The PSS 101 research project aims to create a framework and tools for networks producing complex services. As companies move away from providing specific products to providing a combination of products and services (called Product System Services), their networks expand to include professionals from different fields than their own. In practice, this means they have to work with individuals with a completely different background and agenda. Without a common language and common goal, different 'action' partners, or stakholders as they are called, remain within their professional 'silos', cooperating in producing the combined service, but not necessarily collaborating in the dvelopment of more innovation within that service.
So how do we get stakeholders to talk to each other? And how can we spark dialogue between stakeholders and other parties all throughout the supply chain of a combined product service system? The first step is to understand the nature of networked collaboration, that a common goal may have a different meaning to different stakeholders. Just because a network is producing one combined outcome, doesnt mean that each party is required to have the same agenda to be on the same page, so to speak. It is still possible to collaborate and have a efficient exchange of resources within a network in the early development phases of a service. What this requires, however, is for each stakeholder to have a clear understanding of what is to be gained from the network, what the needs are of the other stakeholders and that they are able to express these needs clearly.
Together with the PSS 101 partners, I have developed the ‘Value Pursuit’ tool, a game board that can be used in workshops to clarify how stakeholders in a specific PSS can be of value to each other and thereby identify shared goals within the project.
On the ‘Value Pursuit’ game board, each participant must write down their contributory value and what challenges they face. Their (potential) value is then connected to other partners’ challenges. These connections are counted and represented by playing pieces on a second game board (resembling a radar) which visualises how much each partner gains and contributes to a network. For a network to thrive and trust to be maintained between network partners, these playing pieces should be aligned as much as possible. How much people gain from a network has to be balanced against their contributions.
By providing an overview of what their individual value means for the end service (what they can bring to the table, so to speak), the tool contributes to building trust and sparking motivation complex service concepts, weaving together different disciplines that previously worked independently and in parallel.