of
intentions. However service organisations, and especially
government, have traditionally arranged its service delivery
around its own organisational structure rather than around
the needs of the service- user.
This can often mean that the service user (who could be
you) can find themselves experiencing a disjointed service
and having to jump through complicated hoops, in order to
meet an apparently straightforward request.
This is typically because several pieces of the service have
been developed separately by different departments or,
worse, by different agencies.
Organisations design services but they
don’t use them. Users do
Organisation-centric vs. user-centric
The Problem With Services
12 11
A poor service experience is bad news not just for the user but also
for the service provider and for the staff providing the service. This is
especially evident at the front-line where the brunt of dissatisfaction
unfolds and customer trust begins to unravel.
This sets up a negative interaction between service users and staff. If
the problem is at the front-line, or the job the user needs done,
cannot be resolved easily due to poorly integrated service elements,
or unanticipated needs, staff frustrations builds. Staff morale then
begins to unravel.
Poor staff morale begins to impact the quality of service delivery.
Thus the organisation is then being impacted negatively by both user
and staff frustrations. No amount of operational efficiency in
individual service elements will ever fix this.
Making the leap to see the service through the customer’s eyes is a
difficult one. Staff have a job to do within the organisation, and their
concern is usually with delivering their part of the service, within
their zones of practice. But without the user view, the service ends
up being inefficient because it ends up by not providing what is
required or valued by users, or, by providing the wrong things.
A strategy addressing end-to-end service delivery from the
perspective of the customer, as well as the provider itself, is a means
of reversing this state of affairs.
Service staff are also impacted by service
-user frustrations. This affects morale. The
organisation then has two problems
Staff Morale
What Happens When Customers
Get Angry?
14 13
‘The top five emotions when measuring customer
satisfaction are: anger, happiness, frustration, annoyance
and disappointment. We’re dealing with powerful stuff
here!
The service you get or the service you don’t get creates an
experience. This experience determines if you engage with
a brand or not.
Will you recommend this to your friends? …Do you have
sympathy and respect for the people who work at this
place?’
(http://www.hatchandbloom.com/)
A happy customer will tell 8-10 people.
An unhappy customer will tell 10-20
people.
A customer who is very unhappy will tell as
many as 40 people about their terrible
experience.
- Len Wong, Operations Manager Toyota
The Limits of
Operational Efficiency
16 15
An efficiency process that looks primarily at things like
digitisation, process re-engineering, back-office
rationalisation and restructuring, at the expense of
understanding user needs, risks neglecting the relationships
with users that are so important in building trust and
satisfaction. Operational efficiency is a goal, but it is not the
whole picture. An ‘operationally efficient’ service is
inefficient if it does not, in the end, service the actual needs
and priorities of users at the point of delivery.
If user needs are not understood and pulled together by the
organisation, how can it ever provide an integrated service
or services? The context of services, the services themselves
and the needs of users are in a constant state of continuous
change. Services need to be able to adapt to this change and
remain in continuous dialogue with users to understand
changing needs, to communicate service changes and to
maintain positive engagement.
If you review business processes only, you can make some
improvement in your services. However, in the other
direction, the effect is even stronger: if you carefully
examine the services you deliver first, you will automatically
align your processes better to the services.
Optimisation in one area can
result in sub-optimisation overall
Service
Delivery
Channels
Technology
Governance
&
Measurement
BudgetFunctions
& Structure
relationships
ORGANISATIONAL
CAPABILITY
Business
models &
processesPeople
Service users
Over-focus
here Vs.
here
Who Designs The Service?
18 17
The biggest mistake that large organisations make is to
assume that they know what their service users and
customers want.
Instead, involving service users and stakeholder at the
design or review stage, irons out problems upfront. It
ensures that both provider- and user-needs and constraints
in the equation are understood by both parties. This sets up
a stronger provider-client relationship.
The biggest mistake that large
organisations make is to assume they know
what their service users and customers
want.
Bad User Experiences
20 19
Joe uses The Bank’s services via an ATM machine to get money. He also
uses The Bank to lodge his cheques by filling out an express lodgement
form in-branch. The Bank recently ‘optimised’ their processes by
digitising the express lodgement service. Joe can now lodge his cheques
in a dedicated ATM-like machine.
However, here is the service experience from a user-perspective:
Example 1
A simple user
walk-through
upfront before
implementation
spots simple
errors that impact
behaviour
Sequence 1 ATM withdrawal Sequence 2 ATM cheque lodgement
Card in
Pin
Confirm
Return card
Receipt
Joe puts in his card
He enters his pin
He confirms the amount
The machine returns his card
The machine gives his money
The machine prints a receipt
Joe walks away
Card in
Pin
Confirm
Receipt
Return Card
Joe puts in his card
He enters his pin
The machine scans his cheque and Joe
confirms amount
The machine prints his receipt
Joe walks away
The machine returns his card
√ Success!
x Failure!
Joe leaves without his card!
In the new service Joe walks away without his card because he has
become familiar with using a service that returns his card before
completing his intended job. The new service returns his card after his
intended job. So The Bank now has to process the returns of hundreds
of cards left by customers in machines on a daily basis!
Bad User Experiences
22 21
Mary works in a local authority. She processes rent rebates
for users. An internal ‘optimisation’ has directed that
cheques are now only issued on Wednesdays.
Mary now has to deal with significant client dissatisfaction.
She and her colleagues have to handle many significant call
volumes per day from irate customers who are impacted by
the loss of flexibility in the service. She and her staff find it
difficult to get any other work done.
Mary is extremely frustrated. She now actively resents users
and the calls, and feels switched off. This will eventually lead
to demoralisation as she cannot control the quality of her
work.
She feels that nobody asked for her input when considering
this change. If Mary finds another job she will take it.
Internal ‘optimisation’ can lead to sub-optimisation overall.
Internal ‘optimisation’ can lead to sub-
optimisation overall.
Example 2
Bad User Experiences
24 23
John runs a small business with just 1 employee and has to
do a tax return. He gets the form from Revenue. It has over
400 questions. Unlike a larger company, he cannot afford to
pay an accountant so he must complete the form himself.
He doesn’t understand many of the questions or if they
apply to him. He spends 5 days trying to understand what
Revenue needs while trying to keep his business afloat. He
cannot get the information he needs on their website and
has to call Revenue several times.
He cannot understand why Revenue did not consider the
needs of a small business owner when designing this
service.
Providers often design services without foreseeing their
negative impact on users.
Providers often design services without
foreseeing their negative impact on users
Example 3
26 25
The Customers Says...
Help me solve my problems by providing me with
information, advice, support and access to the
services I need
Please listen to what we and others tell
you about your service and build on this
to provide improvements
Tell me what to expect,
don’t give me false ideas
Treat me as an
individual, not a number
Don’t publish promises you
cannot keep
Don’t put me in a position where I have
to defend my basic rights in a situation
where I am vulnerable
Don’t view me as
the problem.
Don’t change the rules
without telling me
Dublin City Council Services
28 27
Dublin City Council is a service delivery organisation
providing up to 550 services to a variety of users – internal
customers, citizens, business and other agencies. A full
inventory of services is provided in Appendix 1.
The council has delivered great impacts in communities over
the years. Visible evidence can be seen in our communities
through local leisure centres, playgrounds, parks, libraries,
improved traffic management and innovative initiatives like
Dublin Bikes etc.
However public services are currently confronted with a
number of complex social challenges, while at the same
time, they must deal with a squeeze on government
resources. Workforce Planning and Croke Park have created
uncertainty and staff have had to deliver with less resource.
Councils have also lost key services and could lose more, or
gain new ones.
These factors risk to undo the trust and satisfaction built up
over years with users, citizens, businesses and other
stakeholders. However trust is also the one thing that
remains in council control. Services and the service-interface
are the means by which customer trust and satisfaction can
be built. This can be done by engaging and co-involving
users.
“Placing the customer at th
e
core of everything we do;
Maximising new and innovative service
delivery channels”
- Public Sector Reform
Agenda
The Voice of the User
in Dublin City Council
30 29
Who is closest to the customer in Dublin City Council?
It is the staff on the frontline, on the ground – receptionists, customer
service personnel, road maintenance crews, cleansing crews etc
Who makes decisions that affect customers/ citizens? -Management.
The further up the apex of the organisation, the further away from the
customer and the visibility of the user journey. This is problematic. It is
unfortunately typical of most large organisations.
Consultation is not enough especially if it happens after the plan has already
been drafted. If you were asked to put your service experience on a form or
an email, would you be able to capture it? If you are asked about it in a
forum outside the context of the service experience or after the service
event would you be able to articulate it?
“If I asked customers what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse”
- Henry Ford.
Users need to be engaged and co-involved in an on-going dialogue for
continuous service improvement.
“User insights can be challenging, demanding and uncomfortable for
organisations. However the most innovative service organisations see
beyond this. They view their service users as a resource or specialist network
to draw on for development ideas” (Heapy, Parker 2004).
There can be a fear about managing customers’ expectations if consulted.
However if the customer is not well-considered, dissatisfaction can permeate
the relationship, while the corporate mission fails.
The further u
p the apex of th
e
organisation, th
e further away fro
m the
customer and the visibility
of the user
journey through services.
“User insights can be challenging,
demanding and uncomfortable for
organisations. However the most
innovative service organisations see
beyond this.” (Heapy, Parker 2004)
Questions to Ask
32 31
Do you design the service and
then ask users about the
appropriateness of the service
or do you get the users to help
you design it at the outset?
How do you know if
users are happy with
a service or quietly
unhappy? Do you engage
consistently with
customers who don’t
ring customer service
lines?
Who in the Council is
responsible for sourcing ‘user
intelligence’? How are they
connected to the management
of your organisation?
Have you mapped all the
touchpoints of your
service, that is, the point
where the user meets
the service?
Do job descriptions and
performance frameworks
recognise and reward
improving user
experiences of service?
Are you ready for
feedback even if it is
negative?
What are the feedback
loops from users to
frontline staff, to backend
staff and to management?
Are you benefitting
from the collective
wisdom of your
customers?
About
Service Design
34 33
SD
Introducing Service Design
36 35
Service Design is all about making the service you deliver
useful, usable and desirable for clients and efficient and
effective for organisations. During a Service Design project,
the citizens and stakeholders are involved along with staff
and management from all levels.
Having all of the involved parties contribute to the process
means joined-up thinking, a richer platform for solutions
and new ways of thinking. It means services are better
thought out, and this avoids problems later. It automatically
ensures broad support for decisions, which in turn leads to
greater effectiveness.
By involving frontline staff, they are stimulated to make
effective changes. They are taken seriously, which increases
their professional pride and their pleasure in their work. By
involving users, their needs are foreseen.
Service design is a method of listening properly, while
simultaneously being a method of working to reach
solutions relatively quickly and in a manner that is highly
visual and comprehensible for all.
Ideas and solutions get tested and re-tested in a rough low-cost
format so people can experience how they work. The aim is to make
any mistakes as early as possible. This avoids costly roll-outs that
then need re-work.
Service design adds value to services by standing out from the crowd
in excellence and ensuring great experiences for users and staff and
smooth effective operations for providers.
Service Design– An Analogy
38 37
Designing a Service is like staging a theatre play.
Actors = Service staff
Stage = The service space
Audience = Service Users
Props = The visible service elements E.g. signage
Play = The service experience.
Rehearsal = The testing of the Service Experience before
the real thing
But there are also backstage processes, organisation,
business and preparation.
Only when the front and backstage work together, will the
audience experience the service as working perfectly.
Only when the fro
nt and backstage work
together will t
he audience experience the
service as working perfectly.
Service Design– Key Principles
40 39
User-centred
Why? Because if the underlying needs of users are omitted, the service
fails them. Empathy with the people you are designing for and
feedback from these users is essential.
Co-operative and Participatory
Why? All service staff, stakeholders and users of services are the
experts of their own needs. It makes no sense to design services
without their involvement. Multi-disciplined experts, users and staff
that touch, or are affected by the service, make up the design team.
Service as journey
The service is read as a journey through touchpoints over time. This is
a set of interactions human-human, human-machine and machine-
machine. This is relevant pre-service, during service and post-service.
Make Visible
Since a service, unlike a product, is largely intangible, it needs to be
brought to life in a way that all parties can relate to and review.
Designers help do this.
Test Quickly
Testing early in a rough mock-up helps identify early what won’t work
and avoids costly mistakes.
Holistic
Always sees the wider context in which the service process takes
place. It is an integrated approach to service provision.
Excerpt from ‘D-School Bootcamp’ Stanford University
The Service Design Process
42 41
1. Set up Project
The need, objective and appetite for the project get explored, and a
programme of work gets agreed between staff, management and a
service design facilitator.
2. Understand.
The service is explored by a multi-stakeholder group. This could be
users, citizens, related agency representatives, suppliers, service staff -
frontline and back-end, management. Through successive facilitated
exercises, insights are gathered, and needs and issues get identified
and the service journey is described.
3. Develop Ideas and Solution
Working with the insights, needs and issues identified, ideas for
potential solutions are generated by the group.
4. Test
Ideas and potential solutions get mocked up by the group, are tested
to gather feedback and re-tested until they match expectation.
5. Specify / Implement / Review
Once the solution has been identified a service blueprint is developed
and the path to implementation of service changes gets defined and
agreed. The changes are implemented by staff and management and
the service is reviewed post-implementation.
These are the typical steps in a Service Design
project. This is not a linear process but can
repeat within stages, between stages and can
begin again at the end, after all stages, in a
process of continuous service improvement.
These stages are explored in the following
pages and reference will be made to a number
of tools that can be used in the process.
The tools are identified by the symbol
and are referenced and explained in
the ‘Toolbox’ section.
The Service Design Process
1. Set up Project
44 43
The process usually starts with staff, management and a service design
facilitator, not the customer. Staff and management need to
understand the potential benefit service design can bring to their
service, their organisation and their reputation. They need to
recognise if there exists a service issue (even if it is not yet clearly
articulated).
The trigger for a project could be market changes, a need for
differentiation, or a need for efficiency with less resource or to
increase value to clients.
They need to be open to a project that explores their service from a
customer viewpoint. They need to be open and ready for the changes
and feedback that may occur.
The Business Model Canvas can be used here to explore the service in
the context of the organisational goals and its operating environment.
The Customer Journey Map can be used to check staff knowledge of
user experience.
Common Concerns Notes
If we involve the user it
may create an
expectation or demand
or invite complaints
The process involving citizens is designed
to carefully manage user inputs
If it ain’t broke don’t fix
it
If a service is problem-free there is nothing
to fix but often the issues are hidden or
unspoken by users. You don’t know if you
don’t ask.
We have lost staff and
resources are tight
The intervention is typically small in scale
and will not require significant resource. It
is likely to improve staff morale because it
is a participative process. Staff feel valued
for their insights.
We are too busy to
review our services
Being too busy can be part of the service
problem. If there is no time to take stock,
we cannot be sure the service is
performing and cannot improve it.
Outsiders don’t
understand what we do
like we do
The staff service providers are indeed
experts. But they are not the only experts.
Users are experts of their own experience.
An outsider can see a service with fresh
eyes.
Sample Tools (See ‘Toolbox’)
The Business Model Canvas
Stakeholder Maps
The Customer Journey Map
Outcomes
Motivation to engage
Agreement to proceed
A programme of work
The Service Design Process
2. Understand
46 45
All the potential stakeholders that touch, or interact with, a service are
identified. This can include front- and back-end staff, management,
citizens, suppliers, competitors, peer agencies, government etc. From
these, a service design team is identified. The project team chosen
should ensure that internal and external knowledge is used to best
advantage so that implementation and buy-in can be assured.
The team is brought together to identify needs, issues and insights
from multiple perspectives that affect, or are affected by, the service.
Gaining a clear understanding of the situation from an existing or
potential user of the service is a key aim here.
Quantitative research and qualitative research may be used.
We map not just the functional interaction with the service but also
the emotional experience and the expectations. We map not only the
customer journey but also inputs, suppliers, processes and outputs of
service elements.
A variety of tools can then be used here to facilitate these interactions
and to further explore user needs.
It is important that the key information gets synthesised and
prioritised considering objectives and the service and organisation’s
strategy. This gives focus for the next stage of developing ideas. The
direction taken will only be as good as the facts it is based on.
Sample Tools (See ‘Toolbox’)
Customer Journey Maps
Observation of users
Context Interviews,
In the Users Shoes
Expectation Maps
Outcomes
A clear synthesis of the needs, issues, insights and
expectations identified by multiple players
A prioritisation of these needs, issues, insights and
expectations in line with strategy
A visualisation of the customer journey through the
existing service, the highs and lows
New views and understanding of the service by all parties
The Service Design Process
3. Develop Ideas and Solutions
48 47
This is the concept development stage. It is not a random
development of ideas but based clearly on the information, needs,
issues, insights and expectations captured in the previous phase. To
develop great services, different challenges need to be met with
innovative and sensible ideas, concepts and solutions, which are true
to the needs of users and organisations. Ideas should be made as
visual and tangible as possible.
Participants are led using various techniques from blue-sky thinking to
focussed solutions to map ideas against the service journey and
processes.
In this stage a lot of post-its are used. There are good reasons for this.
Firstly, it helps people get ideas from inside their heads onto boards so
all thoughts can be shared and considered. Secondly, it is a flexible
medium that helps to group and connect ideas.
Sample Tools (See ‘Toolbox’)
Brainstorming
The Five Whys
Six Hats (De Bono)
Scenario Building
Storyboards.
Outcomes
A set of workable ideas and solutions ready for testing
The Service Design Process
4. Test
50 49
Testing is a critical part of the service design process because it allows
one to identify potential service errors upfront at little or no cost.
The most promising ideas and solutions from the previous stage are
made tangible in a way that users can relate to and give feedback. This
requires a cyclical process of test, improve, refine until the solution
meets user expectations.
This usually involves developing mock-ups quickly and cheaply. Early
mock-ups may involve simple sketches, storyboards or photo
sequences. This could be developed further into a rough 3D model on
the desktop. This enables a birds-eye walk through the service, a
scenario to be played out, or a sketch of how some of the interface
could look. Later mock-ups will look more realistic.
This purpose of this kind of visualisation is to make sure that all team
members are talking about the same thing rather than different
pictures and expectation in each person’s mind.
The team gets to observe how the user relates to the mock-up in a
simulated environment or in the actual service delivery location. They
experience the idea with customers, stakeholders or professionals in
order to improve the solutions before they are realised.
Sample Tools (See ‘Toolbox’)
Desktop Walk-through
Roleplay
Outcomes
Clarity about what is needed
A basis for service specification
The Service Design Process
5. Specify / Implement / Review
52 51
After refining the solution, this allows the team to develop a final
service blueprint. In the same way that a product has detailed design
drawings, the service blueprint specifies the service details. This
means every detail that is needed to plan, specify and roll out a service
is recorded.
To realise a service, it needs to be clear what the concept and purpose
is and how different components link into each other.
A business plan or The Business Model Canvas can be used in
conjunction with the blueprint to understand and to direct how the
service system will work and the impact on the organisation and the
market.
Training and service guidelines are developed to ensure that staff can
put the service plan into action. Briefings, service specifications,
templates and role specifications ensure consistent touchpoints and
experience.
The process does not end with implementation. Services should be
under continuous review in a process of continuous service
improvement.
Sample Tools (See ‘Toolbox’)
Service Blueprint
Business Model Canvas
Outcomes
Service Blueprint
Service Guidelines
Business Plan
Roll-out plan
The Service Design
Toolbox
54 53
Brainstorming
56 55
The purpose of brainstorming is to draw out as many ideas
as possible, and as rich a range as possible, from a diverse
group of people.
Certain rules normally apply to ensure maximum benefit
from the session:
Focus on quantity – participants should contribute a large
quantity of ideas without too much thinking. Quality will
come later.
Withhold criticism – participants refrain from criticising
either their own or others’ ideas until later in the session. By
suspending judgement people feel free to generate unusual
ideas.
Welcome unusual ideas – unusual ideas can come from
using fresh perspectives and suspending limits. This can
open up fresh possibilities.
Combine and Improve ideas – people build on other
people’s ideas and combine them.
The Business Model Canvas
58 57
The Business Model Canvas is a powerful tool used by
organisations and entrepreneurs to work collaboratively to
describe, analyse, design or tweak new or existing business
models. It can be used in any sector, public or private.
The canvas consists of nine sections which represent the key
building blocks of a successful business model:
Key Partners
Key Activities
Value Proposition
Customer Relationships
Customer Segments
Key Resources
Cost Structure
Channels
Revenue Streams
Teams can work in roundtable with the canvas to generate
possibilities under each of the nine sections and clarify
existing and potential new business or focus areas.
It can help departments or organisations see themselves as
a service-focussed business and can bring clarity to
strengths, weaknesses, possibilities and priorities in the
organisation against its operating environment.
Context Interviews
60 59
These are interviews with users, staff or stakeholders that
take place in the environment or context in which the
service process of interest occurs. Discussing work or service
routines is always easier when the conversation takes place
in the place where they unfold.
An interviewer will spot activity that the interviewee takes
for granted and probe that activity. It helps the interviewee
remember the kind of specific details that can get lost in a
traditional focus group setting.
People are more comfortable providing insights into their
thoughts and behaviours in when in a familiar environment.
These can be validated or expanded upon by the
observations of the interviewer in context. The interviewer
can also notice more about the physical and social
environment of the service process in context.
The interview will be documented by text, video or audio
and this gives powerful material to present back to the
service provider project team.
Customer Journey Map
62 61
The Customer Journey Map visualises the service-user’s
experience. This shows the touchpoints where the user
interacts with the service and the accompanying emotions.
Touchpoints can be face to face between people, virtual
through website or mobile phone, or physical such as a trip
to a building, reading signage etc.
The customer journey should be drawn from the customer
rather than from staff. The internal business model process
of the service will not capture all of the service touchpoints,
because the customer may be interacting with relating
agencies or services before the decision to even use the
service in question. Interviews work well here or the
customers can document their service journey themselves.
The map can be based around particular personas showing
different journeys on each map.
The map gives a high-level insight into the factors
influencing the user’s experience constructed from their
own perspective.
This enables the identification of problem areas, success
areas or opportunities for innovation. Different service
expectations or perceptions from different customer groups
can also be identified.
Expectation Maps
64 63
An expectation map involves investigating and mapping
what customers expect when they interact with a service at
each stage of the service or at particular stages requiring
insight.
The material for this can come from media reviews,
interviews with users, complaint logs etc.
The map can then be compared to existing service routines
to highlight gaps. This will identify areas in need of
particular attention from the point of view of the user.
Expectations across the different stages or mediums can
also be compared.
Desktop Walk-throughs
This is a small three-dimensional model of a service
environment using props such as stick figures and simulated
physical elements in the service environment. Common
situations can then be acted out by moving the figures
around the model or to insert different personas.
The same scene can be acted out several times, changing
physical elements or character elements. They are used to
gain a shared understanding of the service situation among
the group and create a service situation in which all team
members can input in an engaging manner.
In the User’s Shoes
66 65
Here people (usually staff) are asked to go out and
experience a service in order to understand the common
issues and needs of service users.
This could involve experiencing the specific service under
review, other services in the same sector, a similar service
environment in another sector, or a variety of services.
They will be asked to explore examples of what they think
are good or bad services and to record their experiences.
This helps people to understand the factors that are
common to any positive service experience.
These insights are then used to develop opportunities for
service improvement or innovation.
Five Whys
The 5 Whys are a chain of questions used to dig below the
outward symptoms of a user experience, or the outward
explanation for a situation, in order to find the root cause.
It is used to tease out a specific problem by producing a
convincing explanation of the cause pathway from the
current situation to the root cause.
This can help uncover service stages that the user doesn’t
usually see or user actions that the service provider doesn’t
usually see.
We have abandoned 3,000 customer calls. Why?
We didn’t have the right number of staff. Why?
There were more calls than expected. Why?
Lots of bills went in the post on the same day. Why?
We didn’t print any for a week. Why?
Because we recently optimised the system to print bills
only once a week
Role Play
68 67
This technique, drawn from the field of drama, involves an
interactive training experience that helps staff contribute to
the improvement of the service experience while playing
the role or observing the acted role of different service
actors. Staff enact various service situations, and play the
role of customer, staff or management. It helps to video-
record the role-play and then to review and analyse the
material in a follow-up workshop.
This technique helps staff to develop the tools and skills to
respond to customers’ needs or particular service situations.
It helps to identify which props, guidelines or artefacts
would be useful in the specific service situation. It can bring
kinaesthetic learning or empathy into the service situation.
The acting can also be performed by corporate actors
instead of staff members who will be prompted by or
observed by staff.
A similar process can be applied to users, acting out the
roles of staff, in order to provide insight into the service
using a different viewing point.
Observation of Users
This involves team researchers immersing themselves in the
lives of users, front-line staff, or back-room staff to
understand their behaviour and experiences. People
naturally exhibit behaviours unconsciously so this method
shows up things that would not be apparent or articulated
in an interview.
Text, video and photographs can be used here to capture
activity.
It allows observers to spot problems that the person being
observed may not even be aware of even recognise as a
problem. It can identify when a person says one thing but
does another.
Service Blueprint
70 69
In the same way a product will have specification drawings detailing
how a product is to be manufactured, a service blueprint gives
detailed information about all aspects of how a service should be
performed. This will be a visual schematic incorporating the
perspectives of user, service provider and other key players, showing
front-end and back-end relationships.
The blueprint is not a static document but a living one and should be
continually revised in a process of continuous service improvement.
The document can be developed collaboratively, with all service
players having input, in order to capture the full picture of the service.
It should be drafted roughly at the beginning of the project, and
developed and refined throughout the project. As new ideas become
appropriate solutions and service experiences get articulated the
blueprint gets updated. The final blueprint is a roadmap for the actual
service delivery.
Scenario Building
Designing scenarios helps bring potential service situations
to life. They are hypothetical stories which can involve
particular personas or user types in a specific service
context. Scenarios can be presented using plain text,
storyboards or video.
Scenarios enable a shared understanding and knowledge
sharing within a group. They can be applied to any area of
the service that has a particular problem to explore that
service stage from various viewpoints or in a variety of
situations.
Storyboards
72 71
Borrowed from the film industry, storyboards are a series of drawings
or pictures that visualise a sequence of events that occur within a
service journey.
A common visualisation is the comic-strip. The storyboard will bring in
key details so that anyone viewing it can have a clear understanding of
what is going on in the service without having to be in the service
environment. It can present a real-life situation or an imaginary
situation to explore possible ideas and variations. This can be used to
provoke discussion among users or providers about what works or
doesn’t work.
Six Thinking Hats
This technique developed by Edward De Bono is used to tap into the
collective wisdom of a team in order to develop a shared vision. The
process avoids the conflicts that can occur through different
personality and thinking types in a team. The technique guides the
team through six thinking modes. During each mode the team
members ‘wear only that hat’, that is they exclusively in that mode.
The 6 modes are:
Information (White) - considering purely what information is
available, what are the facts?
Emotions (Red) - intuitive or instinctive statements of emotional
feeling (but not any justification)
Judgement (Black) – devil’s advocate
Optimism (Yellow) - identifying benefits, seeking harmony
Creativity (Green) – focus on possibilities, alternatives, ideas
Managing the process (Blue) – used to reflect on the process.
References & Appendix
74 73
References
74 73
References
Recommended Reading
For Those Interested in the Service Design Method
Mortiz, S. 2005. Service Design. Practical Access to an Evolving Field [Online].
Available from: http://stefan-moritz.com/welcome/Service_Design_files/Practical%
20Access%20to%20Service%20Design.pdf
Stickdorn M., Schneider J. 2011. This is Service Design Thinking. New Jersey USA:
Wiley
Websites
Tassi, R 2009. Service Design Tools. Communication Methods Supporting Design
Processes [Online]. Available from: http://www.servicedesigntools.org [Accessed
7th May 2012].
http://www.mind-lab.dk/en/methods
http://www.servicedesigntoolkit.org/
http://www.stby.eu/
Recommended Reading
For Decision-makers in Local Government
A key accessible text is Heapy & Parker.
Department of Public Expenditure and Reform 2011. Public Service Reform Plan
[Online]. Available from: http://per.gov.ie/wp-content/uploads/Public-Service-
Reform-181120111.pdf
Gaskarth, G. 2010. Small Is Beautiful. Innovation from the Frontline in Local
Government [Online]. Available from: http://www.nesta.org.uk/library/documents/
Small_is_Beautiful.pdf
Helsinki design Lab 2011. In Studio: Recipes for Systemic Change [Online]. Available
from: http://helsinkidesignlab.org/instudio/
Heapy, J., Parker S. 2006. The Journey to the Interface . How Public Service design can
connect users to reform [Online]. Available from: http://www.demos.co.uk/files/
journeytotheinterface.pdf?1240939425
Metropolis 2011. IDEO takes on the Government [Online]. Available from: http://
www.ideo.com/images/uploads/news/pdfs/Metropolis_IDEO_govt_June2011_1.pdf
UK Cabinet Office 2004. Service Design Principles. A pocket Guide [Online]. Available
from: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://
www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/cabinetoffice/corp/assets/publications/
delivery_council/pdf/service_design070524.pdf
Websites
http://publicpolicylab.org/
http://www.mind-lab.dk/en
76 75
Appendix of Dublin City
Council Services
Appendix of Dublin City
Council Services
Accounts, financial management, financial planning, fund management,
management and control, spending plans, Animals, dog bins, dog fouling,
horses, registration, warden services, inspection, pest control, stray Archaeology,
advice, consultancy, excavation, survey Architecture, advice, consultation,
design, project management Archives, access, enquiries, general information,
loans, donations bequests and sales Arts, development, information, facilities,
grants, Biodiversity, information, policy Business, advice, rates, annual
notification Business Process improvement, Car parks, council, private, staff
Children and young people, drop in activities, organised activities, playgrounds
and play facilities, Civil emergencies, business continuity, advice, emergency
plan, flooding, major accident, hazards Coastline protection Community
centres, facilities management programming supporting health and safety
Community development, regeneration projects, resource procurement,
Community planning assemblies, groups and committees , consultation,
engagement, support policies, ABCS Community safety, community policing
forums, lane closures, intoxicating liquor fines, public lighting Complaints,
procedures, appeals Conference, hall and meeting room, Hire. Public and private
use, Council Events, civic and public events, Council Planning, policy and
making of regulations, corporate and other plan and policies Council Customer
information services, Phone, web, advertising and communication, Council -
consultation and community engagement, Facilities Management , air handling
units, catering services, council offices, energy and fuel, equipment, internal
mail , internal room, maintenance, printing and copying, reception, staff/visitor
car parking, vehicle maintenance, Council Festive decoration, Council
communication, Media, web, press management, publications, internal
communication, Council Permissions, to host events, film and photograph,
Council procurement, - contracts lists, contract management, expenditure, policy,
Council Risk management, Insurance claims, policies, business continuity,
Councillors , General information, minutes, agenda reports, meeting
management, Death, coroner’s court, exhumations, mortuaries, Disabled people
, accessibility, home adaptations, parking bays - parking permits, specialist
equipment, Education , -early years facilities, higher education grants, free
school meals, Elections, electoral nominations, electoral register, postal votes,
results publication, voting, Environmental information, Exhibitions, permanent
and temporary Facilities,
Fire and rescue, - attending automatic alarms, - attending fires, attending road
traffic accidents, community safety, emergency medical services, fire
certificates, fire safety education, hazardous chemical (HAZCHEM) incidents,
hydrants maintenance, post-incident support, regulations enforcement, special
services, workplace regulation, Freedom of Information, Grants, Arts,
community, community facilities, cultural, home renovation, sports, talented and
gifted individuals, voluntary organisations, Health and safety, Housing -
allocation, decision, system, change of tenancy, information, registering,
alterations by tenants, rehousing , mutual exchange, Housing - tenants, Advice
and support, clearance, , community safety, caretaking, communal heating,
tenancy arrears, deeds, evictions, home insurance, maintenance and repairs,
modernisation schemes, rents, sale of council housing, unauthorised occupants,
nuisance and threatening behaviour, tenancy issues, Housing - homeless
services, Housing - improvements, adaptations of council property, disability
facility grant for a private property, renovation grants, Housing - legal advice and
support, Housing - private, Registration for Private Rented tenancies, Rent
Assessment Scheme, shared ownership – low cost home ownerships, Housing -
sheltered, council tenants, homeless people, housing association tenants, non-
council tenants, older people, Housing - special needs - , Capital grants, Housing
associations, Housing - Repairs - , communal areas, council property, emergency
out of hours repairs, surveying and major repairs, Housing- social housing policy,
Information Communication Technology, business continuity, data management,
hardware, helpdesk, networks, peripheral, software, webs site, policy, telephony,
Information management, Jobs, employment, training initiatives, equal
opportunities, local authority vacancies, vetting of contract and supplier staff,
Land and property, -area search service, availability lists, building control.
commercial lettings, compulsory acquisition, out of hours emergencies,
dangerous structures, demolitions, property enquiries, property searches, derelict
properties, estate management, grass cutting, improvement, securing, historic
sites, statutory development plans, valuations, Languages, translating and
interpreting services Irish Language services, sign language, Law, legal advice,
CCTV procedures for the release of evidence, litigation support, coroners sudden
death investigations
78 77
Appendix of Dublin City
Council Services Appendix of Dublin City
Council Services
Leisure and sport, Indoor and outdoor activities, Libraries -, catalogues, children's
services, computers and the internet, fines , information services loans and
renewals, local collection, mobile library service, online information resource,
prison library service, reserving books and other items, sale of publications,
school libraries, special collections, special needs, Licences, Bridges, buildings,
beams and cables over or along highway, markets and casual trading, Fats Oils
and Greases, obstruction, scaffolding, hoarding, skip operators, street café, street
trading, road opening, Local economy, development, reports and forecasts, Lord
Mayor, Administration, support, expenses, Markets, cleaning, information, stall
rental, Members, allowances, committee membership, declaration of interests,
minutes, agendas and reports, secretariat, Members of the Oireachtas TDs,
Senators MEPS , General information and communication, Memorials and
statues, maintenance and policy, Motor tax, -Drivers, provisional, commercial
and lost licences - Vehicle taxation services, Museums and galleries, enquiries,
information, loans donation, bequest, shops, Older people, Activities, Parks and
open spaces, events, general information, landscaping, maintenance, outdoor,
Planning, development control; advertisement control; allotments; building and
landscape design services; building control; conservation advice; conservation
areas; consultation , decision notices, statutory register, development control
enforcement, land use proposals; landscape character assessment; listed
buildings; - statutory register; Local Development Frameworks; local plans;
environmental policies; rights of way enforcement and maintenance; street
names and numbering; transport policy; tree management and preservation,
zoning, planning applications, Pollution control, air quality, construction,
contaminated land, inspection and regulation, noise, nuisance, water, water
quality, Public toilets, Recycling, bags and containers; composters; information;
residential collections ; recycling sites, Refuse, spillage; collection permits,
flytipping, hazardous waste movement permits, disposal sites, special collections
for large items, Litter - enforcement, fines, removal, litter bins, Refuse, skip-
permits and services, Roads, Safety - cameras, cycle training, cycling and walking
to school, - dangerous road junctions, pedestrian crossings, school crossings
speed bumps, spillages, traffic schemes , speed limits, weigh limits, Street
cleaning programme, Street Furniture Policy, acquisition, Provision, maintenance
and licensing, Street lighting, Street parking, clamping and removal, enforcement,
residents and disk parking, pavement,
permits, zones, Traffic lights systems and management, Roads, Kerbs, footpath
dishing, verges, maintenance, Safety, health and safety - accident reporting;
occupational health services; advice and training ; petrol delivery and storage;
Safety - syringes – disposal, Sports, Development, facilities, information and
booking, pitches and courts, Staff, annual leave , appraisal, apprenticeships ,
disciplinary procedures grievance, job analysis, payroll procedures, redeployment,
reorganisations, sickness management , continuing professional development,
Statistics, census information, economic information and analysis, usage,
telemetry, Sustainable development, Town twinning, Transport, abnormal
loads, bus stops and shelters positioning, journey planning, Travelling people,
provision of sites and housing, Vandalism, fly posting and graffiti - reporting and
removal, Vehicles - abandoned, Reporting and removal, Wastewater, general
information, new connection, effluent licences, fats oil and grease, flood
planning, drainage studies, gully cleaning, maintenance, Water, new water
connections, quality and testing, provision, leakage repair, reservoir and storage
management
Produced by Una Mc Grath for The Studio at Dublin City Council.
Contact [email protected] or [email protected]
