Understanding who we are solving a problem for is important for creating user-centric digital services. An 'As-Is' user journey can help identify touchpoints, inefficiencies, pain points, opportunities for improvement and can inform the design of a 'To-Be' user journey that represents the desired state of the user experience after changes have been made.
Abu Dhabi Digital Authority aligned its digitization strategy around 80 user journeys available through TAMM, a one-stop shop for all digital government services.
The 'To-Be' user journey is created in the context of a redesign or improvement of service. Its aim is to create a better user experience by identifying and implementing changes that will improve the user's journey and ultimately lead to greater satisfaction for its users. Redesign of the service can be based on the following simplification principles:
'Public Service Reengineering Methodology' from Moldova, the winner of WSIS Special Prize 2023 is a good example of service re-design guidelines used to train digital service teams across Moldova's Government entities.
Find below a translated version of the aforementioned methodology.
Identify service owners, users, and stakeholders using the glossary for roles as well as the User Persona template.
Ask the service owner if there have been any previous efforts in digitizing the service, and seek out any resulting reports, findings, or raw data.
Conduct user research using interviews, contextual inquiries, heuristic evaluation, with consent. (Source: 18F and TTS)
Use GovStack user journey template to map 'As-Is' and 'To-Be' user journeys. Example of 'Initial To-Be' and 'To-Be' user journeys for Extended Producer responsibility (EPR) in Rwanda.
Synthesize user research: Methods provide instructions on several different ways to tell users’ stories, including journey maps, user scenarios, storyboards. (Source: 18F)
Depending on the complexity of the service, you can request alignment from business leads on initial prioritization to focus on additional research activities.
Present research findings, service design process, user journeys, opportunities for improvement, current & future Building Blocks/DPGs, service architecture, user personas, and service digitization roadmap in a 'Service Design Proposal'. An example of EPR Service Design proposal can be found below:
Who does what:
Legal advisors – Clarify regulations that apply to the service
Service design Proposal:
Service owners and stakeholders
As-Is and To-be user journeys, in which are mapped:
Actions are taken by the user to obtain a service
Legal justification
Touchpoints
Pain points
Opportunity for improvement
Current and future stack
Simplification opportunities
/ Design lead – Creates a research plan (What are the research objectives, what methods to use, and participants) and guides the creation of user journeys.
– Prepare & conduct user interviews, focus groups, facilitate user journey workshops
