DigiShift 91: The Service Organisation - lessons in service design delivery and organisational change

What would it take for your charity or non-profit to deliver truly joined-up, effective services every time? In this practical, conversational DigiShift, we’re joined by service transformation expert and author Kate Tarling to explore ideas from her acclaimed book, The Service Organisation.

Kate’s work challenges the status quo - asking organisations to look beyond tinkering with tech or processes and instead rethink the conditions that make service success possible. Expect stories from frontline delivery and the boardroom alike, drawn from years of research and hands-on consulting across sectors.

The Service Organisation mindset and approach helps you:

• Map your core services to make them visible, and user- and outcome-focused
• See services from the outside in, understanding what works and what doesn’t
• Turn pain points into positive measures of success
• Build flexible plans that evolve with what you learn
• Break down silos, organising teams around whole services, not tasks
• Get leadership on board by linking service improvements to real benefits

During this fast-paced session, we’ll unpack how silos, old management habits and legacy thinking hold organisations back, plus what leaders, managers, and front-line teams can do differently. Kate shares deceptively simple “why didn’t we already do this?” steps for putting service at the centre. We’ll get into practical tools, lessons from non-profits and public sector teams, and why services that work for people are everyone’s business.

Whether you work in operations, leadership, design, policy, or digital, you’ll come away with fresh, actionable ideas to make real shifts - no dramatic restructure needed.

This session is for anyone in the voluntary sector, digital practitioners, and those interested in the creating better services.

Since March 2020, DigiShift has helped thousands of charities and non-profit organisations learn and collaborate. Run in collaboration between SCVO and Third Sector Lab, and supported by the National Lottery Community Fund (Scotland), DigiShift offers practical and actionable advice from digital experts.