An Introduction to Service Design

I think that we should redefine what is the product of our design activity. In dealing with the complexity, unpredictability, and networked nature of services, we rely greatly on codesign processes. An important aspect of codesign processes is the production of intermediate artifacts that can materialize as tools or design activities. These are the products of this kind of design. More specifically, these tools and design activities include ethnographic research, scenario building, storytelling exercises, concept cogeneration workshops, prototyping, conceptualization of digital platforms, or other specific communication tools. These activities may take place as part of larger and open-ended codesign processes, but should be considered as unique and relatively autonomous results. These are the intermediate design products and artifacts I am referring to here. Designers must clearly communicate the value of their tools and design activities, what they can uniquely bring to these processes, and what they will produce for the overall codesign process.