Smart Tech in Home Organization

Connecting with users in the moment

Digital Tools for the Physical Space

Basic tools like our smart phone can do incredible things. We all know that we can play music, track running speed and check Facebook almost anywhere in the world. However when we take utilize the capability of tech to get out of our glass screens and effect our physical space do see what these devices can really do.

The Home Organization Exercise examined utilizing existing smart smart phone technology to let users plan their organizational needs. As seen in the prototype below the user can utilize the gyroscope in their iPhone to easily and accurately measure their space, and then access a digital design planner that allows users to enter in their inventory, select and order the products needed to combat the culture many of us face.

Prototype

Exploratory Use case scenarios

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Along with the Digital application I also utilized ethnographic user research and knowledge of developing technologies to create use case scenarios that explore other digital/physical problems in the realm of home organization. Above: Image recognit… — Along with the Digital application I also utilized ethnographic user research and knowledge of developing technologies to create use case scenarios that explore other digital/physical problems in the realm of home organization.

Above: Image recognition combined with RFID Tags, and augmented reality allow the user to easily find important documents lost in a move.

Below: The user is able to collect paper notifications with an image. Recognition software not only tags and organizes content but creates notifications and creates payment system automatically.

Storyboarding

Research and Innovation sessions

We held a 10 Types of Innovation Session to explore new ways to engage and entice customers.

I had the opportunity to work of the amazing insights research of other designers and engineers.

Indian Immersion Program

Innovaiton In emerging markets

Designing for Small Business Owners in Mumbai

Winter of 2015 we had the chance to work with the team at Godrej & Boyce’s innovation team to create design solutions for small business owners. Our team took to the markets of Mumbai to conduct ethnographic research with a variety of users. After collecting and synthesizing research we Identified opportunities for Godrej to learn from small business owners by engaging them on a new digital platform. Developed road map defining how to best utilize existing capabilities to grow platform over time.

Along with Courtney Garland we led our indian team through design process, while teaching research and innovation methods. Conducted interviews and observational research with small business owners in Mumbai that created understanding of new opportunities for business growth.

Research and Interviews

Interviews with subjects in their homes.

Analysis and Synthesis

CONCEPT ORGANIZATION

Organizing and clustering concepts from ideation session.

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Project Aspen

Service Design for New York Cancer Center

Who owns the Patient Experience?

An internationally recognized cancer institute asked that we investigate best practices in customer service across industries and create a framework that would help lay the groundwork for patient experience improvements across their hospital system. Their efforts are being driven by a desire to maintain their reputation for best-in-class cancer care and test their hypothesis that improvements in patient experience can positively affect health outcomes.

Without a unified customer service strategy, siloed departments have been left to define and implement their own patient experience so it varies widely across the organization. Cultural orthodoxies prioritize science over service and senior leaders consider patient experience a “soft investment” with no measurable return. Other attributes of our client’s organization that required special consideration include their one-time patient commitment, high-risk environment, distributed service network, high stress and/or emotion demands on both patients and staff, strong organizational culture, and the need for both precision and hospitality.

Team: Tara Flippin, Gordon Grado, Claire Hevel, Anita Lee, Sarah Norell

Preliminary Research

We conducted 28 interviews with 23 organizations in industries ranging from hospitality to retail and financial services. These interviews included front line staff as well as corporate level experience leads

The complexity of the healthcare context makes it difficult to directly translate commercial customer service models to a cancer patient’s experience. We found existing frameworks to be too hierarchical for an organization with a non-linear reporting structure and too abstract to be actionable at this stage. For these reasons, we designed a customer service framework to respond to the unique challenges our client is facing. In order to design an innovative yet actionable approach to customer service for our clients, we lead a series of exercises to identify stakeholders, examine existing orthodoxies and define their criteria for a successful customer service framework. We interviewed Directors who shared the various customer service philosophies and approaches that they have implemented within their respective divisions. We then ventured into both primary and secondary analogous research, identifying organizations that shared one or more attribute with our client’s organization. We interviewed staff members of 23 of those organizations which we considered to best in their respective class. Many of these companies were outside of the healthcare industry and our client appreciated that we were able to contribute learnings from unexpected sources.

Framework Development

We created a framework to act as a strategic lens and unify the hospital's tactics towards a common goal. From a high level, framework falls into 3 large buckets; strategy and vision, delivery of service and implementation, and gaining knowledg… — We created a framework to act as a strategic lens and unify the hospital's tactics towards a common goal. From a high level, framework falls into 3 large buckets; strategy and vision, delivery of service and implementation, and gaining knowledge to strengthen the system.

The Framework can cascade down and be utilized differently on each level. At the organizational level, we have senior leadership who drive and define the overall vision for the hospital. At the strategic group level, we have and guiding to… — The Framework can cascade down and be utilized differently on each level. At the organizational level, we have senior leadership who drive and define the overall vision for the hospital.
At the strategic group level, we have and guiding tools to make sure that management is supporting their team to provide the best service.
At the individual level, we see it being personalized by hospital staff and the generation of insight that will influence systemic changes.

An example of how information and insights move throughout the cascade is shown above.

We synthesized this research into rich case studies, including quotes, stories and philosophies that characterized each organization’s customer service approach – paying special attention to training systems, organizational structure, culture, metrics and incentives. These case studies served as stimulus for analysis and were included in our deliverable along with a custom customer service framework to structure conversations around patient experience improvements and unify the organization’s efforts towards a common goal. As a companion to the framework, we created a playbook of customer service tactics to illustrate how our client might begin to implement each of the framework components. We provided both near-term and long-term starter concepts, as well as a brief explanation of how the client is positioned to excel in each area, what challenges the organization may face, and references to further research into relevant behavioral science principles.

An organization’s customer service strategy, system and structure enables and informs every possible customer experience. In this sense, patient experience is similar to Aspen trees. An individual standing in front of a grove of Aspens sees many individual trees of the same type. However, Aspens actually grow from and share a singular parent root-system. While each tree grows in its own pattern of branches and occupies its own space, the grove as a whole operates from a single foundation.

Solution Concepts

Organizational North Star Statment

A customer-service ‘north-star’ guides staff decisions about care delivery when interacting with patients.

Personalized North Star Workshop

We saw that staff with their own statement of purpose would internalize the patient experience.

Customer Service Acronym

A set of principles that outline specific goals and outcomes for patient interactions to guide the hospital's staff and bridge the abstract customer service philosophy to the tangible delivery of service.

Weaving Customer Service into Job Evaluation

Prioritize customer service in job evaluation and during the consideration of promotions and bonuses reinforces the importance of customer service throughout the organization.

Customer Service All-Star Committee

Create additional customer experience champions by pulling together existing service leaders to screen applicants.

Showing Your Team’s Colors

Make it ok to brag, promote employees to show their organizational pride in unique ways.

Keeping Patients’ Goals Top of Mind

It's easy to focus on the illness not the patient, help staff recognize and remember patient goals by having them posted in the room. This makes it easy to connect with the patient and make healthcare decisions that support a patients personal goals as well as their clinical outcomes.

Master Customer Service First

Patient facing roles are extremly demanding and complex. Before overwhelming new hires make customer service the default.

“In-the-moment” Patient Feedback

Break down the barrier from a survey to a nudge, we heard from hospital staff members that their job is emotionally taxing. Directly asking patients for feedback can feel like a hurdle. How can we make it fun for patients and easier for staff to collect useful information?

Expanding Data Collection Channels

By utilizing new forms of data collection useful insight won't be overlooked.

Interdisciplinary Customer Service Committee

Oversight and accountability at every level to track progress, ensure alignment with north star, and provide a sense of progress.

Patient Experience Experts and Advocates

To ensure that patient experience is held as a priority through out the organization we recommend bringing experience expets into leadership roles.

Communicating Care

Five minutes a day can make all the difference. Opening up a dialogue between people throughout the organization can make all the differnce.

Interdisciplinary Hackathon

Melding of the minds. Through a facilitated event, harnes the experience of existing staff.

Sharing Company Culture

Open and Accountable Communication

Safe Saddle

A Bicycle Insurance Concept

Safe Saddle, Bike Smater

An assignment for New Ventures Class we were led through the conceptualization, development and testing of a new business venture. This project focused on developing a bicycle insurance company that could help keep cyclists safe through collecting trip data and suggesting the safest routes. Bicycles are a growing mode of transportation for millions of americans however there is no service in place to help users cover the damage and theft of their bicycles. Trip routes suggested through navigation apps don’t take into account cyclists’ safety and is not updated at the rate of car traffic data.

Team: Gordon Grado & Aaron Wolf

User interface design

Navigation and problem reporting through wearable app.

Users can lower insurance premiums buy investing in security gear, purchase through the app allows for additional revenue streams.

Concept Ideation

Business Model Development

Rough draft exploring business model. This led us to pivot our offering from a traditional car insurance model to a new more accessible service.

Second Screen App for Kids

Connecting with users in the moment

Emersive Learning for Kids with Second Screen Interaction

Tasked with creating a novel interaction method for teaching children basic skills building on existing learning platforms. We began this project by interviewing and observing parents of children ages 3-7 and the first thing we noticed is how vast the knowledge difference between these ages is. Instead of narrowing down our scope further we decided to use access to a second touch point of a tablet to custom the learning experience to each individual child, giving both them and their parents the ability to choose what they learn. By creating planned video and digital content experience between screens could be facilitated by simple audio syncing application.

Team: Crystal, Amanda, Nayaab, Gordon

Prototype

Storyboarding

Storyboards exploring how one tv broadcast could provide the content for two levels of education.

Wireframes and Mockups

Wireframes exploring parents setting up individual accounts for their child

Developing delightful ways for children to access and interact with content.

Planning parent's monitoring experience.

User case flows

Children's Healthcare

Product Design and Development

An Exploration in Service Development and Healthcare Analytics

Developed for New Product Definition Course at the Institute of Design. This project sought to provide practice in the development of new offerings for existing companies. We began the project with research into the opportunity space and developed a series of prototypes of MVP to prove concept. Positioning and business model development were used to confirm viability and feasibility as well.

The Final solution included a healthcare wearable inspired by Disney's Magic Band and a digital platform for parents to interact with their children's physicians.

Team: Gordon Grado, Laurimar Garcia, SeungCheol Lee

Explainer Video

Concept Exploration

Business Models and Value Webs

Value web exploring both B2B and B2C value exchange.

Profit projections based off of real user data collected from micropilots and survey methods.

Profit projection based on hospital involvement.