01 See Hitachi Ltd. (n.d.). Experiential Value: Introduce and Ellicit Ideas, at http://www.hitachi.com/rd/portal/contents/design/business_origami/index.html. See also McMullin, J. (2011). Business Origami, at http://www.citizenexperience.com/2010/04/30/business-origami/.
02 McMullin, J. (2011) “Business Origami - UX Week 2011 Workshop.” Retrieved January 4, 2016, from http://de.slideshare.net/jessmcmullin/business-origami-ux-week-2011-workshop.
03 See Red and green feedback in #TiSDD 10.5, Methods.
Prepared paper cutouts representing key people, locations, channels, and touchpoints can be quickly placed, moved, and reconfigured on a table or horizontal whiteboard until the team are happy with the model. Relationships and value exchanges can be easily visualized by grouping or drawing connections between different elements directly on the whiteboard. Since most systems are not static by nature, many projects will also look at the development of the model over time (the “service system journey”) or compare alternative systems. [01]
The interaction with the Business Origami setup is straightforward and invites everybody into the process – without any prior technical knowledge. Due to the businesslike look and feel of the cutouts, this is a great tool to introduce. The simplicity of the components and the ability to rapidly experiment with different setups is key here. It triggers focused conversations among the participants, quickly uncovering assumptions and contributing to a shared understanding of the inner workings of the complex service ecosystem. It is important to remember that the critical deliverable is not the model itself, but the experience of modeling the service system in the team.
As a technique, Business Origami can be applied throughout the service design process. During research, it can be used to map and understand the existing business or service system. Later, during ideation and prototyping, it can help to continually explore what kind of business system your newly created future service concepts might imply.
“Business Origami creates a miniature movie set, with props and actors to tell stories,” says Jess McMullin. [02] In that sense, Business Origami is to system mapping what the desktop walkthrough is to journey mapping, though the boundaries can sometimes be blurry (i.e., you can simply use elements of the Business Origami kit to do a proper desktop walkthrough). We suggest you keep the methods separate, though. Use a desktop walkthrough to focus on the experience of a stakeholder over time. Use Business Origami to look at a more holistic service system and how its different parts play together (over time).
