Introduces Promise Theory, explains the nature of service, and explores how Promise Theory can help improve digital service quality.

1. Promising Digital Service
Quality
Jeff Sussna Ingineering.IT @jeffsussna

2. Sorry Dan,
no math

3. 1.What is promise theory?
2. What is service?
3. How does one help the other?

4. To understand complex socio-technical systems…

5. …you first must understand teenagers

8. “I promise I’ll clean my room before dinner.”

9. Intention

10. Expression

11. Intensity

12. Benefit

13. A promise is
“a strongly stated intention to provide service”

15. Protip: promises aren’t always kept

16. A promise is
“a strongly stated intention to provide service
that may or may not come to pass”

18. I promise to store the word ‘foo’ in the file bar.txt

21. Real-world systems!
collections of autonomous agents
collaborating through promises

22. Acknowledging uncertainty enables greater certainty

23. Auto-scaling
Circuit breakers
Continuous integration
Design-for-fail

24. Treating agents as autonomous enables greater
scalability and resilience

25. Microservices
Self-organizing teams
Scaling agile
Needs + promises > requirements

27. What is service?

28. Experience, not thing

29. Relationship, not transaction

30. Value co-creation, not delivery

31. Service providers promise to help customers
accomplish their jobs-to-be-done

32. All aspects of a service organization must collaborate
to fulfill customer promises

33. Brand quality == ops quality

35. What is the traveler’s job-to-be-done on arrival?

38. How can Promise Theory help digital service quality?

39. What promises should we make?

40. What promises do we need others to make to us?

41. What should we do to maximize trust?

42. What promises do our customers need to make?

44. I promise to help you rest as part of your trip

45. I promise to help you reserve a satisfactory room
I promise to be available when you want to use me
I promise to be functional and usable
I promise not to lose your reservation
I promise to keep your information secure

46. I promise to help you transition from travel to rest
I promise to be clean, attractive, and navigable
I promise to be friendly and helpful
I promise to give you a place to store your luggage

47. I promise to help you get the guest checked in
I promise to be functional and usable
I promise to be available when you want to use me
I promise to find the customer’s information quickly

48. I promise to support your larger service context
I promise to update your airline rewards points
I promise to find you a taxi when you need one
I promise to help you find a restaurant for dinner
I promise to let you work from your room

49. Promise Theory helps span boundaries
Horizontal and vertical silos
Disciplines and perspectives
Providers and customers
Service systems

50. DevOps is to Promise Theory as…

52. MktDesDevQASuppEtcOps becomes…

53. …Promise Thinking!
(w/apologies to Design Thinking)

54. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Read:
‘In Search of Certainty’, Burgess
‘Promise Theory’, Bergstra/Burgess
‘Understanding Computers and Cognition’, Winograd/Flores

55. www.ingineering.it
blog.ingineering.it
linkedin.com/in/jeffsussna
@jeffsussna

56. Photo credits!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/crabchick/6261927068/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mplemmon/2691465516/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/48722974@N07/4596672640/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sebrenner/305255359/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/5719382021/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jmrosenfeld/3155170767/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/5785125108/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/quinnanya/11790927943/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/11553519@N03/4634956248/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/seafaringwoman/5461280385/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/surmolotto/3510114082/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/44124466731@N01/27687364/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jylcat/538008079/