81927 - Service Design

Learning outcomes

The module addresses the study and practice of service modeling (blueprint), the management of intangible aspects, and the touchpoints that allow users to have a measurable perceptual and qualitative experience of the service itself. By the end of the course, students will:

• Be familiar with the experimentation of different types of services in terms of analysis and understanding of consumption dynamics;
• Understand the relationships that are activated in both public and private services, as well as in standard and premium-level services;
• Be aware of the material aspects of the service.

Course contents

The course aims to develop the theoretical and practical skills necessary to carry out a complete design process in a real-world context. Students will take part in all phases of the project, from initial research to end-to-end process mapping, from requirements definition to prototyping and validating interactions with service touchpoints.

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Plan and adapt research and design activities according to the project context and objectives;

• Conduct primary and secondary research and interpret the results;

• Design new service models, represent them using the most appropriate service design tools, and develop physical or digital touchpoints;

• Apply advanced principles of visual communication, storytelling, and data visualization to effectively present the project to third parties.

Readings/Bibliography

Brown, T., & Katz, B. (2019). Change by design: how design thinking transforms organizations and inspires innovation. HarperBusiness.

De Bono, E. (2015). Creatività e pensiero laterale. Bur.

Downe, L. (2020). Good services: How to design services that work. BIS Publishers.

Penin, L. (2018). An introduction to service design: designing the invisible. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Saffer, D. (2006). Designing For Interaction: Creating smart applications and clever devices (trad. it. Design dell’interazione, Milano, Mondadori Pearson, 2007).Peachpit Press.

Senova, M. (2020). This human: How to be the person designing for other people. BIS Publishers.

Stickdorn, M., & Schneider, J. (2011). This is service design thinking: Basics, tools, cases. BIS Publishers.

Tassi, R. (2019). Service designer: Il progettista alle prese con sistemi complessi. FrancoAngeli.

Wells, M. (2023). User experience design: An introduction to creating interactive digital spaces. Hachette UK.

Zannoni, M. (2018). Progetto e interazione. Il design degli ecosistemi interattivi. Macerata: Quodlibet.

 

Teaching methods

The course includes lectures, meetings with guest experts, periodic exercises, in-class reviews, and collective presentations of project results.
Students will work in groups on a topic proposed by the instructors, with the aim of developing design solutions in the field of service design.

Attendance is mandatory and will be recorded by the instructors during the lessons. Students absent for more than 30% of the activities will not be allowed to take the final assessment.

Assessment methods

The final exam consists of the presentation of the research and the service design project developed during the course. The results achieved in each teaching module will be evaluated individually and will contribute to determining the student’s final grade, which will take into account both group work and individual contributions.

Teaching tools

Lectures (presentations/slideshows)

Ad hoc presentations with guest speakers

Reviews of students’ work progress

Collective reviews of students’ work progress for the various teaching modules (presentations/slideshows by students)

Design exercises

Prototype development (mainly using: Figma/Adobe XD, layout and photo editing software, video recording and editing, AI tools)

Office hours

See the website of Silvia Gasparotto

See the website of Ilaria Scarpellini