CHALLENGE

Miriam’s Field Operations organization needs to reduce the number of technicians in trucks that it  sends out into the field to assist customers with troubleshooting their television and broadband  issues.  Customers call into customer care call centers and chat online about their service issues.   Those calls are handled but representatives who follow detailed troubleshooting process flows  that ultimately generate trouble tickets that in turn dispatch technicians out to a customer’s home  to help troubleshoot and solve a customer’s problem.

There is ample cost in operating the call centers and ample cost to roll a truck and a highly  skilled technician out to a customer’s home.  If Miriam could reduce the number of  technician/truck rolls by giving customer options to solve the problem themselves or proactively  solve a customer’s problem before (s)he must call in for assistance could save Miriam millions of  dollars in operating costs.   It could also give customers a much better experience that does not  involve the customer having to wait at home during a four-hour appointment window for a  technician’s visit.

SELECTION

Using a mind map could help identify better ways for Miriam to solve its customers’ problems  before having to roll a technician/truck.  As Marion Moore mentioned in Module 3 of this course  (https://www.coursera.org/learn/uva-darden-design-thinking-innovation/lecture/lsFRa/mind- mapping-tool, looking at the situation through a “what is” lens by using a mind map can be very  helpful to understanding existing challenges and roadblocks that create customer problems in the  first place.  Having this knowledge will be critical for the next step, the “what if” phase of the  design thinking process that helps to identify how to modify the current situation for the better.    Given the process nature of Miriam customers calling into a center, workflows being used, then  trouble tickets being recorded, and finally dispatching technicians to troubleshoot, the mind map  seems like a good approach to help solve its technician/truck roll challenge.

APPLICATION

When applying the mind map to Miriam’s processes, I found the challenge to be overwhelming  and decided that it might be best to focus on a specific type of reason for a technician/truck roll.   I opted for a scenario about a broadband customer self-install kit.  This kit is sent out to  customers who order internet service, who want to install the equipment themselves.  Quite  often, something in the process breaks down and the customer is unable to complete the self- install.  When that happens, the customer must call into a call center for help and this frequently  requires a technician/truck roll to solve the problem.

In looking at the volume of calls into a call center, related to the customer self-install kit, I used a  mind map to draw out the various process steps a customer goes through during the self-install.   While there are instructions in the self-install kit, it became clear that many technician/truck rolls  are related to issues outside of the equipment in the kit (e.g., modem/router, cables).  I mapped  out the entire customer process from call in to the call customer to place the order for a self- install kit, to receipt of it, opening the contents, reviewing the instructions through to install.  I

noted potential pain points for the customer along the way, such as potential areas of confusion  or instructions that relied heavily on technical “jargon” that were intended for a non-technical  audience.

INSIGHT

The insight I had from mapping out all the steps a customer must go through to do the self- install, was that the information about which port to plug which cable into could be  misconstrued.  If a non-tech savvy customer was unable to determine an input vs. an output port  on their own, the instructions provided would be of no help.  My mind map showed a clear gap  in the installation process.  There were just too many options for a customer to use the cables to  connect the router.  This insight was  likely the source of customer confusion and a failed self- install which would lead to a call to the call center and a potential technician/truck roll.  This  exercise also helped me to see why the “what is” phase of design thinking is crucial.  It now  seems obvious to me that this step demonstrates the problem in a clearer light so potential  solutions in the “what if” phase that comes next can be addressed.

APPROACH

If I were to do this mind mapping exercise differently next time, I think I’d look more closely at  the workflows used by customer care representatives.  My mind map showed gaps in the clarity  of the instructions.  I think a care representative should be able to walk a customer through  connecting a modem/router with the right cables and ports such that a technician/truck would not  have to be dispatched.  There may be more value (e.g., greater cost savings opportunities) in  using mind mapping on the customer care representative workflows as opposed to the customer  instructions.

