The Connection Advantage

In-house service designers often work in environments where they are the minority. Staying connected to other professionals and the broader discipline is crucial for professional growth, inspiration, and resilience.

This chapter explores the strength of these connections. Do designers feel isolated in their silos, or are they effectively bridging the gap to the wider community?

We analyzed the data to answer three key questions:

  1. The Baseline: How connected are service designers generally?
  2. The Breakdown: Does seniority, company size, or location affect isolation?
  3. The "So What?": Is there a correlation between professional connection and the impact you make at work?

1. Connection to Professionals: How connected do you feel to other service design professionals in the field?

2. Connection to the Discipline: How connected do you feel to our field as a whole?

Respondents rated their connection on a scale from "Very disconnected" to "Very connected".

Filter the Data

Connection to Professionals

How connected do in-house designers feel to other people (practitioners, peers, mentors) in the service design space?

Connection to the Field

How connected do they feel to the discipline itself (trends, discourse, knowledge) as a whole?

Does Connection Drive Impact?

We looked for a correlation between how connected a designer feels to their peers (Connection to Professionals) and the level of impact they feel they are making in their organization.