Innovative Design Thinking (Human Resource)

Ethnographic Research

Design Thinking

Identify Persona’s Key

User Needs

Brainstorming

Get Feedback Showcase your

great idea

Craft “Need” Questions

Wiork out the ideas

User journey

How might we help Mrs Foo lead

a healthier lifestyle with her family?

DISCOVERING UNMET NEEDS & NEW OPPORTUNITIES

Begins with human empathy & deep user understanding

“Ethnography is a research method in which the researcher observes people in their natural environment so as to gain insight into the ways in which people inhabit their spaces, use their products and interact with the various physical, social, economic and ecological systems around them. It is a heavily qualitative research method, involving much participant- observation — observing and recording the actions and decision making processes of individuals and groups in a given environment.”

Emily Eisenhart – Catapult Design

Quantitative Research

Qualitative Research

OBSERVATION FACE TO FACE

INTERVIEW

The heart of Design Thinking is fully understanding users.

By understanding users broadly and deeply, you can uncover unmet needs that

will lead to new opportunities and breakthrough ideas for both the user and

the enterprise.

Why?

Sometimes customers are so accustomed to current conditions that they don’t think to ask for a new solution even if they have

real needs to be addressed.

Reveals shortcomings in existing products or services and often represent an

innovation opportunity

Empathy begins with immersing oneself in the other person’s world. It is the capacity to share and understand another's emotion, feelings, motivations and mindsets. Gain insights that inspire and inform our thinking leading to actionable recommendations and strategies.

ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH

OBSERVE ENGAGE EXPERIENCE

• Watch users • See how they interact • Video • User Journals

• Interviews • Co-Creation • Reflection

• Simulations • Role Play • Try it yourself

Innovation begins with an eye

Observation

To discover fresh insights by studying people in their natural environments.

Observation and inspiration do not have to be formal.

Observation

An act of noticing or perceiving with all our senses to uncover (discover) new insight about the world.

Field observation is structured. Unstructured observation runs the risk of focusing only on the things that interest you, rather than the dominant things going on.

Field Observation

HOW TO OBSERVE?

Step 1: Define an activity and select an observation site

Examples of things that you would observe • What kinds of people are present? • What objects are present? • What kind of materials are they made of? • Where is the action taking place? • What is the environment?

to see things objectively

Step 2: First Level Observation

Examples of things that you would observe:

• Why is this happening and why are people doing these things? • What objects are important? What role do they play? • How are people engaging with each other, with the objects, and with their surroundings?

• What is the social context that is motivating them to do these things?

Step 3: Second Level Observation

…to look for meaning

To find new insights…..

Find the right people to observe

People who follow directions perfectly and can’t imagine a different course aren’t much help.

You will learn from people who take short cuts, who forces the product to do something the manual says it can’t, who imagines what it might do ‘if only’

P O E M S

eople

bjects

nvironment

essages & Media

ervices

PEOPLE

OBJECTS

ENVIRONMENT/ ACTIVITY

MESSAGE & MEDIA

SERVICES

Who are involved? (e.g: parents, vendors, tourists etc.) How are the people engaging with each other? How are they related?

What artifacts are important? What roles do they play? How are people engaging with the objects and with their surrounding?

Where is the action taking place? How do people behave in this environment? What is happening? What are the people doing?

What are the messages and communication media used? (e.g: signage, posters, apps etc.)

What are the services and support systems provided? (e.g: hands-on guide, online booking, kiosks etc.)

What do you see?

P.O.E.M.S Framework3

STEP 1 OBSERVE

Location: Toa Payoh HDB Hub Food Court

Time: Weekday Afternoon at 3pm

PEOPLE Customers ranging from young to old, multi racial and different background.

OBJECTS Counter; Queue Barrier; Escalator

ENVIRONMENT/ ACTIVITY People are queuing for Rojak at air- conditioned food court. The queue is long and people in line seem to be very frustrated and annoyed.

MESSAGES Foodie award posters, Signages

SERVICES Self-Service counter, ordering and payment at the same counter

PEOPLE Customers ranging from young to old, multi racial and different background.

OBJECTS Counter; Queue Barrier; Escalator

ENVIRONMENT/ ACTIVITY People are queuing for Rojak at air- conditioned food court. The queue is long and people in line seem to be very frustrated and annoyed.

MESSAGES Foodie award posters, Signages

SERVICES Self-Service counter, ordering and payment at the same counter

P.O.E.M.S Framework3

STEP 2 INSIGHT

Location: Toa Payoh HDB Hub Food Court

Time: Weekday Afternoon at 3pm

PEOPLE The rojak must be suitable for people from various ages. Halal. Given the time, it can be a good snack for afternoon tea.

OBJECTS There is only one store with queue barrier. The store is situated very near to the escalator (entrance of food court) which has heavy human traffic. The store must receive exceptionally long queue which cause human traffic congestion therefore the queue barrier is here to facilitate the queue. Imagine if it is during peak hour like Lunch, the queue may extend to the edge of escalator and human traffic will be blocked.

P.O.E.M.S Framework3

PEOPLE Customers ranging from young to old, multi racial and different background.

OBJECTS Counter; Queue Barrier; Escalator

ENVIRONMENT/ ACTIVITY People are queuing for Rojak at air- conditioned food court. The queue is long and people in line seem to be very frustrated and annoyed.

MESSAGES Foodie award posters, Signages

SERVICES Self-Service counter, ordering and payment at the same counter

STEP 2 INSIGHT ENVIRONMENT/ ACTIVITY People are willing to sacrifice at least 30mins of their time to wait for the rojak. It must has its attractive point to generate this long queue. Even so it still cause frustration on people in line, can be due to the inefficiency of the staff, the long standing at queue or the previous customer has order large quantity of food.

MESSAGES The rojak store has received numerous rewards that is related to food recommendation. This gives the credibility and quality of food it is providing which explain the long queue of customer.

SERVICES There is only 1 counter available for order taking and payment. Customer can only place order at the only counter which is inefficient.

Location: Toa Payoh HDB Hub Food Court

Time: Weekday Afternoon at 3pm

P.O.E.M.S Framework3

PEOPLE Customers ranging from young to old, multi racial and different background.

OBJECTS Counter; Queue Barrier; Escalator

ENVIRONMENT/ ACTIVITY People are queuing for Rojak at air- conditioned food court. The queue is long and people in line seem to be very frustrated and annoyed.

MESSAGES Foodie award posters, Signages

SERVICES Self-Service counter, ordering and payment at the same counter

STEP 2 INSIGHT

SERVICES There is only 1 counter and 1 staff available for order taking and payment. Customer can only place order at the only counter which is inefficient. Rojak needs time to prepare. Even after payment, customer may have to wait for another few minutes at the counter before the food is ready. It may cause crowding at the narrow walkway between the table and store.

Location: Toa Payoh HDB Hub Food Court

Time: Weekday Afternoon at 3pm

Face to Face Interview

Why one to one interview?

Cannot take what it is as it is

Clarify Inference

+ It is possible that while we listen to the interview conversation we may misinterpret the information and make incorrect assumptions about what we hear and observe.

+ It is important to clarify to make sure your inference and reasoning are in line to the reality

+ Be mindful of your own biases, beliefs, values and pre- conceived expert opinion on the topic.

Who are involved?

Interviewee

Interviewer

asks open ended

questions

Note-taker

listens and writes down interviewee’s

stories, makes observations, etc.

shares stories

Do you know your interviewee well enough?

Do you have a deep understanding

about him/her?

Ask the RIGHT

questions!

through Understanding Human Needs

S P I C E Need Framework

S social

P physical

I identity

C communication

E emotional

S P I C E is ...... ...an approach for one to ensure that a research is done thoroughly, covering a comprehensive context and allow deeper understanding of the interviewee.

S P I EC SOCIAL PHYSICAL IDENTITY COMMUNICATION EMOTIONAL

Example: Interview on Hotel Guests

“I like the feeling of familiarity

in new surroundings.”

“I like to be a valued guest than a

faceless digit.”

“Central location; with good transport

links.”

“I am adventurer traveller, not

just a tourist.”

“I like to be able to compare and cross-reference

prices.”

What does a person need from people around them?

What does this person need on a functional and

physical level?

What types of information does this person need?

What does this person need to define for

him/herself?

What does this person need emotionally and

psychologically?

What do you like about travelling?

What do you look for while looking for

hotel?

Can you describe yourself as a

traveller?

What information do you want when you go

shopping?

How do you want to be treated by the hotel

staff?

Tell me more about...

What else can you tell me

about...

Please tell me about the

story...

Help me understand

better...

How to probe to gather more information?

Demographics •Could you tell me a bit about yourself? (Name, age, marital status, number of children, number of siblings,etc)

•Are you currently employed? OR What were you working as before? How long have you worked in this position? What does/did your job entail?

•What do you enjoy doing most in your free time?

•What are your weekends like?

Personal Motivations • What drives/motivates you as a person living in Singapore? Tell me more…

• What do you look forward to? Why? Tell me more…

• What frustrates/upsets you the most? Tell me more about that experience.

Questions related to the problem •What was your experience when you first started working here?

• What do you look forward to when you did something new for the first time? Why? Tell me more…

• What frustrates/upsets you about starting a new experience? Tell me more about that experience.

5 Important questions to ask

Question 1: Did you pick a red car?

Question 2: Which colour of car did you choose?

Question 3: How did you choose the colour for your car?

You’ll notice that the ‘how’ question gives you the answer to the two questions and above and it tells you about the context of the decision.

There are common structures for how questions that you can try in your next interview:

Tell me how the decision affects you?

How would you imagine the app working?

How do you feel when you hear that?

The most important question to ask

How…

Interviewer: Have you ever forgotten to take your medication?

Participant: Yes

Interviewer: Why is that?

Participant: Well, there’s a funny thing about my medicine…

Asking why will help you in a tough situation, but it can be a frustrating situation for a participant if you’re constantly asking why why why. So make sure you aim for an open ended question to begin with.

The second most important question to ask

Why...

Interviewer: How do you read the news?

Participant: I have the BBC and Sky news apps on my phone

Interviewer: Why those apps in particular?

Participant: They are usually the quickest to break news stories

Interviewer: Why is breaking news important?

Participant: I like to feel like i’m up to speed with the world

Interviewer: Why do you think it’s important to be up to speed?

Participant: I don’t like being the last in my friendship group to hear about things

The third, fourth, fifth most important question to ask

Why. Why. Why.

Lesson learnt

Do not assume what your interviewees are thinking

Always clarify and ask why!

Within your group, interview 2 person about their onboarding experience

Design 8-10 interview questions given.

1 person as interviewer, 1 person as note taker/observer.

Document the consent and agreement for the interview/recording.

As note taker, write down (transcribe) everything that has been said and any other observations.

Now time for you to conduct your own user interview

DEEP USER INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW NOTES Interviewer(s): Interviewee: Date/Time of Interview: Venue: Email:

Notes Observations / Quotes

Collect information on areas related to the project statement: • Motivations • Pain Points • etc.

Questions: • Share an experience when ….? • If there are no constraints, how would you change …? • Any areas of improvements…? • Describe your best and worst experiences…. • etc.

Collect information on: • Aspirations • Inspirations • Motivations • Pain Points

Sample Questions: • What drives/motivates you? Tell me more… • What do you look forward to? Why? Tell me more… • What frustrates/upsets you the most? Tell me more about that experience. • etc.

WHAT KIND OF INFORMATION DO WE NEED TO FIND OUT ABOUT THE USER?

Collect information on: • Age, Gender, Marital Status • Occupation • Hobbies • Personal Habits /Practices • Social Life

Sample Questions: • Describe your typical weekday/weekend. • What do you like to do during your free time? • Why do you like to do these activities? • What is most important to you in life? Tell me more… • etc.

DEMOGRAPHICS / HABITS

PERSONAL MOTIVATIONS

AREAS RELEVANT TO THE PROBLEM

STATEMENT

Transcribing in verbatim – Poor example

Note-taker, please take note!

Transcribing in verbatim – Better example

When we meet next week

Come with 3 well transcribed interviews

You can start your first one today in class…

What are you takeaways?