Change through Service Design – Service Prototyping as a Tool for Learning and Transformation

This article aims to explain how transformational change can be achieved through service design process and methods, especially through service prototyping, and how the learning process enables change. Results are based on case study research conducted in a service prototyping laboratory, SINCO (Service Innovation Corner), during a MediPro (Practices, Processes and Products for Medicine and Healthcare) research project. This paper examines if SINCO service prototyping methods can influence transformational change in companies and organizations, what kinds of learning processes SINCO and service prototyping activate, and how the service design process is constructed when using the SINCO environment. The aim of this paper is to present new information and insight regarding the benefits of service prototyping in development work between universities, companies and organizations. The key findings suggest that service prototyping can be an influential tool to transformational change as well as to encourage facilitation and team work. The codesign approach used in service design fosters a strong peer-to-peer learning process, and prototyping in the SINCO environment enables a technology-aided learning process and supports experiential learning. Research findings complement the theoretical background, which includes the key thematics of the service design process, learning process, transformational change in companies and service prototyping.