What are the materials of service design... A seemingly simple question, but one that I believe has the potential to reshape our understanding of service design.

Historically, design has always been about shaping and manipulating materials to give form to things around us.

It's only in recent years, with the popularization of design thinking, that design has drifted away from its roots and heritage of a craft.

The focus shifted on -sometimes mindlessly- following a flawed double diamond process.

Even though people over the recent years have tried to raise the question of what the materials of service design are, the conversation never really caught on.

Something tells me that's about to change with the release of the book "The Materials of Service Design." (links below)

This book, in my opinion, marks a turning point in the history of our field. Yes, I absolutely feel it's that important, and no, I'm not getting any commissions on the book sales.

It offers a fresh, materials-based perspective that adds a much needed nuance and richness to how we think about service design.

Imagine being able to have constructive conversations about designing with time, relationships, culture, and all the other materials that make up services.

Imagine understanding the properties of these materials deeply enough to co-create a shared library of service design patterns.

The implications are huge.

This approach once again makes it clear that services can't be designed by a single person; they require the involvement of experts from many areas.

It also challenges us to reimagine how we teach service design.

All in all, it really does open up a world of new questions and possibilities.

As you hopefully can read, I'm excited about the direction and trajectory that could take us.

So, join ​Simon Clatworthy​, co-author of the book, and myself as we dive into this exciting new perspective of a materials-based approach to service design.

--- [ 1. GUIDE ] ---

00:00 Welcome to Episode 204

04:30 Beyond the Toolkit

08:00 The 4 Unexpected Materials

11:00 Lost Essential?

16:30 Service Design vs. Design Thinking

20:00 Skills for Designing Services

24:00 Unveiling the Book's Materials

30:00 Data as Material: Conversations

34:00 Shaping Conversations

42:00 Time: A Material to Master

44:30 Measuring Time in Design

46:30 Specialization in Service Design

49:00 The Rise of Service Design Specialists

51:00 Co-Design: Your Service Design Team

54:30 The Responsibility of Design

58:00 Implications for Service Designers

1:01:00 Beyond Designers: Service Experts

1:06:00 The "Taste Buds" of a Service

1:07:00 A Library of Service Materials

1:09:00 Aesthetics of Service Design

--- [ 2. LINKS ] ---

--- [ 3. CIRCLE ] ---

Join our private community for in-house service design professionals.

⁠https://servicedesignshow.com/circle