Julie Guinn from Elseiver speaks at SDGC19 in Toronto. For designers working in complex systems environments--healthcare, finance, government and education, to name a few--success depends as much on understanding and anticipating how users will interact with a design, as on how the design will interact with the environment in which it is deployed. Failure to diagnose and address underlying system dynamics can leave even the most promising and well-intentioned ideas struggling to gain adoption, or worse, facing outright rejection. This talk will introduce the basic elements of systems, their unique characteristics and behaviours, examples of how they manifest in organisations and industries and specific implications for the design process. Finally, we'll explore a set of highly accessible methods and frameworks designers can use to navigate everyday systems complexity. Become a member! https://www.service-design-network.org Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sdnetwork Or on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/2933277 Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ServiceDesignNetwork/ Behind-the-scenes on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/servicedesignnetwork/

1. Designing In
Complexity
Julie Guinn

2. DESIGN
4.0
Social
Transformation
Design
DESIGN
3.0
Organization
Transformation
Design
DESIGN
2.0
Product &
Service
Design
DESIGN
1.0
Traditional
Design
Small
Messes
Product & Service
Messes
Organizational
Messes
Societal
Messes

3. Make it easier for physicians
to keep their online profiles
up to date.
Get feedback on an idea to
fill prescriptions during on-
site doctor visits.
Look for opportunities to
save time in our Urgent
Care patient flow.
Improve the design of clinical
trial patient data forms—
they’re hard to read!

6. DESIGN
4.0
Social
Transformation
Design
DESIGN
3.0
Organization
Transformation
Design
DESIGN
2.0
Product &
Service
Design
DESIGN
1.0
Traditional
Design
Small
Messes
Product & Service
Messes
Organizational
Messes
Societal
Messes

7. Complex Adaptive Systems

8. System:
An interconnected set of elements
that is coherently organized in a way
that achieves something.

9. System:
Elements
Connections
Purpose product, outcome, achievement…
relationships, flows, exchanges…
people, objects, organizations, concepts…

10. System:
Elements
Connections
Purpose
Boundary
product, outcome, achievement…
relationships, flows, exchanges…
people, objects, organizations, concepts…
spatial, temporal, functional…

11. Complex Adaptive System:
Elements
Connections
Purpose
Boundary

12. Complex Adaptive System:
Elements
Connections
Purpose
Boundary
multiple & potentially conflicting
highly interconnected & interdependent
numerous & diverse
fuzzy, permeable & deeply nested

13. Properties:
Emergence
Non-Linearity
Adaptation
Feedback Loops

14. Properties:
Emergence
Non-Linearity
Adaptation
Feedback Loops
facilitative & participatory
customized & iterative
holistic & inclusive
observant & responsive
SYSTEMS DESIGN PRINCIPLES

15. Self Organization:
A process whereby global order arises from
the local interactions of lower-level parts,
rather than being imposed by external agents.

16. Self Organization:
Distributed
Knowledge
Distributed
Control

17. Self Organization:
“systems blindness”
Distributed
Knowledge
Distributed
Control

19. Self Organization:
“systems blindness”
Distributed
Knowledge
Distributed
Control

20. Types of Risk in Service Implementation

21. Symptoms of Organizational Risk Being Present
“It’s good enough. Why
do we need to change it?”
“That’s nice, but we’re
not going to do that.”
“Why weren’t we informed
of this research in the first
place?”
Silence or can’t get on
stakeholder’s calendar.

22. Self Organization:
“system immune response”“systems blindness”
Distributed
Knowledge
Distributed
Control

23. The Brief The Reality

24. The Brief The Reality

25. PROBLEM SPACE SOLUTION SPACESYSTEM SPACE

26. PROBLEM SPACE SOLUTION SPACESYSTEM SPACE
Survey Scope

27. • Rich Picture Method
• Concept Map
• Actor Map
• Cause & Effect Diagram
• Iceberg Model
Surveying
THE SYSTEM

28. Rich Pictures + Iceberg Model
Image source: Colin Bate, CanUX 2009, https://www.flickr.com/photos/rhuvok/4101726752

29. • System Map
• Context Diagram
• Circles of Influence Map
• Stakeholder Analysis
Scoping
THE SYSTEM

30. Circle of Control
Able to take direct action
Circle of Concern
Able to monitor & respond to actions
Circle of Influence
Able to advocate or recommend actions
Circles of Influence Map

32. Make it easier for physicians
to keep their online profiles
up to date.
Get feedback on an idea to
fill prescriptions during on-
site doctor visits.
Look for opportunities to
save time in our Urgent
Care patient flow.
Improve the design of clinical
trial patient data forms—
they’re hard to read!
Pivoted to new idea
Made smaller-scale
improvement
Moved idea to “v2”
Made smaller-scale
improvement

33. Designing In
Complexity
Julie Guinn
spite of