When a large municipality in Southern Europe that was severely hit by the pandemic (the authors do not disclose its name) redesigned its mobility services starting from citizens’ concrete experiences rather than from internal administrative constraints, the positive effects were immediate and measurable: higher user satisfaction, increased use of digital channels, reduced friction in “non-standard” cases, better management of expectations, and greater trust in the administration.
Through service design tools such as focus groups, personas, and co-design with citizens and civil servants, the administration discovered that many online services worked only for “ideal” users, excluding those who did not fit traditional bureaucratic models (for example, people using leased vehicles or those not formally registered as residents). By correcting these assumptions and adapting services to users’ real-life trajectories, the municipality improved accessibility, trust, and the perceived value of services, offering a concrete example of how a user-centered approach can translate into tangible results for the public sector.
Service design is a user-centered approach to the design of public services that aims to systematically integrate the needs, experiences, and expertise of users and providers into the process of designing and redesigning services.
Three scholars from SDA Bocconi, Maria Cucciniello, Greta Nasi and Rosanna Tarricone, in a book written with Gregory Porumbescu of Rutgers University (Design strategies in public services, Cambridge University Press), argue that, to improve the effectiveness and value of public services, they must be rethought starting from the user experience. The systematic adoption of service design enables administrations to create public value in a more inclusive and sustainable way, especially in complex contexts such as healthcare, education, and municipal services.
The volume, published in the Cambridge Elements in Public and Nonprofit Administration series, combines theory and empirical evidence. After a conceptual framework on service design and Public Service Logic, the text introduces operational tools and methodologies (such as the Double Diamond) and presents three case studies: the redesign of municipal services in the post-Covid period, the application of design in local educational services, and the development of a mobile health app for vulnerable oncology patients. The structure is designed to guide the reader from the theoretical framework to practical application.
Beyond the centrality of the user, the authors highlight two key issues. The first concerns the role of technology: digital tools and design work only if they are integrated into broader organizational change involving skills, leadership, and administrative culture. The second concerns inclusion: co-design risks amplifying inequalities if fragile groups are not actively involved. Hence the emphasis on the need to design services capable of holding together innovation, equity, and institutional feasibility.
The book is particularly useful for public managers, policy makers, consultants, and scholars of public management interested in concrete tools to improve service quality. But it may also be relevant for those in the private or third sector who work on innovation in complex services. In a context of scarce resources and growing expectations from citizens, the volume offers theoretical and operational tools to rethink how the public sector creates value.
- Publisher: Cambridge University Press
- Publication date: 2026
- Pages: 84
- Online ISBN: 9781009451734
- Format: Hardback, Paperback, PDF
MARIA CUCCINIELLO is Associate Professor in the Department of Social and Political Sciences at Bocconi University. She has collaborated with SDA Bocconi since 2006.
GRETA NASI is Director of the Executive Master in Management of International Organizations at SDA Bocconi and Associate Professor in the Department of Social and Political Sciences at Bocconi University.
ROSANNA TARRICONE is Associate Dean of the SDA Bocconi School of Management – Government, Health, and Nonprofit Division, and Associate Professor in the Department of Social and Political Sciences at Bocconi University.
