System Thinking Example: IDEO

IDEO decided to take on a giant undertaking of revamping the voting system in Los Angeles. They wanted to bring this vital part of our democratic system and bring it up to par with technology that we have today. They wanted to create a more flexible, accessible, modern, consistent, and enjoyable voting experience for everyone. (keyword there being everyone) IDEO did a good job of keeping these six concepts in mind as they created their design and system. This allowed for their system to be effective and successful!

Everything is connected;

From the beginning IDEO researched, learned, and listed out all the problems, constraints, and restrictions they would be under if they decided to take on this project. They new from the beginning that a lot of work coming up with some 600 problems that they would need to either solve, work around, revise, and overcome.

The system contains elements, purposes and connections:

To create this system they were very meticulous at developing a successful system of elements that ultimately connect back together. Knowing that they needed to bring purpose to their decisions in order for their elements to make positive and useful connections, and to overall create the kind of system they wanted. They also kept in mind that the way their elements, purposes, and connections would change overtime as the technology, public, and system continue to develop and change as time goes on. They made the parts in their specialized voting machine able to be upgraded and changed out as newer, better, and more efficient pieces develop. They were constantly thinking about the purpose of their design and the future of the final product, thus making sure this wasn't a superficial, short-lived project.

Stocks and Flows:

They kept in mind the fact that their connections need to be logical. An example of this during their project, was option of scanning in your ballot from your phone. This feature of the process allows the voters to look up their ballot beforehand. This helps the voter familiarize themselves with the options, set up, and process before it becomes time to vote. This is working in a proactive way, allowing them to later use their phone and the ballot they've created. It gives the voter a faster and more comfortable experience during the voting process.

Centralization and Decentralization:

The whole project centralizes around the idea and act of voting, but by allowing for their to be mulitple platforms and hubs where people can vote adds flexibility to this process.

Competition and Cooperation:

In their design they've got a lot of working and moving elements. This could cause for a cluster of clashing and overwhelming parts that would in the end bring their system down. But, since they kept in mind all of their guidelines, they knew which elements needed to be more prominent and important and which could have less a presence in the design. They pushed elements and kept other subtle and overall created a clean and effective design that worked with the wide variety of people who'd be using it.

Balance:

They created an overall theme for the design but allowed certain parts to be unique and not like others. Keeping an enjoyable, clear objective and experience for the voter. They balanced the advanced technology that they were pushing, by having a concise design that wasn't too complicated for the voter.

 

One thing I really liked about this project was the extensive time they took into developing and creating an experience that was worthwhile for EVERYONE! They made massive efforts to create a system that allowed people with disabilities to have independence in this process. They also created an experience that allowed for the stress, unknown, and constrictions of the voting process to be eliminated. From my personal experience, not knowing what the ballot would look like was a little nerve wracking, and trying to fit it into my day seemed to be difficult. They took away these problems by allowing for the viewer to download and look over their ballot before hand and also opened up the polling cites to many places around the area and for longer time periods.