agile dev.

The key to competitiveness in today’s market is not just data-driven, but a combination of data and experience. Relying solely on numerical outputs restricts a team’s ability to gain insight into the customer’s perspective. Service blueprinting provides a framework to define the elements of the experience, what happens during the experience, what to measure and how to measure results. By viewing the product through the lens of the experience, the team can focus on addressing pain points and enhancing the quality of what works well.

Four Critical Views to Consider When introducing a new product or making changes, there are four key views to consider:

1. The current state of the service and experience

2. The desired future state of the service and experience

3. External factors that influence the service

4. Upstream dependencies and downstream impact

Understanding the Current State Many teams overlook the importance of understanding the current state, even in greenfield projects. It’s essential to map out current state workflows and gather metrics if a product already exists, or document pains and opportunities if starting from scratch. When replacing a larger system, break down each service individually. Avoid criticizing design decisions or code quality, and instead, understand why the decisions were made that informed the original build. This way, the team can build on past lessons learned, avoiding repetition of past mistakes.

Defining a Better Future State Once the current state is understood, identify moments and aspects that can be improved. Consider if the new solution is a one-to-one replacement or if reworking surrounding business processes will enhance the success of the solution. Evaluate the impact of changes to the workflow, even if they are outside of the team’s control, to avoid hindering the success and speed to market of the development effort.

Investigating External Factors To ensure strong adoption of the product, consider the person using the application. Conduct a contextual inquiry with a representative sample of users to understand the context in which the application will be used. External factors to consider include: location, context, and other aspects that influence the user’s experience.

Too often, in-progress products fail to meet expectations because processes are designed without considering the needs and experiences of the people who will use the product. To ensure success, it’s crucial to keep the end-users involved throughout the development process. This is where the framework of service design comes into play.

Examining Dependencies & Downstream Effects To understand the factors that keep the product and experience running, analyze the upstream and downstream dependencies involved. This will provide a comprehensive view of the entire customer experience.

Upstream dependencies refer to the early stages of the customer journey and the technical and organizational infrastructure needed to initiate the journey. Downstream dependencies encompass the next steps in the customer’s journey and the ongoing management of their experience.

Once these dependencies have been identified, share the findings with relevant teams as soon as possible. This will create opportunities to coordinate and improve the customer experience across different touch points.

The Risks of Piecemeal Planning Each product is often funded and prioritized independently, with teams working towards specific goals. However, as they progress, they may discover new dependencies that fall outside of the original funding initiatives. To overcome these challenges, teams may resort to workarounds that compromise the overall customer experience.

To avoid these pitfalls, allocate time before major planning and funding cycles to build cross-team service blueprints that outline the entire desired customer experience and address any uncertainties along the way. For smaller teams, use the same process to build consensus among all stakeholders.