Service Design
Increasing Language Accessibility At Glide
Overview
This project was centered around researching GLIDE’s TL(Tenderloin,SF) Community Resource Hub, an outdoor site giving access to a range of critical services. We came up with a map that shows step-by-step how a first-time visitor would approach and use the hub as well as pointing out opportunities where relationship building succeeds / fails. Through research and interviews, we identified the needs of GLIDE’s team and visitors so we could start thinking of potential solutions that will make the hub even more successful.
CONTEXT
Team
Gina
Ryan
Owen
Vanessa
Duration
6months
Methods & Tools
Directed Storytelling
Personas
Co-creating
Brainstorming
Experience&Touchpoints
Observations
WHAT IS THE HUB?
The TL Resource Hub is a collaborative effort between GLIDE and other organizations in the Tenderloin to create a safe, outdoor space for accessing critical services and resources for free to the community. Services change by day (Mon-Fri) but are anchored by COVID testing, food pantry, acupuncture, and more.
CURRENT EXPERIENCE
For many visitors to the TL resource hub, language differences can pose a barrier for them communicating what service they need. If there isn’t a staff that speaks the same language, the client is left struggling to navigate the hub and find their desired service
Design Process
1. Discover: What is the most critical problem at Glide, and why?
The first stage of our process was conducting secondary research that would help fuel our questions for the upcoming hub tour. We prepared a dozen questions that we thought would give us a better idea of the hub as newcomers and possible opportunities.
2. Define: What are the main problems we want to solve?
Field trip, Interview with stakeholder
We started with secondary research to get ideas of different ways people are combatting language barriers in a range of contexts. We visited the hub and spoke with members of the GLIDE team to get a better understanding of how language barriers impact their services on a daily basis. In the visit, we focused how GLIDE is currently running & finding out both staff and clients’ pain points.
“People come from diverse backgrounds, and we don’t have staff that can speak all their languages… We usually have to point in order to communicate.”
3. SUPPORTING RESEARCH
Interview with stakeholder Glide
For this Interview, we focused on “Relationship” rather than specific covid testing experience flow. Based on timeline we asked how staff and clients make relationships. Also we could get some idea of opportunity areas.
After field trip and interview, analyzed the information we’ve got and prepared for our next round of interview questions. We had so many questions we chose to bold the ones that we thought were most important before speaking with Nikki, the testing coordinator and client advocate at GLIDE.
4. SYNTHESIS
Next, we sat down as a group to organize our research findings and synthesize what we found into steps and categories.
5. JOURNEY MAP
Next, we sat down as a group to organize our research findings and synthesize what we found into steps and categories.
Deliverable
SERVICE CONCEPT
Universal Language Training prepares GLIDE staff to use new tools that ease communication across language barriers and ensure every visitor gets their desired service.
Story Board
RECOMMENDATIONS
From our solution we feel GLIDE would have the most use for the quick help sheet. It could be created with minimum budget and new copies could be printed when more services are introduced. This simple addition would streamline the process of locating the correct service for all clients.
Moving forward, we would also address…
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