1. “Linking Services Design to Strategy”
by Rafael Zaballa
IESS 1.2 Geneva FebruaryParque
16 2012 de innovación
1 La Salle Parque de Innovación de Servicios para las Personas

2. Three research questions:
1. Can services design play a pervasive role in a company’s strategic
positioning?
2. What are the links between services design and strategy?
3. How to devleop a strategy in line with a services design discourse?
2 © Rafael Zaballa

3. 1.What is Strategy?
2.Creating a Valuable Position?
3.Services Design Opportunity Matrix
3 © Rafael Zaballa

4. 1.What is Strategy?
2.Creating a Valuable Position?
3.Services Design Opportunity Matrix
4 © Rafael Zaballa

5. Michael Porter, 1996: A step forward for its understanding
5 © Rafael Zaballa

6. 1. Competitive Strategy is about being different, choosing deliberately a diffrerent set of activitites to deliver a unique mix of value.
2. Introduces Activity Systema maps as a management tool for strategy definition
What is Strategy? (Porter 1996): 6 © Rafael Zaballa

7. Competitive Strategy
Operational Excellence Strategic Positioning
Doing the same
better than others
“Necessary, but not sufficient” Positioning: Once the of Strategy,
“Too Static”
“Strategy is the creation of a unique and
valuable position, involving a different set of activities”
What is Strategy? (Porter 1996): 7 © Rafael Zaballa

8. About Positioning: A place in customer’s mind
•The 50s was the product Era: Characteristics and benefits
•The 60s was the image Era: Reputation
•The 70s was the positioning era: Where am I compared to others
“Too much noise” “The mind is a memory bank”
“With the rise of living standras customer is less interted in aking the best choice”
? ?
Brand ?
Brand Brand
Brand Brand
Brand Brand
Producto Category 1 Producto Category 2
RIES, Al, TROUT Jack "The Positioning Era Cometh" Advertising Age Crain Publications 1972
8 © Rafael Zaballa

9. 1.What is Strategy?
2.Creating a Valuable Position?
3.Services Design Opportunity Matrix
9 © Rafael Zaballa

10. Creating a Valuable Position #1:
The Design Discourse
Best P.: Branding and Design Innovation Leadership: What’s next?. Design Thinking, pags. 145-155, Thomas Lockwood editor,
Design Management Institute (2010)
10 © Rafael Zaballa

11. Creating a valuable position #2
Brand Meaning (Source: ROCKWELL, C.: "The Mathematics of Brand Satisfaction" in Design Thinking, pag.
221-229, Thomas Lockwood editor, Design Management Institute 2010)
11 © Rafael Zaballa

12. Service Design Performance Axes that Deliver the Meaning
5. People
2. Environments
1. Objects
Services Design
4. Identities
3. Communication
6. Processes
Source: ZABALLA, R. 2010 12 © Rafael Zaballa

13. Strategic Services Design
Company Strategy
Shared Knowledge & Values
Assets
Technology and Facilities
Bidirectional Flow
Activities
“rely on the 6 Design
Axes”
rhat deliver Meaning:
Marketing
Processes
Products
Objects, People,
People
C.S.R.
Processes, Spaces,
Identities and
Communication
Stakeholders Interactions
People Systems
Source: ZABALLA, R. 2010 13 © Rafael Zaballa

14. Services Value Categories:Adaptation from Cagan & Vogel, 2002
14 © Rafael Zaballa

15. 1.What is Strategy?
2.Creating a Valuable Position?
3.Services Design
Opportunity Matrix
15 © Rafael Zaballa

16. Linking Services Design to Strategy, main concepts of this article
16 © Rafael Zaballa

17. The Services Design Opportunity Matrix (SDOM)
Five (5) Strategic Positioning Statements:
1) iTunes culturally current content portal
2) Cool brand high impact
1 2 3) Proprietary platform & Intuitive Interface
4) Well Designed Products & Technology
5) Exclusive 3rd Party Peripherals & Accessories
3
4 5
“Five (5) Value Proposal
Approach Uniqueness
Atrributes”
HOWs
17 © Rafael Zaballa

18. The Services Design Opportunity Matrix (SDOM)
1. iTunes culturally current content portal
2. Cool brand high impact
3. Proprietary platform & Intuitive Interface
4. Well Designed Products & Technology
5. Exclusive 3rd Party Peripherals & Accessories
18 © Rafael Zaballa

19. SDO Matrix: A tool to connect Srevices Design to Strategy
1 2
3
Three Steps Description
© Rafael Zaballa
19
SDO Matrix Rafael Zaballa
©

20. Conclusions:
 Services Design is a contributor to competitive advantage within two (2) approaches: Operational
Excellence and Strategic Positioning.
 Creating a competitive strategic positioning is about building a powerful brand promise which relies on
uniqueness and meaning.
 Uniqueness is defined by our activities, and we gain it by doing different ones or performing them in
different ways than others.
 Brand meaning relies on a Design Discourse and a dynamic cycle in which perception, expectations
and experiences define customer satisfaction, and the increase of customer satisfaction strengthens
brand meaning.
 Strategic Services Design, as a Design Management framework, consists of a simultaneous approach
to the creation of the brand promise and the services value proposal under a common design
discourse, covering six (6) interrelated design performance areas (identities, communication, object,
environments, processes and people) as an enhancer of consistency, reinforcement and optimization.
 Strategic Design Opportunity Matrix (SDOM) as a tool for this design approach process that connects
activities to desired value concepts and design performance areas. The matrix serves as a reference
document to begin an iterative design discourse creative process, leading a reinterpretation of our
activities in order to reach our objectives in terms of creating valuable services in consistency with a
powerful brand promise.
20 © Rafael Zaballa

21. References:
Porter, M.: What is Strategy?. Harvard Business Review, November-December (1996)
Ries, A., Trout, J.: The Positioning Era Cometh. Advertising Age Crain Publications (1972)
Mcluhan, M.: Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. Gingko Press, (2003)
Fraser, H.: Designing Business: New Models for Success. Design Thinking, Thomas Lockwood editor, Design Management
Institute pag. 35-45, (2010)
Best P.: Branding and Design Innovation Leadership: What’s next?. Design Thinking, pags. 145-155, Thomas Lockwood editor,
Design Management Institute (2010)
Rockwell, C.: The Mathematics of Brand Satisfaction. Design Thinking, Thomas Lockwood editor, Design Management Institute,
pag. 221-229, (2010)
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml V. A., BERRY, L. L.: A Conceptual Model of Service Quality and its Implications for Future Research.
Journal of Marketing, 49 (4), 41-50, (1985)
Heskett, J. L., Jones, T. O., Loveman, G. W., Sasser, W. E. Jr., Schlesinger, L. A.: Putting the Service Profit Chain to Work. HBR
(March April 1994)
Heskett, J.: Toothpicks & Logos, Design in Everyday Life. Oxford University Press (2002)
Zaballa R.: Services Design for People. Jean-Henry Morin, Jolita Ralyté, Mehdi Snene, Exploring Services Sciences, Springer
(2010)
Verganti, R.: Design Driven Innovation: Changing the Rules of Competition by Radically Innovating What Things Mean. Harvard
Business Review (2009)
Zeithaml, V.: Consumer Perceptions of Price Quality and Value: A Means-And Model and Syntheis of Evidence. Journal of
Marketing, 52 (3) 2-22, (1988)
21 © Rafael Zaballa

22. Shevket N. H., Celik, T.: Value of a Product: Definition. International Journal of Value Based Management Volume 12 Nº2 181-191
(1999)
International Council of Societies of Industrial Design: http://www.icsid.org/about/about/articles31.htm
Lockwood T.: "Design Thinking". Lockwood T. Editor, Design Management Institute (2011)
Cagan, J., Vogel C.: Creating Breakthrough Products. Princeton N.J. Prentice Hall (2002)
Parasuraman, A., Zethaml, V. ; Berry, L.: SERVQUAL: A multiple-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality.
Journal of Retailing, Vol 64 (1), 12-40. Springer (1988)
Martin, R. "The Design of Business: Why Design Thinking is the Next Competitive Advantage. Harvard Business Press (2009)
22 © Rafael Zaballa