Agile User Experience Design for Product-Service Systems

Purpose and goal

As companies are increasingly forming partnerships with other companies to develop product-service system, where the software is part of a larger whole, there is a challenge to adapt agile methods from the software domain to better fit the development of a combination of hardware, software and services. A literature review and a qualitative study has been conducted in order to examine the academic research front and the industrial practice.

Results and expected effects

The result shows that the four overarching values described in the Agile Manifesto is well in line with the needs and expectations of the participating companies expressed in terms of new methods and approaches in the development of product-service systems. It is not about transferring a strict methodology from the software domain to the area of product-service systems, but rather to spread the knowledge of a number of agile core values that can help create more effective cross-functional teams.

Approach and implementation

The project started with a literature study examining how agile methodology emerged in the software industry and how the methodology relates to the e.g. lean manufacturing, kanban, etc. Qualitative interviews were then conducted with 20 informants in 19 different companies in many different industries to seek a deeper understanding of how these companies organize product development and innovation activities how they relate to agile-like methodology.