Presented at Intersection18 Conference - intersectionconf.com Iain Barker Co-Founder and Principal, Meld Studios Karina Smith Principal, Meld Studios Queensland Government faces complex service challenges that design is uniquely placed to address. With a drive to put customers at the centre service delivery, the Government is on a journey embed design practices at scale in order a more customer-centred approach to designing and improving government services. Meld Studios worked alongside OSSSIO and other state government departments to apply an human-centred design approach to developing a framework for building design capability. This resulted in a solution appropriate for and specific to the context of government, accommodating the diversity of roles, existing processes, culture and constraints. We co-designed a capability building framework that contextualises human-centred design specifically within government, acknowledging the nuance of operations and integrating with existing processes. We engaged with staff in a diversity of roles and levels across government agencies to create a shared understanding of the environment in which services are created and delivered including people involved and existing processes. Together we identified the factors that contribute to the successful adoption of design, and the constraints and challenges unique to the government context. This approach to embedding a human-centred design mindset and practices was piloted on a series of live projects with design problems that involved customer service centres, culture change, physical and digital service experiences, from research through to prototyping and testing of concepts. Our work has had a huge impact on how staff across agencies and partners to Queensland Government work. This work won Best in Class for Service Design and Good Design Award® of the Year at Australia’s Good Design Awards.

1. INTERSECTION18
SEPTEMBER 2018
Karina Smith & Iain Barker
Meld Studios
@wearemeld
GrowingHuman-CentredDesign
acrossQueenslandGovernment

2. Hello!
Sonicetobehere.

3. @wearemeldinteractions
How and where the organisation
and the customer meet
experiences
What the customer takes away
from the interaction(s)
touchpoints
Key moments in the interaction
between organisation and customer
systems
Technology and infrastructure
that a company relies upon to operate
channels
Medium with which the organisation
communicates with their customers
process
Ways of working. The policies that
guide how the business is run
Our human-centred efforts
are impeded by other factors
at play within our organisations

4. @wearemeldinteractions
How and where the organisation
and the customer meet
experiences
What the customer takes away
from the interaction(s)
touchpoints
Key moments in the interaction
between organisation and customer
systems
Technology and infrastructure
that a company relies upon to operate
channels
Medium with which the organisation
communicates with their customers
process
Ways of working. The policies that
guide how the business is run

5. @wearemeld
CASE STUDY
5
Queensland
Government is on
a journey to embed
design practices
at scale.

6. Queensland Government
4.69 million people
1,852,642 km²
living across
served by
223,257 full time state govt employees
working across
21 government agencies

7. Taking a design-led approach
to creating a design approach
@wearemeld7
UNDERSTAND
Context, needs
and challenges of
adoping and applying
HCD in government.
GENERATE
Create, test and
iterate models
and tools with
agencies.
TEST AND ITERATE
Create prototype toolkit, learning
and support practices.
Pilot and test on live agency projects.
Iterate and refine the approach.

8. • Understanding the context of the organisation
• Taking a collaborative, iterative approach
• Shift of focus away from practitioners
• Creation of a joined up, holistic approach
Key elements of the
approach
@wearemeld8

10. @wearemeld10
Video: https://vimeo.com/260023181

11. Transforming mindsets
and ways of working
• ‘Blew the scope wide open’
• Demonstrating the application of
HCD outside ‘traditional’ channels
• Benefits of involving a wide range of people
• Instilling mindsets as well as methods
@wearemeld11

12. @wearemeld12
Video: https://vimeo.com/260130016

13. @wearemeld
Reflections
13

14. Focus on design mindsets for
all, not design methodologies
for practitioners
• Too much emphasis on design methods
• Everyone needs to understand design mindsets
and how to interact with design
• If organisation isn’t design ready, HCD projects
will fail to reach their potential (or simply fail)
14 @wearemeld

15. Align methodologies, don’t try
to take-over
• Imposing new ways of working meets
resistance
• No one method does everything – harmonise
‘how things are done here’
• Address the many ‘tails that wag the dog’
15 @wearemeld

16. An overarching change
program is essential
• Avoid collaboration fatigue – an organisation
‘switching on’ to HCD can create an
overwhelming demand for collaboration
• Overarching planning and glue between
projects is essential to avoid burn out
16 @wearemeld

17. @wearemeld
MODEL 1
Uncoordinated
• HCD occurs, but no overarching
connections or planning
• HCD probably springs from one
customer touchpoint
• Preferences customer
touchpoints over inwards
facing initiatives
• Action over traction
• Collaboration fatigue
• Generally ends in fatigue and
failure
17
THREE ADOPTION MODELS
Customer touchpoints
Board & executive

18. @wearemeld18
THREE ADOPTION MODELS
Customer touchpoints
Board & executive
MODEL 2
CX program
• Board/exec endorsed customer
experience program
• Obsessed about change to end
customer experience
• Implications for organisational
change are a secondary
realisation
• Some can resist necessary
organisational changes

19. @wearemeld19
THREE ADOPTION MODELS
Customer touchpoints
Board & executive
MODEL 3
Human-centred
organisation
• Coordinated organisational
transformation
• Purpose, values, behaviours,
incentives, staff experience
and customer experience

20. Trojan horses can get
neutered by the dark matter
20 @wearemeld
• Theory of trojan horse HCD projects is great,
but reality is culture can neuter impact
• Hayne Royal Commission shows how culture
trumps well meaning HCD rhetoric
• Trojan horses are best when they sit within an
overarching program of work

21. “…businesses continually set up
incentive schemes and talk of being
committed to the best interests of their
customers, yet incentivise their
employees to sell. It’s an ethical trap…
and it is almost impossible for rational
employees not to sell.”
PETER COLLINS – DIRECTOR OF THE CENTRE FOR ETHICAL LEADERSHIP

22. Empathy is the biggest lever
we have
22 @wearemeld
• Decision-makers aren’t evil, they just don’t
often have access to customers
• Need to close the gap between customer and
decision-makers
• Need to help executives and boards make
strategic use of customer insight

23. Recognition from the
established design
community
23 @wearemeld
• Co-winner of the 2018 Good Design Award –
Australia’s top award for design innovation
• First non-product to win the award

24. Transition is fragile
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• Three organisational restructures
• Ownership by an individual can get political
• Transition isn’t quick
• Energies can waiver – design for this
• Need for proof points

25. Thankyou!
Karina Smith
Principal, Meld Studios
karina@meldstudios.com.au
Iain Barker
Co-founder & Principal, Meld Studios
iain@meldstudios.com.au

26. @wearemeld26
Do you still believe in the power of trojan horses?
How do you avoid the transience of ownership
of these initiatives?
What has really underpinned the success of
organisations who have made the shift?
We’re keen to discuss

27. @wearemeld
Article link: bit.ly/2wJJ5rQ