Marc Stickdorn on Journey Management, AI & Leading Change in Chaotic Times

This is HCD – Human-Centered Design, UX & Service Design Thinking Podcast

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In this episode of This is HCD, Gerry Scullion is joined (again!) by service design pioneer Marc Stickdorn – recorded right after they both spoke at SD in Gov in Edinburgh.

We walk (literally) through the current state of service design, why so many teams feel stuck, and how journey management can help organisations move beyond one-off projects to achieve truly systemic change.

We talk about:

• How to scale service design beyond a single team and embed it organisation-wide
• Journey management, service architecture and “journey ops” – and why naming really matters
• Building scaffolding for long-term impact (using the Dublin City Council work as an example)
• How to speak the language of leadership and show measurable ROI
• Why stealth projects can be your best way to build credibility
• The role of AI and tooling – where it helps, and where it’s genuinely dangerous
• Why leaders can’t outsource understanding to an algorithm

If you’re trying to move service design from nice decks to real organisational change – in public services or the private sector – this episode is for you.

🔗 Links mentioned

– Marc’s upcoming book & community: https://www.thisisjourneymanagement.com

– Smaply blog & resources: https://www.smaply.com

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Click here to watch a video of this episode.
Creators & Guests

• Gerry Scullion - Host
• Marc Stickdorn - Guest