Towards Data-Driven Services
Jun 20, 2019 • Features • future of field service • Shaun West • data analysis
Data2Action is a program devised in partnership between academia and industry with Luzerne University, University of Firenze and Ricoh collaborating on developing a framework for how companies should move towards data driven services. Here Dr. Shawn West and Oliver Stoll outline that framework...
How To Develop Databased Solutions
Today any machine can be digitized and connected; collecting the data is not an issue; what is becoming more important is how the field data can be exploited to identify the right action to be taken.
This creates a very complex problem, as the right data must be transformed so that only the right information, at the right time, in the right form can be delivered to the right decision-maker, independently of the problem domain - e.g. route cause analysis, demand forecasting, productivity optimisation, spare parts delivery. Helping people taking decisions can be seen as a smart service, that is designed on the base of a thoroughly understanding of the business complexity.
Ecosystems made of people and equipment, business objectives and strategies, as well as personal needs, attitudes and preferences (must-have’s, nice-to-have’s) of each operators. Once these needs are fully understood, information can be elaborated from data to create the right insights. The Data2Action framework provides guidance towards the development of data-driven services. The understanding of why and how customers interact with assets is achieved using Design Thinking approach.
Principles Of Service Design Thinking Underpin the Data2action Framework
A good design is not only a matter of aesthetics. When designing a product, many factors have to be considered. For example, how the product is going to be used, and by who. This determines the product functions, form, materials, colors, etc. This requires the ability to understand what the product user is trying to achieve (an outcome, an experience).
The same applies to service design, in which the object to be designed is a process which aims to reach a goal, through the use of products, software applications, information, etc. The challenge is that there are many more people involved in the consumption and delivery of the service, the service relies on collaboration, the service is mostly intangible. The Service Design approach is based on a hands-on, user-centric approach to problem definition and idea/solution generation can lead to innovation.
This is of utmost importance, as the application of these principles can lead to competitive advantages. Remember you only do things that are of value to you in one form or other. Service Design Thinking (SDT) is an approach that aims at designing services by applying different tools based on five principles.
Service design thinking should be:
• User centred;
• Co-creative;
• Sequencing;
• Evidencing;
• Holistic.
Understanding The Problem: Why Understand First?
How can a problem or challenge be successfully solved without understanding it properly? Well, it can not. Without a deep understanding, disruptive solutions will not work, or you will be applying sticky plasters. The challenge lying ahead of you is to understand, describe and visualize the situation. The understanding of a complex problem requires to know who the involved people and equipment are, and how the processes in which they are operating runs. The understanding phase of the Data-2-Action framework consists of mapping the (OVERALL) job-to-be-done of the customer, mapping the actors and using avatars to build the ecosystem to discover and appraise who and what is involved.
Principles for Digital Service Development: How To Generate The Best Ideas
The problem statements and the ecosystem visualization developed provides a solid foundation for the development of new ideas and solutions for services. Some new ideas may have already appeared and can be improved in this phase.
These cases, also called scenarios or user stories, can be visualized using the customer journey blueprint. In the customer journey blueprint, the processes, actions, and involved personas/avatars are visualized to display the desired situation, in which the problems are solved.
Outcomes for each actor here should be clearly defined along with any payoffs. Working in pen and paper works really well. For Smart Services with many actors and many machines expect there to be many scenarios to focus on and even more ideas to provide improvements. In the ideation stage, many ideas will be generated.
The ideas need to be rated in order to evaluate which are worth to be prototyped. For selecting the best ideas, an idea scoring system is best.
Building Valuable Solutions: Creating Information From The Raw Data
With the overview of the ecosystem of people, processes, and machines it becomes clear from the scenarios and user stories of where the data is produced and who needs to consume information derived from it. Prototyping it is a way to validate our ideas and possible solutions and it should be fast and keep concepts as simple as possible. This avoids spending too many resources on building solutions only to then finding out that it does not work.
The best way is to create hand-drawn dashboards or widgets which represent the solution and test them as quickly as possible before starting with the actual implementation (often coding!). The process of drawing dashboards may also reveal new ideas which can be useful or new insights into whether the solution is technically visible or not. Many dashboards should be created, to keep it organized we use the Case Actor Matrix (CAM).
This tool allows matching Actors with a Cases (we use a scenario before) and the dashboard enabling the understanding of their purposes - how would you use it to help make a decision. A logical cascade should be build and dashboard widgets should be reused as much as makes sense. These conceptual solutions need to be challenged from a technical perspective.
We use a Source Target Link Matrix (STL Matrix) to show the information needed from the conceptual point of view. We define the requirements and quality of the data needed to develop the dashboards. The matrix distinguishes between existing data and data that needs to be collected, as well as adjustments and improvements that have to be made to the databases
Test Ideas And Improve
The testing is essential within the data2action frameworks and Service Design. It should happen as quickly to avoid the development of solutions, which do not fulfill the identified case and or are not technical visible. The best method for testing the usability is to hand over the dashboard to the target actor and ask them to try to use it and listen to their feedback based on the feedback the usefulness can be improved. New ideas also come from the feedback discussions. The technical aspect needs to be evaluated as well. Meaning, that the information derived from the data is actually significant. This is determined by the data experts and the user.
How To Develop Databased Solutions
Today any machine can be digitized and connected; collecting the data is not an issue; what is becoming more important is how the field data can be exploited to identify the right action to be taken.
This creates a very complex problem, as the right data must be transformed so that only the right information, at the right time, in the right form can be delivered to the right decision-maker, independently of the problem domain - e.g. route cause analysis, demand forecasting, productivity optimisation, spare parts delivery. Helping people taking decisions can be seen as a smart service, that is designed on the base of a thoroughly understanding of the business complexity.
Ecosystems made of people and equipment, business objectives and strategies, as well as personal needs, attitudes and preferences (must-have’s, nice-to-have’s) of each operators. Once these needs are fully understood, information can be elaborated from data to create the right insights. The Data2Action framework provides guidance towards the development of data-driven services. The understanding of why and how customers interact with assets is achieved using Design Thinking approach.
Principles Of Service Design Thinking Underpin the Data2action Framework
A good design is not only a matter of aesthetics. When designing a product, many factors have to be considered. For example, how the product is going to be used, and by who. This determines the product functions, form, materials, colors, etc. This requires the ability to understand what the product user is trying to achieve (an outcome, an experience).
The same applies to service design, in which the object to be designed is a process which aims to reach a goal, through the use of products, software applications, information, etc. The challenge is that there are many more people involved in the consumption and delivery of the service, the service relies on collaboration, the service is mostly intangible. The Service Design approach is based on a hands-on, user-centric approach to problem definition and idea/solution generation can lead to innovation.
This is of utmost importance, as the application of these principles can lead to competitive advantages. Remember you only do things that are of value to you in one form or other. Service Design Thinking (SDT) is an approach that aims at designing services by applying different tools based on five principles.
Service design thinking should be:
• User centred;
• Co-creative;
• Sequencing;
• Evidencing;
• Holistic.
Understanding The Problem: Why Understand First?
How can a problem or challenge be successfully solved without understanding it properly? Well, it can not. Without a deep understanding, disruptive solutions will not work, or you will be applying sticky plasters. The challenge lying ahead of you is to understand, describe and visualize the situation. The understanding of a complex problem requires to know who the involved people and equipment are, and how the processes in which they are operating runs. The understanding phase of the Data-2-Action framework consists of mapping the (OVERALL) job-to-be-done of the customer, mapping the actors and using avatars to build the ecosystem to discover and appraise who and what is involved.
Principles for Digital Service Development: How To Generate The Best Ideas
The problem statements and the ecosystem visualization developed provides a solid foundation for the development of new ideas and solutions for services. Some new ideas may have already appeared and can be improved in this phase.
These cases, also called scenarios or user stories, can be visualized using the customer journey blueprint. In the customer journey blueprint, the processes, actions, and involved personas/avatars are visualized to display the desired situation, in which the problems are solved.
Outcomes for each actor here should be clearly defined along with any payoffs. Working in pen and paper works really well. For Smart Services with many actors and many machines expect there to be many scenarios to focus on and even more ideas to provide improvements. In the ideation stage, many ideas will be generated.
The ideas need to be rated in order to evaluate which are worth to be prototyped. For selecting the best ideas, an idea scoring system is best.
Building Valuable Solutions: Creating Information From The Raw Data
With the overview of the ecosystem of people, processes, and machines it becomes clear from the scenarios and user stories of where the data is produced and who needs to consume information derived from it. Prototyping it is a way to validate our ideas and possible solutions and it should be fast and keep concepts as simple as possible. This avoids spending too many resources on building solutions only to then finding out that it does not work.
The best way is to create hand-drawn dashboards or widgets which represent the solution and test them as quickly as possible before starting with the actual implementation (often coding!). The process of drawing dashboards may also reveal new ideas which can be useful or new insights into whether the solution is technically visible or not. Many dashboards should be created, to keep it organized we use the Case Actor Matrix (CAM).
This tool allows matching Actors with a Cases (we use a scenario before) and the dashboard enabling the understanding of their purposes - how would you use it to help make a decision. A logical cascade should be build and dashboard widgets should be reused as much as makes sense. These conceptual solutions need to be challenged from a technical perspective.
We use a Source Target Link Matrix (STL Matrix) to show the information needed from the conceptual point of view. We define the requirements and quality of the data needed to develop the dashboards. The matrix distinguishes between existing data and data that needs to be collected, as well as adjustments and improvements that have to be made to the databases
Test Ideas And Improve
The testing is essential within the data2action frameworks and Service Design. It should happen as quickly to avoid the development of solutions, which do not fulfill the identified case and or are not technical visible. The best method for testing the usability is to hand over the dashboard to the target actor and ask them to try to use it and listen to their feedback based on the feedback the usefulness can be improved. New ideas also come from the feedback discussions. The technical aspect needs to be evaluated as well. Meaning, that the information derived from the data is actually significant. This is determined by the data experts and the user.
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