Even when our work doesn’t feature prominently in a story in The Wall Street Journal, we are endlessly proud of what we achieve with our client partners. But every now and then, the splash is just a little bit bigger. So when our learning intervention dovetails with a bigger cultural issue – that is, when it becomes news– we take it in stride. It’s just part of what we do. The only difference is that it gives us a nice opportunity to share the story of our work with you.That’s the case here. Blueline Simulations isn’t explicitly named in this article; nor would it be appropriate for me to tell you which of the companies featured was our client.It started when our client partner asked us to conduct a “voice of the customer” intervention to help create change within their organization. Our process included interviews with internal stakeholders to reveal prevailing mental models; a proposal for internal change (based on the stakeholder’s perspectives — not ours!); and a collaborative, iterative process that resulted in new processes and new beliefs within the organization.If you know anything about pharma, you know that’s a tall order. And if you know anything about sales… that’s hallowed ground! The fact that the change took root – and today is featured in the Wall Street Journal – is testament to the integrity of the process, and the courage of our client.Take a look. It’s a great story. And it’s a story I’d love to help create in your organization as well.
A process for collaborative change: Blueline Simulations’ “Voice of the Customer.”
1. Listen first. A series of stakeholder interviews reveals prevailing biases and mental models.
2. Build a straw man. We propose a design that, significantly, is informed explicitly by the client’s own words.
3. Tell the story. We record a webinar and interim report to disseminate the design to key organizational influencers.
4. Test and refine the design. Stakeholder response leads us to produce a new iteration. This is in preparation of the next step.
5. Present the big idea. The final report is a testament to the work of the organization’s stakeholders… and becomes a powerful artifact for change.