Process and Journey Maps

Visual representation of how members and non-members receive travel credits by M. Heer.

Visual representation of how members and non-members receive travel credits by M. Heer.

Visual representation of how customers, employees and systems interact when assigning seats for standby travel by A. Levy.

Visual representation of how customers, employees and systems interact when assigning seats for standby travel by A. Levy.

Process Maps To Create Context and Alignment

Teams are most effective when all team members have the same information and everyone starts at the same place, preferably at the beginning. Designers can play a pivotal role in creating that shared understanding and giving others context by using their design skills to bring processes to life. In both of the examples above, the design team helped influence the strategy of the product by delivering design artifacts at the start of the product development process and not in the middle or end.

Customer journey map illustrating how a particular customer segment purchases products by S. Gustafson.

Customer journey map illustrating how a particular customer segment purchases products by S. Gustafson.

Whiteboard capture of a service blueprint for customer compensation.

Whiteboard capture of a service blueprint for customer compensation.

Customer Journey Maps and Service BluePrints To Educate and Innovate

I love experimenting with new methods to communicate information, share knowledge and build consensus. Customer journey maps are an effective tool when little is known about a customer segment (or if there are too many assumptions about that customer segment). Service blueprints are an ideal tool when creating a service from scratch or overhauling one, especially when you want to highlight customer and internal employee interactions.