Andy Polaine
Services that fix services and the inverse experience umbrella
I often use air travel as the archetypal example of a multi-channel service that unfolds over time. Modern air travel consists of lots of minor annoyances that …
Writing & Thinking
A mix of essays and commentary about design, innovation, technology, society, coaching, personal and leadership development. Since 1996.
Lists and numbers versus stories
Eugene Wei posted a piece about why our brains love lists over on his Remains of the Day blog. It explains why all those “20 ways to…” blog …
Lamy's attention to detail in customer service
Several years ago my wife bought me a Lamy 2000 fountain pen as a birthday present. It is a design classic created by Gerd Alfred Müller, released in 1966. If …
Design Research Techniques
Design Research Techniques is an “online repository is a necessarily unfinished and evolving resource for Participatory Design Techniques. These …
Square Cash
I’m fascinated by Square’s new service, Square Cash, that allows you to send someone cash simply by sending them an e-mail and cc’ing …
May the force be with you – service design for invisible connections
The video of the talk I gave at DESIS Lab Melbourne at RMIT is online at Service Design Melbourne’s website. The audio is a bit hard to hear because the …
Interaction 14 Student Design Challenge
Now in its fifth year, the IxDA Student Design Challenge will run during the Interaction14 conference in Amsterdam, February 4-8, 2014. I’m happy to be on …
Service Design, The Force and Yoda
While I am down under in Melbourne later in August for UX Australia I’m going to be giving a different talk and hosting a discussion at RMIT’s …
Mural.ly - super duper collaborative walls
Anyone who has worked with me in the last few years will know my propensity to use a lot of Post-It notes. It’s a design cliché, I know, but true. I just …
Tile and Internet of Things Services
I have a re-occurring conversation with my MA Design students, especially those specialising in products. It goes something like this: Student: “I’m …
Backing the Kickstarter campaign for What Doesn't Kill You
My lovely friend Rachel Meyrick has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise money to make a feature documentary called, What Doesn’t Kill You. It’s …
ALA Article on Service Design Beyond the Screen
As usual I’m behind the curve, but this time I’m behind myself, which is weird. I don’t think I’ll psychoanalyse that too much more. I …
Storytelling for Designers
As a design educator I watch and read a lot of project presentations. I worked out the other day that I must have seen at least 2,000-3,000 student projects in …
Infographic Movies
The Inforgraphic Movie blog is a rolling resource of, well, infographic movies from Swiss designer, “Hitch”, who is an ex-student of ours here at …
UX and Service Design in Lisbon
From UX to Service Design at UX-LX I’m heading off to Lisbon tomorrow to run a workshop at UX-LX in Lisbon called From UX to Service Design. It’s …