Maitland Council

Human centred design capability uplift

Capability

project overview

Maitland Council believed by investing in their in house team to uplift their capabilities in human centred design, they could accelerate their customer experience transformation in a sustainable manner.
Details
business model
B2C
B2B
category
Local Government
deliverables
Digital Toolset, Innovation Program, Coaching

the design challenge

Maitland Council sought to improve a range of services, and wanted a sustainable way to so. They felt up-skilling diverse team members from across the organisation in Human Centred Design (HCD) could possibly be an approach, but they were not sure as this was all new to them. The challenge was twofold: create a robust HCD learning program and simultaneously apply the learning to solve a real world problem to build buy-in.
No items found.

the solution

We designed a comprehensive human-centred design coaching program tailored to Maitland Councils specific needs, which included a digital suite of Miro innovation tools.

Our training kicked off with foundational workshops on human-centred design principles and methodologies. We then created a digital innovation space within Miro and supplied all of the tools, whilst the Maitland team focused on setting up the physical space for design sprints, customer testing and playbacks.

Together we then dove straight into the live challenge of the 'better bin experience' project. Using techniques like customer interviews, shadowing, exploration safaris and prototyping, the Maitland team generated innovative solutions for bins in the community.

Throughout the process, we offered continuous coaching and support to ensure the concepts could translate into real-world results and to build the teams confidence as they tried something new.

No items found.

the impact

Not only did the Maitland design team gain valuable skills in human-centred design, but they also successfully applied them to a live challenge of improving the bins service, with great community feedback. Maitland Council leadership has been so thrilled with the outcomes they have applied the approach to a suite of challenges ranging from redesigning the website, to potholes. Word is getting out of the uplift in capability, with Bridget Wilks the Maitland Council lead on the design work being asked to speak at a design conference.

client feedback

"Working with Think Startup has been pivotal for Maitland City Council's Customer Driven Transformation. From our initial community engagement to implementing our Guiding Principles and training our Human Centred Design team, they've been instrumental in our success. Their customer-first approach and actionable insights have enabled us to make huge inroads into improving our customers experience. They always bring the magic to their sessions and leave lasting impressions on everyone they work with. Cannot recommend them enough."
Bridget Wilks
Coordinator Customer Experience