Kuudes has been involved in collaboration projects with various public sector organisations in brand building and to develop the supply of services. We are delighted that this work will now expand from individual projects to partnerships in service design with the public administration bodies in Helsinki and Turku, two forerunners in implementing the concept.
A partner in three extensive development partnerships in service design
Kuudes is the only service design agency involved in the service design framework agreements with the Education Sector of the City of Helsinki and the City of Turku. These agreements were won through demanding procurement processes with the best scores for quality. We are also a partner in the service design framework agreement with the City Executive Office of the City of Helsinki (former education unit, Oiva Akatemia).
Aim set for permanent and positive impacts on the public sector
Here at Kuudes, we see these partnerships, which will last for several years, as an important opportunity to reform the public sector in the long term and to truly apply the principles of a customer-driven approach.
Service design turns the customer-oriented approach into practical deeds
We share our customers’ belief that service design is an excellent way to conquer those various challenges that the public sector is facing. It is an approach that turns the objective of customer orientation into action and helps us to see new opportunities and create practical solutions in the ever-changing operating environment. It is great news that the public sector has warmed up to the idea of investing in service design.
Try, learn, succeed!
We have rolled up our sleeves and, together with our partners, are eagerly reforming operations and implementing the service design methods in the public sector. We would encourage other organisations in the public sector to explore this approach. Service design is not rocket science: simply start by involving the various parties in the service design process and short-term pilot projects that are carried out in the early phases of the service development.
Five principles for the leaders of the public sector development projects
In our experience, it is not always easy to build a new operational culture by applying the service design principles. Our customer organisations, however, have managed to achieve their targets by following these five principles:
- Involve people in your organisation in the process to ensure that the service design principles are really implemented in the organisation’s culture and the practical execution of the services.
- Adopt a hands-on attitude and be involved in the development process, for example by attending customer interviews. One meeting may teach you much more than a pile of reports.
- Share other people’s experiences and outcomes of service design projects with your organisation. This is a better way to explain why the work is being carried out than definitions and descriptions of methodology.
- Believe in what you do. Service design is not decoration: the results will not add up to much unless the management believes in the strength of a customer-driven approach and working together.
- Be patient. Total reform is not achievable with one project but takes time: encouraging experiences, pilot projects and changes in attitudes to build a new customer-driven identity and operational culture in public sector organisations.
We would be happy to tell you more about our experiences and to support you in your projects.
Please contact us:
Paula Hupponen
Senior Service Designer
paula.hupponen@kuudes.com
+358 50 328 4054
