Process Book

I joined Cantina to build an experience strategy and service design practice. As we grew the practice, I wanted to highlight our work with Blue Cross Blue Shield because this was the first project where we used such a wide array of research, co-design, and service design methods. This 60 page book served as a gift to our client at the successful conclusion of the project. But it also showcased for our own consultants at Cantina what this kind of work could look like and the impact it could have. In this, it accelerated buy-in and a culture shift at the agency for the new, human-centered design direction we were taking.

Research Methods

This project started with customer research, including field interviews, one-on-one ethnographic interviews, and contextual observations to gain an understanding of consumers wants, desires, and perceptions. We supplemented primary research with secondary literature reviews and an experience audit of an analogous experience. Research techniques were not limited to exploratory methods, but also included generative methods like co-design, where we invited consumers into a structured design process to surface unmet needs and desires. This work was undertaken with the client to enhance their own capabilities and to speed our work together.

Service Design Methods

Research directly informed service design. We synthesized and presented our findings to leadership, including a future-state journeymap. Because the space was under construction during the majority of the project, we created both a tabletop model as well as a full-scale 1:1 foamcore mock-up of the space to explore and refine service scenarios with the client. We introduced “bodystorming”—think of brainstorming, but instead of thinking through an idea, you act it out (it’s always amazing how quickly you can identify clunky experiences in this way!). Through service prototyping, we identified and designed a number of digital and physical touchpoints, from postcards to an interactive wall exhibit. We also worked with internal support teams to document a service recovery blueprint. Lastly, a key result was to refine staff roles and develop a scalable employee training program.

Outcomes

Even outlining these methods doesn’t capture the impact of the work. By rooting our approach firmly in primary research and synthesizing our findings through service design, we shifted the brand, the staffing plan, the curatorial strategy for the space, and the overall role of the innovation center in relation to the corporation and its employees. I presented this project in a keynote presentation in 2019 at Service Design Week in Chicago. You can read more about this project here.