Chapter 3: The Blueprint for Change – Redesigning the Lab’s Processes

Welcome to the Third Chapter of Marta’s Journey. A story about turning insights into action and the transformative power of service blueprints.

Marta’s dental lab is on a mission to evolve. After forming her service design team and gaining invaluable insights through customer journey mapping, Marta now faces her next challenge: turning those insights into tangible changes. With Levi, the service design consultant, leading the way, Marta and her team are about to embark on the next critical step — creating a service blueprint.

In this chapter, we’ll follow Marta’s team as they dive into the mechanics of their service, mapping out processes, tools, and interactions to identify what needs fixing, what’s missing, and what can be improved. If the customer journey map revealed what her clients experience, the service blueprint will help Marta figure out how to deliver that experience seamlessly.

Stay tuned as Marta’s team learns to bridge the gap between what they want to offer and how to make it happen — laying the groundwork for a service that delights clients and empowers her team.

Turning Insights Into Action

With their journey map displayed prominently on the wall, Marta’s team reconvened for their next workshop. The colorful map, now filled with sticky notes and comments from client interviews, served as both a reminder of their challenges and a vision of what they wanted to achieve.

Levi

This is where we take what we’ve learned and make it actionable. The service blueprint is like the engine that powers the customer journey. It’s where we figure out how to deliver the experience your clients want.

Tom

So, this is about fixing the processes that frustrate our clients?

Levi

Exactly, and it’s more than that. It’s also about empowering your team, optimizing your tools, and aligning everyone’s efforts. Think of it as designing the backstage of your service.

Mapping the Service Blueprint

The team began by breaking down the dentist’s journey from the customer journey map into specific actions the lab needed to take at each stage. Levi introduced four layers to organize their blueprint:

1. Client Actions: What the dentists are doing at each touchpoint.
2. Frontstage Actions: Interactions between the dentists and the lab team, like placing orders or receiving updates.
3. Backstage Actions: Behind-the-scenes work that the clients don’t see, such as creating models or coordinating deliveries.
4. Support Processes: The systems, tools, and external partners that keep everything running, from software to couriers.

The team started with a key moment from the journey map: Order Placement.

• Client Action: The dentist fills out an order form.
• Frontstage Action: The lab receives the form and confirms receipt with the dentist.
• Backstage Action: A technician reviews the form for completeness and flags any missing information.
• Support Process: The online portal that manages order submissions and notifications.

It didn’t take long for issues to surface.

Jamaal

Our order forms are confusing. We get so many errors because the fields aren’t clear.

Isabel

And when there’s missing information, we waste time calling back and forth.

Levi

These are exactly the kinds of problems the blueprint helps us identify. Let’s keep going.

Uncovering Opportunities

As they worked through each stage of the journey, the team uncovered a mix of pain points and opportunities:

1. Communication Improvements:

• Dentists felt left in the dark after placing orders.
• Solution: Automate order confirmations and status updates through the portal.

2. Streamlined Backstage Processes:

• Technicians often wasted time searching for details or clarifying instructions.
• Solution: Standardize the forms and introduce an internal checklist for order reviews.

3. Delivery Tracking:

• Couriers occasionally delayed shipments, leaving dentists frustrated.
• Solution: Partner with a delivery service that offers real-time tracking and notifications.

4. Feedback Mechanisms:

• Post-delivery feedback rarely reached the lab.
• Solution: Add a simple, optional survey link to the delivery confirmation email.

Each solution was noted on the blueprint, creating a clear visual representation of how the lab could deliver a better client experience.

A Vision for the Future

By the end of the session, the service blueprint was starting to take shape. Levi encouraged the team to step back and look at the bigger picture.

“This isn’t just about fixing problems,” he said. “It’s about creating a system that supports your clients and your team, so everyone wins.”

Marta felt a surge of optimism. “I can see it now,” she said. “We’re not just reacting to issues, we’re designing a service that works for everyone.”

What’s Next?

With a draft of their service blueprint in hand, Marta and her team are ready to start testing their ideas. But how do you turn a plan on paper into a reality? In the next chapter, they’ll pilot small changes, gather feedback, and refine their blueprint for maximum impact.

Follow Marta’s journey as she moves from planning to implementation. And discover how even small improvements can lead to big changes.

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