Increase your confidence, influence, and impact (through a Professional Community)
Summary
Doing good service design is hard. You know what makes it easier? Having a supportive community of smart and generous professionals who are rooting for your success. In this session, we'll explore the power of professional communities, what makes them thrive, and help you decide if joining one is the right move for you. Plus, we'll share how to start and grow your own community based on the lessons we’ve learned from designing the community for in-house service professionals.
Key Insights
-
•
49% of service design professionals do not feel connected to their peers, impacting their confidence and productivity.
-
•
Feeling connected doubles the likelihood of individuals perceiving that they make significant impact at their organizations.
-
•
The Circle community started from a simple email invitation and grew intentionally to 20 countries with a focus on quality over size.
-
•
A curated and selective admission process helps build trust and ensures community alignment and safety.
-
•
Regular, structured sessions with a familiar rhythm (biweekly meetings, themed quarterly seasons) enhance commitment and participation.
-
•
Slow, intentional communication avoids overwhelming members with constant notifications, encouraging presence and focus.
-
•
High quality personal connections, including one-to-one video calls, foster deeper trust and peer support.
-
•
Interactive session formats like Water Cooler (open topic, voting-based discussions) and Dinner Table (hosted, thematic, story sharing) enrich learning.
-
•
Active member involvement in governance through councils and working groups sustains community relevance and continuous improvement.
-
•
Community design is an ongoing prototype that evolves with member feedback and changing professional landscapes.
Notable Quotes
"Half of the service design professionals do not feel connected to their peers, which is significant."
"If you don’t feel connected and you’re standing alone, the challenge looks much bigger."
"Respondents who feel very connected are twice as likely to say they’re making a significant impact."
"We design a community that would be missed if it were gone for our service design leaders."
"Everyone goes through quite an extensive application process, but it was stress-free and informal."
"A regular heartbeat and familiar structure are really important principles to keep a community alive."
"Slow and intentional communication allows you to be fully present rather than distracted by constant notifications."
"High quality personal connections mean you can engage on a level playing field with serious professionals."
"We encourage one-to-one video calls to build rapport and feel comfortable reaching out for advice."
"The community is an ongoing prototype; members have a strong, frequent voice in shaping what good looks like."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"The more participatory the practices, the deeper and more intentional the engagement needs to be."
Alexia Cohen Adriane AckermanIncreasing Health Equity and Improving the Service Experience for Under-Served Latine Communities in Arizona
December 4, 2024
"You want to let participants know it’s a bit non-typical and they are not being tricked or evaluated."
Marc Majers Tony TurnerInterrupted UX - Add A Dose of Reality To Usability Testing
March 11, 2022
"Our appliances are attacking us somehow and bringing down major parts of our infrastructure."
Jorge ArangoDesign as an Antidote to VUCA
May 9, 2019
"The greatest sign of success for a teacher is just to be able to say the children are now working as if I did not exist."
Brenna FallonLearning Over Outcomes
October 24, 2019
"Psychological warmth and physical warmth activate the same part of the brain, the insula."
Daniel GloydWarming the User Experience: Lessons from America's first and most radical human-centered designers
May 9, 2024
"People with disabilities often pay more to buy from stores they trust are accessible and where they feel confident."
Sam ProulxOnline Shopping: Designing an Accessible Experience
October 3, 2023
"Equipped with the right tools, we can truly meet students where they are."
Kristin SkinnerFive Years of DesignOps
September 29, 2021
"It can be so tiring to be the only one constantly saying this has to be done differently."
Denise Jacobs Nancy Douyon Renee Reid Lisa WelchmanInteractive Keynote: Social Change by Design
January 8, 2024
"Fraud detection automatically refunds you if a participant is found to be fraudulent and helps find a replacement."
Roberta Dombrowski Lianna Aduana5 Reasons to Bring your Recruiting in House
September 30, 2021
