Blog from June, 2019

Many times through sheer habit or lack of options, we continue to do things in the same manner we’ve always done. When we adopt that notion, knowingly or unknowingly, we often ignore the possibility of a more effective method.

What Is Wrong With This Picture?

In the image of the tea set, you may not even realize initially that you will have a very difficult time drinking from that cup. If you’ve had this set in your house for years, you might never recognize the need for a better design. Only when presented with a tea set with a round cup, would you realize you could actually drink from a cup without uncomfortable maneuvering or ruining your clothes.

What is the Solution?

Human-Centered Design (HCD) is both the philosophy and process that leads to the development of that new tea set.  It is a purposeful process which focuses on the customer’s needs, characteristics, and goals. HCD, through clear messaging, user participation, and customer-based solutioning, helps to make the product, service, or website understandable, beneficial, and relevant to the customer experience.

This is the reason for the creation of the HCD Center of Excellence (CoE). The HCD CoE provides you with the tools to invite your customer to the table, make your message clear to the customer, and develop a solution that best meets their needs.

Invite Your User:

Planning a wedding without the input of the bride is an idea that is unfathomable. Along the same lines designing a customer service without the input of the customer, especially when it comes to something as personal and vital as healthcare, should be equally as unthinkable a concept. The flaws in the design of that tea set could have been recognized prior to the manufacturing, if user interviews or contextual inquiries had been conducted. That is the essence of HCD. It is the invitation you extend to the user, customer, provider, or patient, to join you in developing a solution that best suits their needs.