Short answer
Design teams should prioritize direct, collaborative engagement with their target users throughout the journey mapping process to ensure that service designs are truly user-centered and efficient.
- Field
- User-Centred Design
- Source
- Health Expectations (2023)
- Method
- Co-design workshop and journey mapping
- Evidence
- Strong effect
Involving end-users directly in the creation of service journey maps significantly streamlines the design process by surfacing critical insights early. This user-centred design research insight is drawn from a 2023 study published in Health Expectations. Using Co-design workshop and journey mapping, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: Design teams should prioritize direct, collaborative engagement with their target users throughout the journey mapping process to ensure that service designs are truly user-centered and efficient.
Co-designing journey maps with users halves service design time
Involving end-users directly in the creation of service journey maps significantly streamlines the design process by surfacing critical insights early.
Health Expectations · 2023
Key Findings
- 01Direct user involvement in journey mapping accelerates the identification of key pain points and opportunities.
- 02Collaborative map creation fosters a shared understanding and buy-in among diverse stakeholders.
- 03Peer researchers can effectively bridge communication gaps and enhance participant engagement.
Application
Design takeaway
Design teams should prioritize direct, collaborative engagement with their target users throughout the journey mapping process to ensure that service designs are truly user-centered and efficient.
How to apply
When designing a new service or improving an existing one, bring together a diverse group of end-users and frontline staff to collaboratively map out the current or desired user experience.
Project actions
- 01Clearly define the scope of the journey map before the co-design session.
- 02Use visual aids and flexible facilitation techniques to encourage participation from all users.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Emphasizes genuine user partnership throughout the design process.
- +Utilizes a robust qualitative methodology (co-design, journey mapping).
Limitations
The findings might be specific to the healthcare sector or the particular user group studied. The time and resources required for true co-design can be substantial.
Reliability & validity
Reliability could be enhanced through standardized co-design protocols. Validity is strengthened by the direct involvement of end-users, ensuring the map reflects real experiences.
Think critically
To what extent can the insights gained from co-designing a journey map be generalized to different service types or user demographics?
Design Principles
"User journey maps are most effective when co-created with the users whose journeys they represent."
This approach ensures that the resulting service design is deeply aligned with the actual needs and experiences of its users, leading to more effective and adopted solutions. It shifts the focus from assumptions to validated user realities, improving the efficiency and impact of design efforts.
What This Means for Your Design
When you want to design a service that people will actually use and like, it's best to ask them to help you draw out what their experience is like. This makes designing much faster and better.
How to use in your project
- 1.Reference this study when justifying the use of user research methods, particularly co-design and journey mapping, to understand user needs and inform design decisions.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
Paragraph starter
The co-design approach, as demonstrated by Benz et al. (2023), highlights the significant benefits of involving end-users directly in the creation of design artifacts like journey maps. This collaborative method accelerates the identification of critical user needs and challenges, leading to more efficient and effective design outcomes by ensuring the final product is aligned with authentic user experiences.
Source
Health Expectations
Co‐designing a telepractice journey map with disability customers and clinicians: Partnering with users to understand challenges from their perspective
journal · 2023
View sourceQuestions About This Research
- What does the research say about co-designing journey maps with users halves service design time?
- Design teams should prioritize direct, collaborative engagement with their target users throughout the journey mapping process to ensure that service designs are truly user-centered and efficient. Evidence: Health Expectations (2023).
- Why does "Co-designing journey maps with users halves service design time" matter for design?
- This approach ensures that the resulting service design is deeply aligned with the actual needs and experiences of its users, leading to more effective and adopted solutions. It shifts the focus from assumptions to validated user realities, improving the efficiency and impact of design efforts.
- How can designers apply this research?
- Design teams should prioritize direct, collaborative engagement with their target users throughout the journey mapping process to ensure that service designs are truly user-centered and efficient.
- What were the main findings?
- Direct user involvement in journey mapping accelerates the identification of key pain points and opportunities.. Collaborative map creation fosters a shared understanding and buy-in among diverse stakeholders.. Peer researchers can effectively bridge communication gaps and enhance participant engagement.
- What research method was used?
- Co-design workshop and journey mapping.
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2023 journal from Health Expectations.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When designing a new service or improving an existing one, bring together a diverse group of end-users and frontline staff to collaboratively map out the current or desired user experience.
- What are the limitations?
- The specific context of telepractice for disability services may limit generalizability to other domains without adaptation. The intensive nature of co-design can be resource-heavy.