Over the past few posts I have discussed the importance of context to the innovation process. But when it comes down to it, context is only data. It doesn’t gain meaning unless we can see how it all fits together. Observations must be given a framework from where they can be understood and interpreted. And so I would like to introduce you to the Journey Framework.

One of the best tools used to ground real life observations is the journey framework. This tool was popularized by IDEO in their work on the DePaul Health Center.

How do you create a Journey Framework? First you need to gather data. Take pictures, talk to people, anything that helps you see what is happening. Second, identify who the stakeholders or participants are in the experience you are observing. Often it is helpful to include key objects as participants. Third, identify all the stages of the experience and describe what happens at each stage.

Now you are ready to construct your journey framework. On a large piece of paper, or whiteboard, write down all of your participants along the left hand side. Along the top, write down each stage of the experience. It can be helpful to draw dividing lines between each participant and each stage of the experience to create a grid. Now for each participant under each stage write down their actions, thoughts, concerns, and questions. Keep in mind not all participants will be apart of each stage. Also make sure you are writing from the perspective of the participant. If they don’t know why something is happening, they probably have questions about it. Finally, it can be helpful to paste appropriate pictures, which visually show the experience in the appropriate places.

When you are done step back and let the insights flow.

Let me give you a quick example of how this could be useful. After you order a decafe, non-fat, caramel, latté with whip from your favorite coffee store and are waiting for it to be made, you may be a little anxious.

Did they forget about me? Did the person I ordered from tell the person who is making my drink the right order? Will the person who is making my drink remember the order? Will they make it correctly? The list goes on.

Fortunately many coffee shops do four things to lower your anxiety. First the person who took your order writes it on your cup in front of you so you can see. Second, the person who took your order calls it out to the person making the drinks. Third, the person making the drinks responds by repeating the order. Fourth, when you receive your drink the person who made it again repeats the order.

Each experience is a journey.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 25th, 2007 at 11:33 pm and is filed under Innovation Tools. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.