Barry-Kahn
Innovation
Observation and Needfinding
Who are we
Who are we
We work with teams of
– marketers
– designers
– engineers
– social
scientists
Who are we
Doing research and Needfinding for…
Who are we
Technology innovation
Who are we
Design strategy
Who are we
New product development
Who are we
For a variety of companies around the world.
Today we are going
to investigate
Observation and
Needfinding.
Why Observation?
The heart of innovation…
Understanding people
Especially
customers
and users
Patricia Moore
Observation is key to that
understanding
Observation tells you
Triggers of use
Observation tells you
Interactions with the use environment
Observation tells you
User workarounds
Observation tells you
Unarticulated
user needs
Observation tells you
Key stories a product
must communicate
Observation tells you
Observation tells you
Observation and
the Needfinding
Process
Abstract
Frameworks
Imperatives
Analysis
Synthesis
Observations
Solutions
Figure out
the story
Tell a new
story
Concrete
Needs
gaps within
a system of
Use,
Usability and
Meaning
Needfinding
discovering
opportunities
by
recognizing
those gaps
Innovation
uses
observation
and
Needfinding
to…
Figure out
the story…
And tell a
new one
Use, Usability and Meaning
A local story
Acorn preparation as practiced
by the
Mono Indians of Fresno
Meaning
Meaning
and Madera
Counties till about
1923
Black and White Oak acorns
provided all their “bread food”
Use, Usability and Meaning
A local story
This Indian woman is preparing
acorn meal, a slow difficult
process of pounding and
grinding with a shaped stone
Use, Usability and Meaning
A local story
She is using a Community Mill, a
large flat granite boulder with
many holes which serve as
mortars
Use, Usability and Meaning
Use
The basic functionality of a product:
– explicit need
– task to be solved
–work to be done
–what it has to do
Use
Usability
Represents aspects of a product that give the user access
to the Use:
– Physical ergonomics
– Cognitive sense
Use
Usability
Use and Usability
Use
Usability
Meaning
Cultural stories communicating:
– organizing frames
– emotional resonance
– expectations
Use
Usability
Meaning
Meaning
Imagine an interview about
making bread food from acorns:
•
•
•
•
•
“It is a hard, time-consuming job
for us.”
“From the village...to this
boulder we have always come
to sit and work. We sit and
pound acorns, gossip, scold the
children and make food for our
tribe.”
“The children play nearby and
can hear our stories and songs.”
“To pass the time, we tell stories
and sing the songs of our
people and how they live in the
world.”
“The acorn is mother to us all
and this stone is where we give
her life and she gives us life”
Use
Usability
Meaning
Meaning
Use
Usability
Meaning
Needs
Needs are gaps within Use, Usability and Meaning
We innovate by creating experiences that bridge these
gaps
Use
Usability
Meaning
Case Study
Kimberly-Clark “Is your child still in diapers?”
Case Study
Kimberly-Clark
Kimberly-Clark was losing
significant market share to
P&G so they hired us to:

Explore the needs
surrounding diaper
use and purchase

Create new diaper
concepts
Case Study
Kimberly-Clark

Rethink current approach
to diaper development

Find new competitive
categories

Escape commoditization
Case Study
How
KimberlyClark looked
at their
customer
Case Study
Where diapers are
purchased?…
…across from the dog
food
Case Study
What message
does KimberlyClark’s
packaging
communicate?
Case Study
What message
does KimberlyClark’s packaging
communicate?
Case Study
We spent lots of time
watching parents take care
of their infants, in a broad
range of circumstances
The stories important to
customers weren’t the
stories important to KC
Case Study
Generative Insights:

Diapers
are
children’s
clothing
Case Study
Generative Insights:


Diapers are
children’s clothing
Children’s clothing
symbolizes future
success and control
Case Study
Generative Insights:



Diapers are
children’s clothing
Children’s clothing
symbolizes future
success and control
“Is your child still in
diapers?”
Case Study
Generative insights reveal
needs:

Children’s clothing are not
waste disposal bandages

Represent future success
and control, not failure

Negotiate the
uncertainties of toilet
training
Case Study
Needs inform and inspire
new concepts
Case Study
Needs inform and inspire
new concepts
Case Study
Needs inform and inspire
new concepts
Case Study
Needs inform and inspire
new concepts
Case Study
This need in particular:
“Is your child still in
diapers?”
Suggests the possibility
of a new category
Case Study
Outcome:

New product
category disposable training
pants

Diaper technology
is unchanged, but
the product’s
meaning is very
different
Case Study
Outcome:

Provided Kimberly
Clark with new
category - toilet
training toddlers

Incremental
revenues of
Huggies Pull-Ups
have topped $900
million per year
Case Study
Outcome:

Huggies leapfrogged
Proctor & Gamble

Pull-Ups did not
cannibalize KC’s large
sized diaper
Case Study
Outcome:

Changed KC’s
communication for all their
product lines
“I’m a big kid now!”
The Basic Idea
The Basic Idea
We listen to the stories
people tell us
The Basic Idea
We observe what people
do
The Basic Idea
We listen to the stories
people tell us about
what they do
The Basic Idea
Look for needs:
 disconnects
 workarounds
 contradictions
 Use, Usability and
Meaning
and ask
why?
The Basic Idea
We then help
conceptualize new
solutions to fit those
needs
The Basic Idea
When asked to build a
bridge…what do you do?
Let’s Get Fit
Let’s Get Fit
When you were younger,
it was so easy. You
showed up to Gym class
and the time flew. Class
was filled with games of
dodge ball, kickball, flag
football, and, oh yeah,
exercise. Gym class was
fun, fast, and healthy. It
wasn’t exercise, it was
just Gym.
Let’s Get Fit
So what happens? As adults, we are busy with jobs,
families, responsibilities, and to do lists. Yet, some
people establish daily routines that incorporate
exercise. Why do others struggle to make the time?
Let’s Get Fit
As people get busier and busier, time continues to
become even more precious. Our challenge is to
target those people who don’t make the time.
Let’s Get Fit
Consider what it means that whole towns are on
diets, video games like Wii fit are available and
iPhone apps are ready to make your phone a
personal trainer.
Let’s Get Fit
We are going to help you see exercise with fresh
eyes, having you explore the needs of a number of
people of different ages in a range of different
contexts and situations.
Exercise can be: Energizing.
Healthy. Fun. Time consuming.
Inspiring. Routine. A mental break.
An antidepressant. A release. A
time to think. A time to not think.
Social. Fun in the sun. Morning
wake-up. a good habit. A game.
An addiction.
Let’s Get Fit
Your challenge is to help more people incorporate
appropriate exercise into their everyday lives. Use
the needs you to discover to help shape new
opportunities and to create new products, services
and experiences.
Let’s try an observation.
Barry-Kahn
Innovation
Through Customer Centered Design