An Empirical Study of How Service Designers Use Metrics

Abstract

Scholars have advocated for the importance of evaluation in service design, proposing comprehensive frameworks for such integration in design processes. This research seeks to complement existing theoretical studies by providing empirical insights into the utilization of metrics by practicing service designers. Our study presents findings derived from a global survey and in-depth interviews conducted with service designers from eleven countries. Our results highlight the value of using metrics in service design practice and a gap in systematic knowledge. We also underscore that organizational context can either foster or challenge the utilization of metrics in practice. This article contributes to ongoing service design evaluation research by providing data pertaining to the perceived benefits of metric usage within the service design process and in organizational collaboration, as well as insights into the perceived difficulties.