Nelly Trakidou

Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO urges designers to Think Big: the design profession has a bigger role to play than just creating "nifty, fashionable little objects".

Bas Raijmakers, creative director of STBY, explains how he uses film to portray user's needs and desires to inspire service innovation projects. Instead of directing ethnographic films hilmself, he helps users direct their own films, in order to get as close as possible to their daily lifes.

Service Design and User Experience: Same or Different? Oliver King, co-founder of Engine

What is service design? – Birgit Mager (Köln International School of Design)

The Co-Design process from social design agency thinkpublic

Meroni A. , Sangiorgi D (2011) Design for Services

In Design for Services, Anna Meroni and Daniela Sangiorgi articulate what Design is doing and can do for services, and how this connects to existing fields of knowledge and practice. Designers previously saw their task as the conceptualisation, development and production of tangible objects. In the twenty-first century, a designer rarely 'designs something' but rather 'designs for something': in the case of this publication, for change, better experiences and better services.

The authors reflect on this recent transformation in the practice, role and skills of designers, by organising their book into three main sections. The first section links Design for Services to existing models and studies on services and service innovation. Section two presents multiple service design projects to illustrate and clarify the issues, practices and theories that characterise the discipline today; using these case studies the authors propose a conceptual framework that maps and describes the role of designers in the service economy. The final section projects the discipline into the emerging paradigms of a new economy to initiate a reflection on its future development.

Polaine A, Løvlie L, Reason B Service Design: From Insight to Implementation

"Along with many other insights, this book offers:

A clear explanation of what service design is and what makes it different from other ways of thinking about design, marketing and business.

Service design insights, methods and case studies to help you move up the project food chain and have a bigger design impact on the entire service ecosystem.

Practical advice to help you sell the value of service thinking within your organisation and to clients.

Ways to help you develop business, design, environmental and social innovation through service design."

Portigal S, (2013) Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights.

"Interviewing Users will explain how to succeed with interviewing, including:

Embracing how other people see the world

Building rapport to create engaging and exciting interactions

Listening in order to build rapport."

Stickdorn M, Schneider J (2012) This is Service Design Thinking

"This book outlines a contemporary approach for service innovation. »This is Service Design Thinking, introduces a new way of thinking to beginners but also serves as a reference for professionals. It explains the approach, its background, process, methods and tools and connects theory to contemporary case studies.

A set of 23 international authors created this interdisciplinary textbook applying exactly the same user-centered and co-creative approach it preaches."

Thackara J, (2006) In the Bubble: Designing for a Complex World

"We’re filling up the world with technology and devices, but we’ve lost sight of an important question: What is this stuff for? What value does it add to our lives? So asks author John Thackara in his new book, In the Bubble: Designing in a Complex World. These are tough questions for the pushers of technology to answer. "

Viladas, X (2011) Design at Your Service: How to improve a business idea with a designers's help

"Service design is a new discipline which allows us to effectively set up an offer consisting of both tangible and intangible elements, through the combined use of methodologies and knowledge which come from design and social sciences. This book examines the rise in service design as a discipline, reviews its main tools and proposes a model where design can give value in each and every one of the phases of a new service developing process. The aim of this text is to at least stimulate interest among members of both groups: companies and entrepreneurs, who, hopefully, will have a clear idea of why, how and when a designer can help them improve their business idea after reading this. Also professional designers, who may see an opportunity for a big future in the design of specialised services"

Gratton, L (2011) The shift : the future of work is already here.

"Work is a defining, all-consuming part of our lives. Now, more than ever, the speed at which the nature of work is changing is having an extraordinary impact on working lives everywhere. Lynda Gratton''s groundbreaking book looks at the five forces that will fundamentally change the way we work in the next 10 to 15 years: globalization, society, demography, technology, and energy. It remains to be seen whether this will be a bad thing or a good thing. The invaluable advice that Lynda imparts, however, is that there are three key shifts that individuals can make to prepare themselves in this fast-moving world of work."

Osterwalder A, Pigneur Y, (2010) Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers

"Business Model Generation is a handbook for visionaries, game changers, and challengers striving to defy outmoded business models and design tomorrow′s enterprises. Along the way, you′ll understand at a much deeper level your customers, distribution channels, partners, revenue streams, costs, and your core value proposition."

Fraser H, (2012) Works: How to Tackle Your Toughest Innovation Challenges through Business Design

"Design Works is the playbook for putting Business Design – a discipline that integrates design methods and mindsets into strategic planning and innovation practices - into action across the enterprise. Heather Fraser provides tools and tips, compelling case studies and inspiring interviews with business leaders who have used design principles and practices to tackle their enterprise challenges and map out new opportunities for growth.

Through the practice of the 3 Gears of Business Design, Design Works shows you how to harness your team’s collective ingenuity and unlock fresh insights, create bigger ideas faster, and translate big ideas into clear action-based strategies that will accelerate progress toward a renewed vision for your organization."

Moritz S, (2010), Service Design: Practical Access to an Evolving Field

"Design as a whole has changed and Service Design can address the unique challenges that the service economy is facing. Design is not only crafting details of products anymore. It is a field that designs complex and interactive experiences, processes and systems. It involves expertise and experts from related fields and clients in the design process. It uses special processes, tools and methods."

I entered into the service design world some months ago, when I started my master in design for services at Dundee University. When I was applying for this master course I had a general idea of what service design is. It seemed to be something fresh, new, innovative and creative. As time passed, I realised that service design is the field/discipline that I was looking for.

Characteristics such as creativity, innovation, empathy, creative thinking, co-creation, are the key elements of Service design and the human element is always in the centre of the design process.

There are many supporters; including me as well, who claim that service design is the next big thing that can promote social, and cultural innovation; is the new way, mindset that can lead to a positive and desirable change.

All these sound amazing. Wow! Service designers are the next Messiahs, they will change and help the world with their 'magic' design tools and their Lego! Service design is the panacea, the remedy that will cure all the economic, social and political and cultural problems that plague ?

From my point of view, Service design is a new approach to see, understand and improve the services that entirely are composing the current economic intangible model. Service Designers, being designers have developed the sensibility towards how people engage with the material world gives them a unique edge when it comes to human-centred innovation. Understanding of the ‘human element’ can reflect a strong impetus to address human and societal issues in their work; concerns around global sustainability drive innovation in products, services and business practisces.

Moreover, prototyping, that for many looks like a pointless, childish and time consuming thing; is also totally central to the service design. As Rohan Gunatillake coined:

"Prototyping is an approach and provides an analogue route for those who might not know their way around an API or indeed what those three letters even are. In a sector where financial resources are relatively low, effective prototyping fills the innovation gap, reducing the risk of innovation practice and solving the problem of the innovation funding calls, which ask for detailed project proposals but often do not provide the guidance or tools needed to come up with the good idea that makes a great proposal."

According with the Greek proverb that states: "if not praised our house will fall and crushed us".There are many supporters; including me as well, that Service Design has the tools, the mindset that have the ability to make a change.
No, it's not the panacea, it's just a different, more creative approach of thinking, observing and solving problems.

One problem that makes Service Design loose it's credibility, it's derived from the bad branding that sometimes service designers themselves create and promote. Unfortunately, there are many stereotypes interwoven with the word 'designer'. There is a great amount of people that only by hearing the word designer the fist image that cames in their minds is the following. A person with a total black look, having at least one mac product, wearing glasses, get lost in his Post- its, says that working hard and at the same time playing with the Legos at the work. Always have a big dream and many times be a madman daydreamer hoping and believing that has the ability to change the world.
But have you even wondered if this image, perception that perceived by many people is an image, branding that came up by the designers themselves?

Many times that designers themselves, use pompous and puffy words describing and promoting a designery thing. This is a perfect example that illustrates this.

Recently, I attended the Global Design Jam in Dundee.

"The Global Service Jam is a non-profit volunteer activity organised by an informal network of service design afficinados, who all share a common passion for growing the field of service design and customer experience."

It was great experience. 48 hours, full of designing, meeting, collaborating, creating and presenting an idea based on a specific theme. An absolutely amazing, insightful, and creative way to share ideas, meet people and enhance your design skills and mindset.
But, the way that this event promoted "48 hours to change the world." proves once again that designers themselves are liable for these characterisations and assumptions people perceive for designers.

"They are all mad and dreamers"

We can or we have to be mad and dreamers. The positive, creative and open-minded way of thinking and acting is something that missing. But, as capable, efficient, skillful service designers we have to change this bad branding that represent us. There is an emerge need to make people believe that this different 'crazy' way of thinking is something credible, effective and realistic.

"Keep notes", "use a diary", "write down your thoughts, ideas, feelings", "have always with you your sketchbook", "create your reflective booklet".

Image: moleskin

All of the above are familiar to most of us, especially the people that belong to the creative industry, have heard those words thousands of times. No one can deny, that the usage of a diary / sketchbook / journal, is a tool that helps people organise their thoughts and define their values. In addition, it is a great way of keeping track of creative ideas and getting in the habit of regular drawing.

"An art diary, art journal or visual journal is a daily journal kept by artists, often containing both words and sketches, and occasionally including Mixed media elements such as collages. Such books will frequently contain rough workings, in cartoon form, of ideas later to appear in finished works, as well as acting as a normal diary, by allowing the artist to record their day-to-day activities and emotions." (wikipedia).

So, if you asked someone to describe how a reflective booklet, or whatever it's called, looks like, he would simply answer, that it is a book full of sketches, shapes and hand drawings.

But, things are changing... Nowadays, you don't have to carry your heavy big sketchbook. There are thousands of applications which promise to help you improve your productivity and creativity and at one extent, even make you smarter. And this is the starting point for many arguments.

How a designer could remain creative and improve his habit of regular drawing using intangible paper and a fake pencil? Well, I know that the technology has moved on and there are thousands of devices and applications that let us keep our daily track that way.

Evidence from studies has shown that writing skill is a process that needs an integration of visual, motor, as well as cognitive or perceptive parts. The perception allows one to remember the shape of the letters that are written while sight and motor skills of the hand enable the writing. Present brain imaging shows that the nerves are also connected to these three components.
When a person writes using a typewriter or a computer, he changes this pattern to a great extent. For example, typewriting involves both hands while handwriting involves one, and handwriting is slower and more laborious than typing. Handwriting needs a person to shape a letter, where typing does not.
Some Japanese studies have shown that repeated handwriting aids in remembering the shape of the letters better. One study showed that when children learned words by writing, they remembered it better than if they learned it by typing.

Handwriting makes a person focus on one point alone–the tip of the pen. However, mechanized writing makes a writer oscillate between the keypad and the monitor. (read more)

And here comes the question: "What effect does technology have on our cognitive abilities? This is the question addressed by Norman in the fourth of a series of books related to the design of computers and complex systems. Norman's answer comes more in the form of a critique than an approval. Technology makes us "smart in the sense of being better able to think". It has the simultaneous capacity, however, to 'entrap', 'confuse', 'control' and 'dominate' us." (read more)

Design and business can no longer be thought of as distinct activities with individual goals. Design the New Business is a film dedicated to investigating how designers and business people are working together in new ways to solve the wicked problems facing business today.

The short documentary examines how they are joining forces by bringing together an international collection of design service providers, education experts and businesses that have incorporated design as a part of their core approach. Design the New Business features inspiring case studies and insightful discussions, helping to illustrate the state of the relationship and how it needs to continue evolving to meet tomorrow's challenges.

"As our world changes, the challenges to business grow. Old ways of thinking are being replaced by open minds and creativity. Design is playing a central role in helping solve problems and drive the future."

This film is a Zilver Innovation initiative, and was created by 6 students from the Master in Strategic Product Design at the TU Delft in The Netherlands. Read more

Τhe economy has changed over the years. From the agrarian economy that was based on commodities, in the wake of the industrial revolution, focused on manufactured products, now it became a commoditization era. Nowadays, the service sector has become the major contributor of the worldwide economy. It accounts for 73% of UK's GDP, 70.5% of GDP in Europe and 64% of GDP worldwide.

In fact, service design is underused by many of the companies all around the world. Services are a growth area but service design is often poorly planned. A perfect statistic that illustrates this reality, is that 80% of companies think they offer a superior service, yet only 8% of their customers agree. (Bain paper)

Companies have been trying to design better products but often their services lack the same quality. Service is even more important than the product, because it is the experiences that are often remembered. Even more important than the customer experience is the value of the conceptual journey between brands and people, and service design is about creating delightful customer experiences, which in turn benefit businesses by enhancing brand loyalty and reducing the costs to serve.

But, "If the focus is entirely on creative discovery without consideration of how it converts to a winning strategy, creativity is practically useless."- R. Martin

It is crucial for businesses to show empathy and deep customer/user understanding. Understanding users more holistically entails understanding them better as an individual, apart from the direct consumption or use of the company's current product or service. Consequently, knowing the wider activity surroundings of the company's product or service, expands the business's perspective and is an opportunity to create new value early on and set a path for long-term and market-inspired value-creation.

But in order to achieve this successfully, companies must get rid of their conservative and stiff business thinking and move into service design thinking. And now comes the question: "What is the value of Service Design to the Business sector?"

Set your company apart: Service Design often differentiates clients from the competitive landscape, providing new ways of thinking and sparking innovation for companies that are stuck.
Customer Loyalty/Brand: Results in customer loyalty and satisfaction, enabling the company to deliver on its brand promise from top to bottom.
Organizational Alignment: Can help lead to greater collaboration and trust across all departments and functional units.
Holistic Problem-Solving: Takes a big picture approach, allowing for new connections and hidden opportunities to emerge.
Reality-Driven, Not Change By Numbers: Builds a perspective with the customer at the centre, redefining your company based on what the numbers say.
Better Business Performance: Brings concrete results, in the form of higher revenue, improved operations, increased efficiency and greater employee and customer satisfaction.

Although service design is a young industry, there are still some common features that these emerging service design consultancies share:

1. A user-centred approach

2. Service design practice sometimes overlaps with the role of management consulting, in terms of helping the client make strategic decisions, developing marketing research or supporting employee training.
However, the difference is Service Design consultancies

A. Make intangible service tangible by visualization.
B. Use design toolkits to develop concepts.
C. Use prototyping in order to develop deeper insights and robust outcomes.
D. Combine the "what" with the "how" of the service operation.

3. Service Design consultancies are willing to work with higher levels of the client organization. Many of them work with the managers rather than designers, in order to influence the branding/marketing strategies and tactics at different organization levels.

4. Most projects involve various types of specialized knowledge as they need to have a holistic thinking of the entire user journey.

5. What service design sells is a process rather than a product

6. Negotiation with limited resources

7. Design legacy for sustainable service systems

"Companies can gain a significant competitive advantage by improving the way that they provide a service... but other companies will eventually catch up." - B. Hollins

It is shown so far, that service design can have a big impact in societies and that it
can in fact bring structural change.

Governments use service design to achieve social improvement. They use it to co- create with their active citizens a better and more sustainable environment and they use it to mobilize and motivate the idle ones to participate in this cooperation.

Citizens through the openness of public debate and their participation in the design
process feel that they have actively contributed to the resulting service and to an extent they feel to have changed, towards the better, the society in which they live. This brings the people the closest they have ever been to direct democracy since the ancient Athenian democracy.

According to Victor Papanek everyone is a designer. The more governments actively
use service design to restructure their way of managing their countries then the more
people will actually be designers of their own society.

“All men are designers” (Papanek 1985) All citizens are designers.

Service design, though, has also a big impact in societies with limited resources.
Through service design, either by state or private initiatives more and more people
have access to fundamental public services regardless of caste or wealth. Thus
service design helps expand equality among citizens.

In developing countries people generally cannot depend on the state to provide
solutions. When those solutions are provided they are usually inadequate. Thus,
communities and private parties have to rise to the occasion and design solutions
that fit their needs and that can be implemented with their limited resources. As an
effect, community spirit is encouraged and a sense of responsibility to the community
exists among members in those societies.

According to the ancient Greek definition of citizen, in a democratic system of
government we have to try to be citizens. By being citizens we are free members,
completely devoted to the city (or by extension to the country) and decide together.
Actively taking part in the decisions, together with our fellow countrymen, we secure
to ourselves a better future. According to Aristotle, “a man who did not care enough
to take part in the decisions about his city, he was not peaceable, but useless”.

I believe in real democracy. I believe in the power of communities to organize to
pursue their interests. I am passionate about helping people take a stand and make
a difference in the world. So says Aidan Ricketts and so say I. The biggest problem
in the world is not hunger, not disease, not conflict, not corruption. It is APATHY. The
fact that we see all these problems around us and we do nothing. - Michael Norton,
author, 365 Ways to Change the World (Rickets 2012)

Summarizing, service design, being used by governments and public
organizations has the power to promote alternative thinking in order for social
problems to be solved. Moreover, it has the ability to motivate, mobilize and activate
the citizens about matters that should already concern them. In addition, it is
explained how service design inspires community spirit and community responsibility,
especially in societies with limited resources.
All the above, lead people, knowingly or not, closer to democracy. Either by
becoming better citizens of a democratic system of government or by leading them to
actively seek a better system of government.

As a proposal for future research it would be interesting to investigate how those
effects of service design (social impact, community activation) can be manipulated by
private entities to pursue their own interests. For example whether a large
corporation could exploit the global awareness regarding climate change to promote
their own social brand.