“Are You Being Served?”, Richard Eisermann and Anja Kluever, Prospekt

“ARE YOU BEING SERVED?”, OCT 23-24, LJUBLJANA
Richard Eisermann and Anja Klüver, Prospect, UK

Richard Eisermann has worked as a designer and strategist for over twenty years. He has had a hand in designing everything from insulin delivery systems to high-speed train services. In 2006, he co-founded Prospect, a London-based strategic design practice, with Anja Klüver. Prior to Prospect, Richard was Director of Design and Innovation at the UK Design Council, responsible for leading design campaigns in the areas of manufacturing, technology, learning environments, and design skills.
Anja Klüver is co-founder of Prospect with Richard Eisermann, and a visual communications designer with over 12 years of interaction design experience. She has collaborated with MetaDesign London, Icon Brandlab, FutureBrand Digital and Oyster Partners among others, leading multi-disciplinary teams on projects for Unilever, Dutch Telecom, MTV Europe, No. 10 Downing Street, the Victoria & Albert Museum, British Airways and The BBC.

“If the service economy is the defining paradigm of our current reality, then why”, Eisermann and Klüver ask, “are we so bad at designing and delivering good ones?”
Poor experiences abound – are designers responsible? Or have they just not been invited to the party? “With designers ever more keen to be involved in upstream strategic thinking, how,” they ask “can we make sure to not ignore those areas where a designer’s skills make a significant impact: at the sharp end of service delivery.”
Prospect looks at the role of design in the conceptualisation and creation of services as well as explores the methods and tools available to realise brilliant experiences. Looking at the issues from a user-centred perspective, we see how people might be involved in service co-creation and in the design of their associated communities, reinforcing the notion of “The Story Economy”.
Prospect offers up case Amtrak and makes their own case – “Designing the transition from operations focus to service focus”. Amtrak provides passenger rail services in the USA and had forever operated in the red. It was decided a design-focused management strategy was needed. Working closely with the senior management team, the design team helped to build a tangible vision, visualising a series of ideas that embodied the look and feel of the overall service concept. This, in turn, laid the groundwork for the specific service elements to be developed, within a framework dubbed “The Seamless Journey”. The design team developed the brand idea, the positioning, the identity and created a new name for the service: “Acela”.
Amtrak was able to offer an integrated passenger service through an organisation clear in its objectives and its identity. Ridership increased twofold within six months of service introduction. Amtrak’s Acela service is now poised to generate a $2 million profit – the largest in Amtrak history.

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