Role 6: The Servant Leader
Based on my consulting and teaching experience, service designers perform seven critical roles on complex, multi-faceted innovation projects: The Empathizer, The Sensemaker, The Creator, The Maker, The Navigator, The Storyteller, and The Servant Leader (Bau, 2013, 2020). For the sake of brevity, each role is explained using three capabilities. For each capability, the service designer carries out specific activities, applies specific methods and tools, and makes specific deliverables/assets.
Let’s take a deep dive into the role of The Servant Leader
Three core capabilities to build and master:
Planning, facilitating, and leading innovation and collaborative practices
Directing, leading, and empowering innovation and design teams
Defining and building organizational, team and individual capabilities
Four valuable toolkits to dip into:
Format: Author(s) > Project phase(s)
Stickdorn et al. (2018) > Service Design Process and Management + Facilitating Workshops + Making Space
IDEO (2020) > Implementation
Gray et al. (2010) > Games for Opening/Exploring/Closing
Kaner et al. (2014) > Facilitator Fundamentals + Sustainable Agreements + Reaching Closure
Eight useful methods and tools to apply (not exhaustive by any means):
Planning for a Service Design Process
Managing the Service Design Process
Staff Your Project
Start, Stop, Continue
Styles and Roles of Facilitation
Facilitation Techniques
Facilitating in the Groan Zone
Principles for Building Sustainable Agreements
References
Bau, R. (2013, October). What it takes to become a superb service designer. SX 2013 [Adaptive Path’s Service Experience conference], San Francisco, CA.
Bau, R. (2020). Service design to the rescue. The critical roles service designers play in organizational change. Touchpoint, 11(3), 74–79.
Gray et al. (2010). Gamestorming. A playbook for innovators, rulebreakers, and changemakers. O’Reilly Media.
IDEO. (2020). Design Kit.
Kaner et al. (2014). Facilitator’s Guide to Participatory Decision-Making (3rd ed.). Jossey-Bass.
Stickdorn et al. (2018). This is service design doing: Applying service design thinking in the real world. O’Reilly Media.
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