Service Design Show

Sustainability is the innovation frontier of the 21st century -- and if you don't get on that train, you'll be lost. This quote emerged during the recent conversation with Bhavi Patel and Heydn Ericson on the Show, where we explored the intersection between circular and service design. As it turns out, you, as a service design professional, are in a great position to push a more sustainable approach forward. Yes, even if it's currently not a priority in your organization. In this episode, you'll hear practical examples of how to do this—helping you design services that aren't just good for your customers and business but also for our planet. The conversation also reveals how you can work towards making sustainability a fundamental design principle at the start of every project, not an afterthought. Small teaser, you need to make a compelling business argument... there are plenty. All in all, an inspiring episode if you want to be more conscious about taking care of our environment in your own design practice. Enjoy, and especially this time, keep making a positive impact :) - Marc --- [ 1. GUIDE ] --- 00:00 Welcome to the Show 03:30 Who is Bhavi 04:00 Who is Heydn 05:00 How did we get here 09:30 Why us 12:45 Where are we today 15:15 What is at stake 18:00 Keep it simple 22:15 Create momentum 28:00 Sneaking it in 30:00 How does it relate to you 32:00 Common roadblocks 34:30 Accelerating adoption 38:00 Impact on services 42:00 Future perspective 45:30 Key takeaway 48:45 Closing thoughts --- [ 2. LINKS ] --- https://www.linkedin.com/in/heydn/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/bhavinipatel/ https://koosservicedesign.com https://www.sustainablebusinesscanvas.org https://www.esgtoday.com --- [ 3. CIRCLE ] --- If you'd like to be part of these conversations as they happen rather than just getting the summary on the podcast, consider joining us in the Circle. www.servicedesignshow.com/circle/

Having a seat at the table... That's what we often talk about in the service design field. And I would say rightfully so. Because when you do get involved early, you have the opportunity to influence the direction of a project. On the flip side, you could end up making the perfect solution for the wrong problem when you get involved late. But how do you get your business stakeholder to see and appreciate the strategic value you can bring early on? That was the question Karen Baker and I explored in our recent conversation. Karen has a marketing background, and she looks at the challenges in our field from a slightly different perspective. As you'll hear, our conversation started by discussing design inclusivity, but... We eventually landed upon one simple question that brings everything together. This simple question acts like your north star, compass, and light in the dark. This question is so good that it deserves its own t-shirt. So want to get a seat at the table? Want to influence projects early? Want to make your design practice more inclusive? The clue to all of this is in this episode. Enjoy the conversation, and keep making a positive impact! --- [ 1. GUIDE ] --- 00:00 Welcome to episode 160 03:45 Who is Karen 05:30 lightning round 07:30 Defining design for inclusivity 09:30 When did it start 13:00 Where do we need it 15:45 Including the community 17:30 Why now 19:45 Two examples 24:30 Guiding principles 27:00 Example from Lego 29:00 How do clients respond 32:30 What's surprising 35:00 Accelerating adoption 36:15 Getting leadership engaged 38:15 The question people aren't asking 41:00 Where is this heading 42:45 Lesson learned 45:30 Remember this one thing 46:45 Final thoughts --- [ 2. LINKS ] --- - https://www.linkedin.com/in/krbaker/ - https://www.weforum.org/press/2022/05/new-initiative-to-build-an-equitable-interoperable-and-safe-metaverse/ - https://www.marketingdive.com/news/degree-deodorant-inclusivity-metaverse-virtual-marathon/622609/ - https://designjustice.org --- [ 3. CIRCLE ] --- Join our private community for in-house service design professionals. https://servicedesignshow.com/circle

What can you expect during the Service Design Global Conference 2022? Vinay Venkatraman is one of the speakers at the conference and in this video, you'll get a sneak preview of his talk. If you want to attend the conference check out the link and discount code down below. [ 1. EPISODE GUIDE ] 00:00 Welcome 01:45 Who is Vinay 03:00 Main topic 04:45 Why this topic 07:15 Key lesson 10:45 Future perspective 13:15 Remember one thing 14:00 Reaching out to Vinay 14:45 Looking forward to 16:30 Closing thoughts [ 2. LINKS ] * https://www.linkedin.com/in/vinay85/ [ 3. CONFERENCE ] Join the Service Design Global Conference on October 13 & 14, 2022. Use the code SDSHOW to get a **20% discount** on your ticket. https://hopin.com/events/service-design-global-conference-2022/registration

What can you expect during the Service Design Global Conference 2022? In this episode, you'll hear the closing keynote speaker, Christian Bason, share a preview.  If you want to attend the conference check out the link and discount code down below. [ 1. EPISODE GUIDE ] 00:00 Welcome 01:45 Who is Christian 03:00 The big idea 05:45 Designing with time 07:45 Who owns the agenda 10:00 Design is future-oriented 12:00 Life-centered design 13:45 The 6 expansions 16:30 The big question 17:15 Looking forward to 18:00 Closing thoughts [ 2. LINKS ] * https://www.linkedin.com/in/christianbason/ * https://expandthefuture.com [ 3. CONFERENCE ] Join the Service Design Global Conference on October 13 & 14, 2022. Use the code SDSHOW to get a **20% discount** on your ticket. https://hopin.com/events/service-design-global-conference-2022/registration

Here's something everyone knows but companies tend to ignore... It's tough to deliver a great customer experience when your employees are unhappy or unsatisfied. So designing the employee experience is probably just as, if even not more, important than designing the customer experience. Someone who is a strong advocate for this is Marine Bucher, who has made it her mission to design humanity at work. I sat down with Marine to talk about what it actually means to design the employee experience. In this episode, Marine shares some inspiring examples from her work. You'll also hear which companies are more open to investing in their employee experience and the common roadblocks that Marine has to overcome. If you believe that a great customer experience starts inside your organization, then I'm sure this episode will inspire you. --- [ 1. GUIDE ] --- 00:00 Welcome to episode 159 02:45 Who is Marine 04:45 Lightning round 07:00 Topic introduction 09:15 Relationship to employee experience 10:30 What does success look like 12:00 How do you get involved 17:30 What is at stake 21:00 Project example 26:30 Harvesting stories 29:30 Justifying the value 33:00 Who wants this 34:30 The roadblocks 38:30 How to get started 40:30 Making it sustainable 44:00 Biggest misconceptions 45:30 Getting buy-in 49:30 Lessons learned 51:00 Closing thoughts --- [ 2. LINKS ] --- * https://www.linkedin.com/in/marine-bucher/ * https://www.humankind.nz/blog/ * https://www.excellent.io/ * Reusabowl - https://www.reusabowl.nz/ * Setting Boundaries (book) - https://amzn.to/3y0Gtq8 * Designing for designers (video) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0D1pr0bgEQ * including Assumptive persons and journey mapping - https://www.humankind.nz/documents/12/Good_Guides_-_The_Ultimate_Good_Guide_SOR86t5.pdf * Stakeholder Analysis - https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/what-is-stakeholder-analysis/ --- [ 3. CIRCLE ] --- Join our private community for in-house service design professionals. https://servicedesignshow.com/circle

Let's talk about a service designer's favorite topic... measuring impact. Why is it so d*mn hard!? We'll get to that in a minute. Of course, the idea behind measuring the impact of your work is smart. When done right, it helps you to stay on track. Make sure your efforts actually make a positive contribution. And show you if you need to redirect your efforts to something else. But often, we find that many things inside organizations are measured because they are easy to express in numbers... not because they are the right indicators of success. And this is exactly the challenge we run into as a service design community. Showing the impact of our work across an entire service or customer journey is not easy. But this shouldn't stop us from trying, right? That's why in a recent Circle community session, we explored: How to overcome the limitations of existing ways of measuring How to measure things that span multiple channels and departments How to build a useful CX dashboard Tim Dekker hosted the conversation, and I invited Tim to share the highlights from that session with you. --- [ 1. EPISODE GUIDE ] --- 00:00 Welcome to the Show 04:30 Why this topic? 05:45 Who is Tim? 06:45 What do we have to gain? 10:00 Stuck in the middle 12:30 Leading and lagging indicators 14:30 Justifying our value 16:30 Where are these metrics 19:00 Getting started 24:30 Building your CX dashboard 27:45 Who wanted to hear this 30:00 Visualize the outcome 32:00 Physical services 34:00 How do you sell it 40:00 Lessons learned 42:30 New questions 44:30 The illusion of control 45:45 Key takeaways --- [ 2. CIRCLE ] --- If you'd like to be part of these conversations as they happen rather than just getting the summary on the podcast, consider joining us in the Circle. www.servicedesignshow.com/circle/

Here's a question you might not think about daily... How is service design practiced in China? I'm always eager to learn about the (subtle) differences in how our field is perceived within different cultures. Why? Because seeing that there are other ways to approach things enriches my perspective and keeps me grounded about my way of working. The goal isn't to copy what's being done in other places but rather to understand its reasoning and philosophy. That's why I was excited to have a conversation with Zichian Xiong recently on the Show. He currently lives and works in the USA, but Zichuan was also at the forefront when service design started to emerge in China. As he's seen both worlds, Zichuan is in a great position to articulate the relevant similarities and differences. To get a good understanding of these similarities and differences, you'll hear about: Who is driving the design movement? (it's not consultancies) Which kinds of services are being designed in China and which ones aren't? What is the state of design education? Investing the time to listen and learn from stories like this, which give you a broader understanding of our field, is good practice for any professional. They help you to get out of your comfort zone and might hold the clue to connect the dots or spark a completely new insight. I found this an eye-opening conversation, with much more to be explored. So it's exciting to think about where design could be heading in the next 5 years. --- [ 1. GUIDE ] --- 00:00 Welcome to episode 158 03:00 Who is Zichuan 04:15 Lightning round 07:45 Zichuans backstory 11:45 The context of service design in China 18:00 Perception of services 24:45 Design in China 27:15 The implications 32:00 Only two industries 37:00 State of design education 41:30 The next frontier 47:45 The one thing you need to know 52:30 Final thoughts --- [ 2. LINKS ] --- * https://www.linkedin.com/in/zichuan-xiong-94aa3b13/ --- [ 3. NEXT STEP ] --- Looking for more? We've got you covered. Click the link below to join the Service Design Show community. https://servicedesignshow.com/subscribe/ You'll get access to inspiring stories and practical advice that helps to level up your service design career!

I could have seen this coming... That's the last thing you want to say when your project isn't going well. To minimize this risk, you'll need to identify red flags early on and work to create conditions for success. But it's challenging to talk about these topics with internal stakeholders before your project begins. People are eager to start; it makes sense. And you don't want to be seen as the one who is delaying things unnecessarily or putting roadblocks up. Before you climb a mountain, it's wise to take advice from someone who's done it before so that you don't get stuck halfway on your journey. In this case, you're the one who's climbed the mountain of a service design project, and your internal stakeholder is eager to embark on their first trip. So how do you make it evident that you're doing your internal stakeholder a service by addressing the conditions for success early on? You're helping them avoid common pitfalls and saving them the embarrassment of cleaning up the mess when things go sour. Well, in this episode, you'll hear three examples of how service design professionals have successfully managed to create the space to have these conversations with their stakeholders. One of my takeaways is that you need to have a clear process and structure in place that guides you through the tough questions at the start of a project. Enjoy the conversation and keep making a positive impact :) - Marc --- [ EPISODE GUIDE ] --- 00:00 Welcome to the Show 04:00 Who is James 04:45 Why this topic? 08:45 What gives it away? 10:15 Do we need this? 12:15 Ignition conversation canvas 21:00 Kick-off workshop 24:00 Increased accountability 25:15 The learning mindset 28:00 The value is in the process 29:15 Framing service design 31:15 Knowing what's relevant 36:15 Slow down 39:30 The green flags 42:00 You want to hear it's important 44:15 Just do this one thing 47:15 Closing thoughts --- [ CIRCLE ] --- Join our community of in-house service design professionals at the Circle. www.servicedesignshow.com/circle/

No, it's not the latest shoes... What does it take for a professional athlete to perform at their best? Sure, she needs to have talent and be in top physical shape. But that's not enough. The top performing athletes are, for example, rigorous regarding their sleep, diet, and mental well-being. These things are the foundation for them to deliver a world-class performance. Now, I have a weird assumption. A design professional and an athlete might have more in common than meets the eye. I bet you that the top-performing design professionals also have a set of rigorous habits, routines, and rituals that allow them to deliver their most impactful work. I want to test this assumption in what might become an entirely new series on the Show. And who would be a better candidate for the first conversation about this than Chris Do? Chris Do is an educator and content creator who daily impacts the lives of thousands, if not millions, of creative professionals. So I invited Chris to get down and personal. In this episode, you'll hear Chris talk about his relationship with aspects like mental health, physical health, and goal setting. Basically, we're trying to demystify what allows Chris to do what he does on a fundamental level. So if you want to learn more about the life of a professional "design athlete" and what that means for you, don't miss this one! This might sound a bit like clickbait, but I got amazed more than once during this conversation. Chris does some things that are entirely different from what I would describe as common sense :) Enjoy the episode! --- [ GUIDE ] --- 00:00 Welcome to episode 157 07:20 Who is Chris 09:00 Lightning round 11:00 Habits, rituals and, routines 13:00 Setting meaningful goals 17:15 Calibrating your internal compass 20:00 Nurturing reflective thinking 23:30 Expanding self-awareness 30:00 The morning routine 34:15 Looking for problems 38:00 Knowing who you are 43:30 The end of the day 46:00 Typical workday 48:15 Importance of breaks 49:15 Defining productivity 54:45 Finding a sense of accomplishment 59:15 Process versus outcome 1:02:45 Replacing harmful habits 1:06:15 Productivity habits 1:08:15 Final thoughts --- [ LINKS ] --- * https://www.linkedin.com/in/thechrisdo/ * https://www.youtube.com/c/thefuturishere Books * How to Tell a Story - https://amzn.to/3e9KZeW * What's Your Problem - https://amzn.to/3edrbaB * The Compound Effect - https://amzn.to/3BafqL7 Podcasts * https://radiolab.org * https://themoth.org/radio-hour --- [ SELLING SERVICE DESIGN WITH CONFIDENCE ] --- Get your clients, colleagues, managers and CEOs as excited about service design as you are. https://servicedesignshow.com/confidence

Navigating the often tricky waters of service design requires more than just hope. Effective communication with stakeholders is crucial for gaining buy-in. Discover the importance of connecting service design to measurable business outcomes and mastering storytelling. Learn how to create both customer and business cases, and why early involvement in conversations is key. Explore strategies to foster collaboration and celebrate small wins, ultimately driving impactful change within organizations.