Client Empathy Discover Datasheet

Client Empathy Discover Datasheet

October 31, 2016 - Brad Griffith

For this assignment, I asked my colleague Rhonda if I could observe her in her workspace.  Rhonda's office is close to mine and I have worked with her in this space before, but this was an interesting experience as I went into her space with a different mindset.

I began by backing a chair into Rhonda's corner and just letting her work. 

 

It was here that I noticed the curated experience of being in her office. On the datasheet, I listed some of these observations and the blocks I thought were affected by them.  In my documentation, I wanted to remember this experience visually, so I drew a floor plan of her office and highlighted the effect that essential oils had on me.  Rhonda uses the oils, her plants, and the organization of her office to bring peace and clarity to her workday.   I selected three of the blocks which I felt were affected by this experience:  information, dialogue, and practice.  Rhonda is able to process information in this space better because of how it's arranged according to her standards.

 

 



Client Discovery Focus Board - Milissa's Major Hubs

Client Discovery Focus Board - Milissa's Major Hubs

Brad Griffith - October 13, 2016

My colleague, Milissa is working on a project right now called "Major Hubs."  These are online communities that are focused around students' field of study. I worked somewhat with her on the initial stages of this project, but am not present for the production phase, which is going to be key to getting this off the ground and universally used across campus.

First, I did an overall focus board for this online community:

I then went into a deeper level to determine how the information regarding the major would be presented:

Another focus of this hub I wanted to tackle was the learning tools that would be incorporated.  

One of the unique things about these focus boards is that I don't think they require much explanation to understand the information presented.  I handed these over to Milissa yesterday morning and asked her to look over them.  She quickly got back to me and indicated that they were clearly written and that one of them had an idea she had not considered until now.  I don't think these boards truly "enlightened" Milissa's work on this project, but I could tell by our conversation that we both felt that she was on the right track with this project concerning empathy of the client, in this case the students and faculty of the program that receives the hub.  I could have done many more of these focus boards to represent the various layers of the major hub learning environment.  I could see them as being a useful tool for a project like this to ensure that you are focused from the beginning and not wasting time constructing an ineffective environment.

Client Discovery Focus Board - Milissa's Major Hubs

Client Discovery Focus Board - Milissa's Major Hubs

Brad Griffith - October 13, 2016

My colleague, Milissa is working on a project right now called "Major Hubs."  These are online communities that are focused around students' field of study. I worked somewhat with her on the initial stages of this project, but am not present for the production phase, which is going to be key to getting this off the ground and universally used across campus.

First, I did an overall focus board for this online community:

I then went into a deeper level to determine how the information regarding the major would be presented:

Another focus of this hub I wanted to tackle was the learning tools that would be incorporated.  

One of the unique things about these focus boards is that I don't think they require much explanation to understand the information presented.  I handed these over to Milissa yesterday morning and asked her to look over them.  She quickly got back to me and indicated that they were clearly written and that one of them had an idea she had not considered until now.  I don't think these boards truly "enlightened" Milissa's work on this project, but I could tell by our conversation that we both felt that she was on the right track with this project concerning empathy of the client, in this case the students and faculty of the program that receives the hub.  I could have done many more of these focus boards to represent the various layers of the major hub learning environment.  I could see them as being a useful tool for a project like this to ensure that you are focused from the beginning and not wasting time constructing an ineffective environment.

Getting Focused - First Design Board

Focus Board - Virtual Study Tour

Brad Griffith - October 10, 2016

I currently have a project underway to develop what will amount to a "Virtual Study Tour" experience for students at my university.  This is a unique project in that it combines my current role of strategic planning and program development with my former emphasis in international experiences for students. 

When I first looked at the blank focus board and considered this project, I first found it to be a bit daunting because I was trying to go from the top to the bottom of the sheet.  I had this idea in my head, but now I had to put it down in somewhat definitive terms.  Once I started skipping around to different areas that I could easily define and fill, I found that the problem I was trying to solve became clear and how I wanted students to accomplish something in this environment became easier to distinguish. 

In my case, I found the notes column to be useful for recording all of the supporting actions or missing pieces that needed to be taken account of as I move forward with developing this learning environment.  Understanding LEM and being aware of the various LEML building blocks also caused me to think about this project more dynamically and search for opportunities to incorporate these elements that I may not have considered otherwise.

Discover Interview Reflections

Discover Interview Reflections

Brad Griffith - October 4, 2016

I had the fortune of serving as an Academic Advisor to business students for about two years.  This is one of the most empathy-focused positions in a college setting because you truly confront all types of issues with students, specifically those that they often are not willing to reveal right away.  Here are some of the techniques I can remember that worked well for me (and hopefully my students). 

1. Conduct background research.  My first step in empathy occurred in a review of my students' academic records and personal file before actually greeting them for an appointment.  Advisors usually have a specific set of information that must be communicated to each student, regardless of their stated needs for that exact appointment.  This was my way of conducting research of the person's current situation academically so that I could try to understand how it fit into their holistic place in life at that moment.   It is important to be informed about your learner, but to not cast a judgment or try to complete a picture before you have all the information. 

2. Intrusive and developmental questioning.  One of the most challenging skills to master as an academic advisor is that of intrusive advisement and questioning.  It's simple on the surface in that you should try to ask open-ended questions that provoke thought on the part of the student about their current and future academic career and personal goals.  This is particularly useful when students are confused about their purpose or direction.  Advising students can easily fall into a transactional pattern where you're just asking the student what they need and giving it to them, but it's in these intrusive questions and my observations that I was able to truly sit in their shoes, understand the obstacles and opportunities they faced, and then try to get them to take charge and own the learning environment/track I had proposed to them in the form of recommended classes, extracurricular activity opportunities, job connections, or just returning to me for feedback and encouragement.

3. Track progress and give constructive feedback.  In order to truly empathize with my 700+ students in some cases over the course of multiple years, I found it necessary to keep diligent notes about them and to make sure they saw our relationship as one that was continuous.  Fortunately, we used a program called Degree Works that had a note taking feature, with additional capabilities for confidential notes.  The conversation could be as simple as remembering that someone had a job interview between their appointments and asking how it went, or as complicated as following up on developing relationships between students and faculty mentors.  If I was keeping track of my students' progress, I could also help them modify their educational plan when needed to meet their needs.

4. Get to know who my students (or your clients) know.  My experience as an advisor changed when I started building personal relationship with the faculty that were teaching my students.  It wasn't until I observed the personality of the faculty, learned about their individual expertise, and inquired to my students about how they perceived their instructors that I was able to merge the interpersonal and academic reality of my students.