Valuing service design: Lessons from SROI

This paper describes lessons learned through the use of a Social Return On Investment (SROI) approach to evaluate a completed Service Design project with a large vocational training company. It is written by the Service Design team that led the original project and who subsequently used SROI to evaluate its impact. Experiencing the SROI evaluation process first-hand, in a live setting, is the approach by which the authors develop a discussion about its potential fit with Service Design processes. The SROI method enabled both the design team and the case-study organisation to acknowledge and measure additional social/stakeholder benefits created through the design work. These elements would not have been visible in a traditional ROI evaluation. There is the promise of a useful fit between SROI and Service Design in larger projects. The approach could be used as a framework for forecasting and evolving indicators for likely social impacts (and their financial proxies) throughout a Service Design project, to guide decisions at each stage. Its usefulness depends, however, on there being a will at Design Management level to rehearse the approach and develop tailored approaches towards it. In the current study, the method was found to be time-intensive for the Service Design team as lay-users and also for some key project stakeholders, but that could be better managed with experience. SROI will not suit every project, however may fit very well with those projects that already count a full business plan amongst their deliverables. One of the main limitations encountered in using the SROI process was difficulty identifying appropriate proxies for the calculations. It is proposed that social benefit might be expressed to multidisciplinary co-design teams through visual and emotive means rather than in quantitative, financial terms. Such ‘visual proxies’ would better fit with the semantic mode of design

Exploring the value of a design for service approach to develop public services in the Community Voluntary Sector: a comparative analysis

This paper presents the findings from two action research case studies that explore the value of using a ‘design for service’ approach to develop public services in the community voluntary sector (CVS). Each case study was conducted within a CVS organisation that was developing or offering public services. Both were local charities that are part of UK federations; the first offering mental health and wellbeing services, the second providing community education services. The paper will present the outcomes of using a ‘design for service’ approach, including systematic inquiry, visualisation, and challenging existing stakeholder perceptions. The comparison will identify similarities and differences in each case. Factors that appear to affect the success of the approach in this context will be discussed, including organisational culture and the perception of ‘design’. These two case studies form the basis of an on-going doctoral programme. Further case studies are planned, to inform an approach framework with implications for a broad range of CVS contexts. This work will add theoretical rigour to design praxis in the emerging area service innovation for CVS organisations

Recognizing risk-of-failure in communication design projects

The pace of commercial graphic design practice presents very few opportunities to conduct user research after a project’s launch. This makes the design team’s ability to anticipate and address risks during the design development phase even more important, recognized in the astute observation from Tim Brown, CEO of leading international design group IDEO, that sometimes you must “fail early to succeed early.” This paper presents the methods and strategies used by the Centre for Design Research’s (CfDR) creative team to mitigate risk during three communication design case-study projects. Elements of failure are identified in each of the three cases and presented, with discussion of where and why they occurred, and the possible approaches for reducing the risk of such problems re-occurring. To provide structure to the discussion, the paper frames each contributory issue as either a usability, communication or technical failing. The analysis demonstrates that the factors contributing to design process failures are often complex and multi-layered. To avoid a poor design project outcome, it is evident that consistent risk monitoring is present in all stages of a design project, but might be improved by better understanding how issues change their degree of importance and potential negative impact during the course of the project. Developing a mechanism to enable teams to objectively identify and manage these fluctuating project risks, will contribute to a more coherent and effective strategy for recognizing and managing future design projects

The Potential of a Design for Service Approach to Transform Voluntary Community Sector Organisations

This paper presents the findings from a case study where a designer worked within three Voluntary Community Sector (VCS) organisations using a Design for Service (DfS) approach. The authors identify four organisational features that enable transformational change in this setting: understanding the role and remit of DfS; being receptive to change; valuing both process and outcomes; and the affinity between the existing organisational culture and DfS approach. These findings are discussed as a precursor to establishing the capacity of a DfS approach to effect transformational change in the development of public services in the VCS. It is hoped that this will help to influence the development and design of public services in the VCS in the future, whilst also informing the future practice of service design practitioners operating in this sector

Design number: 6206506 - handheld spectrometer

This is a registered industrial design for a handheld spectrometer, developed for the KTP programme KTP011240 between Northumbria University and Ideal Manufacturing Ltd. The registered design is owned by Ideal Manufacturing Ltd, Atlas House, 28 Burton Road, Finedon, WELLINGBOROUGH, NN9 5HX. The authors of the registered design were Matthew Lievesley (Associate Prof., Northumbria University) -the Design Lead, and Sam O'Neil - UG placement student. The electronics package within was configured by Kate Nicholson (Associate Prof., Northumbria University) and Andrew Duckworth (KTP Associate, Northumbria University). Overall PI for Northumbria - Prof. Justin Perry, E&E. The overall project was graded 'outstanding' by the funder Innovate UK

Design Entrepreneurship in Innovation

The paper demonstrates the need for an entrepreneurial attitude and competence in designers of today in order to ensure innovation. The paper considers evidence from four design innovation case studies to explore the relationship between design capabilities and the wider conditions necessary for innovation. All four case studies have been conducted in collaboration with commercial organisations seeking innovation, and designers and academics based in a university in the United Kingdom. First, a review of design’s capabilities is presented from the literature. Second, evidence from each case study is mapped to the UK Design Council’s popular model of design process: the double diamond. This allows findings across the four cases to be compared and discussed, considering how design’s capabilities contribute to the conditions necessary to transform design effort into innovation. Third, the role of design within the ‘define’ stage of the double diamond is articulated. The initial findings state that the lack of connector-­ integrator capability in designers during the ‘define’ phase lead to weak interpretation of the problem space, and consequently contributed to design’s inability to convert ideas into real products in the ‘delivery’ phase. The paper concludes that for design to effectively drive innovation it needs to secure entrepreneurial support i.e. with an appetite for risk/reward; in the early part of the design process

A qualitative exploration of oral health care among stroke survivors living in the community.

Background: Dental disease is highly prevalent in people with stroke. Stroke survivors regard oral hygiene as an important, yet neglected, area. The aim was to explore experiences of and barriers to oral care, particularly in relation to oral hygiene practice and dental attendance, among stroke survivors in the community. Methods: This was a qualitative study incorporating a critical realist approach. Interviews were conducted with community-dwelling stroke survivors requiring assistance with activities of daily living, and focus groups were held with health and care professionals. Interviews and focus groups were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis was conducted. Results: Twenty-three stroke survivors were interviewed, and 19 professionals took part in 3 focus groups. Professionals included nurses, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, dieticians, professional carers and dental staff. Interviews revealed difficulties in carrying out oral hygiene self-care due to fatigue, forgetfulness and limb function and dexterity problems. Routine was considered important for oral hygiene self-care and was disrupted by hospitalization resulting from stroke. Professionals highlighted gaps in staff training and confidence in supporting patients with oral care. Access to dental services appeared particularly problematic for those who were not registered with a dentist pre-stroke. Conclusion: Oral hygiene routines may be disrupted by stroke, and resulting disabilities may make regular oral self-care more difficult. This study has identified specific barriers to oral hygiene self-care and dental service access. Findings from this study are feeding into the development of an intervention to support stroke survivors with oral care

Getting hitched- developing successful partnerships between HEIS and industry

The UK Government Department for Trade and Industry’s Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) programme, was set up to facilitate strategic collaboration between universities and industry. In terms of economic benefit to industry, it has proved to be one of the most effective collaborative funding models in the UK [10]. In this paper we review two KTP programmes from Northumbria University’s Design School, exploring issues involved in setting up and running these projects in the context of the emerging role of universities worldwide as key drivers of economic growth. This provides a valuable perspective for both academics and industry considering ‘getting hitched’ and has implications for a number of other Knowledge Transfer approaches, beyond KTP

Designing across organisational boundaries - Community Dentistry Services

This paper considers the potential value of visualisation approaches to describing the complex setting of UK health service provision. Through a case study project, which used Service Design approaches to develop a person-centred view of Community Dental Health Services, two visual models of service provision and their value to project stakeholders are discussed. The first comprised a map of the current structure of UK health service provision, created to guide the project approach and introduce the person-centred perspective; and the second is in the form of a draft Service Blueprint. Together they were used to establish an extra-organisational view of service provision. Findings demonstrate that these visualisations of service effectively widened and held-open the scope of the case-study project and that key policy-stakeholders recognised that Design’s person-centred perspective, worked across the usual organisational boundaries

The para-disciplinary role of Design transforming innovation in organisations

The research addresses the role of Design creating value at the intersections of disciplines in organisations. It presents a revision to the discourse on the nature of and relationship between Design and other disciplines. This paper advocates a new para-disciplinary term for the post-disciplinary state of Design in its contemporary practices, acting as the ‘inter-discipline’ within organisations that are intent on the strategic development of their innovation capacity and potential. The work is based on the synthesis of findings from a longitudinal range of practice based design research projects undertaken across industry and the third sector over the last four years. Case studies of these projects demonstrate that the involvement of Design has resulted in successive levels of influence leading to the radical transformation of the organisations’ innovation strategies. The implication for the generic aspect of these findings is discussed in terms of inter-disciplinary discourses