S E R V I C E D E S I G N D R I N K | O C T O B E R 2 0 1 6

THE PURSU I T OF HAPP INESS

how no t to fea r Monday morn ings

2

WHO AM I

Jobs:

• CEO and founder of Spark Reply, the strategic

design firm of Reply Group

• First startup at age 22, while a HCI researcher at

Politecnico di Milano. Entrepreneur and

international business developer.

• Worked as advisor for EU largest enterprises,

including UK MoD, NATO, Various Governments,

and 100+ large enterprises.

• Been Head of Security Practice in Reply Group.

Started up the security advisory business for Reply

in UK.

• Careful investor in the entertainment business.

Studies:

• EMBA @ ESCP School of Business, University in

Milan, Diploma in the USA

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WHO AM I

REALLY

4

1.

Change of path

55

I HAD

A BAD IDEA

Vis ion

Be recognized as the

leading st rategic consultancy

in I ta l ian large enterpr i ses

for the innovat ion and value

provided to our c l ients

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SOME

DOUBTS

• Wait… is that the company I want to work for?

• What i s the foundat ion of such company? How would

I get there?

• Would anyone be interested in yet another st rategy

company?

• In which context bui ld i t? Context has huge inf luence

(funds, s t rategic consult ing f i rms, I T companies)

77

I HAD

A GOOD IDEA

Vis ion

Be recognized as the

leading st rategic consultancy

in the Reply Group and

in European large enterpr i ses

for the innovat ion and value

provided to our c l ients

And have fun doing i t .

8

2.

Company 101

99

MY FIRST

STEPS

• How to bui ld a company not a startup?

• You need to have a plan for :

- Market

- Offer

- People - culture

- Go to market

- Economics

After one month and 300€+ on Amazon books…

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…no idea

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3.

Can I build a company through design principles?

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HELL

YEAH!

ACTIONS

TO TAKE

+

T h e

u s e d

d e s i g n

t o o l s

1313

01

APPLY DESIGN THINKING

PRINCIPLES

My books on des ign said that to

innovate I needed business,

design and technology expert i se

HIRE THE RIGHT PEOPLE!- Daniele - tech

- Alessandro - bus iness

- Chiara – design

D e s i g n

t o o l :

i n s t i n c t

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02

OPEN TO THE SYSTEMD e s i g n t o o l :

r e s e a r c h

a n d v a l u e

p r o p o s i t i o n

d e s i g n

1515

03

BE LEAN AND TAKE FAST DECISION (ITERATE)

S H A P E

O F F E R

F I N D

P O T E N T I A L

C L I E N TL E A R N

D E F I N E

A S S U M P T I O N S

M E A S U R E

M E E T

C L I E N T

D e s i g n t o o l :

e x p e r i e n c e

d e s i g n

m e t h o d s

1616

04

SET YOUR ROOTS IN A CREATIVE ENVIRONMENT

D e s i g n t o o l :

n e e d

a s s e s s m e n t ,

o p e n

i n n o v a t i o n

1717

05

HIRE MORE PEOPLE (TALENT, NOT SENIORITY)

D e s i g n t o o l :

i n s t i n c t ,

l e a n

1818

06

KICK OFF WITH STYLED e s i g n t o o l :

e x p e r i e n c e

m a p ,

l a y o u t

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4.

No, really, what happened?

2020

OUR OFFICE SPACE

WAS ANYTHING BUT READY

2121

PLAYED ONE TOO MANY

TABLE SOCCER GAMES

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FOUND A THOUSAND WORKAROUNDS

TO ENGAGE WITH CLIENTS

D e s i g n t o o l :

p i r a t i n g

23

5.

We had a start up

2424

BUT

WE WANT TO BUILD

A COMPANY

ACTIONS

WE TOOK

Not a startup.

And there i s a di f ference.

2525

1. WE ASKED OURSELVES

WHY WE ARE HERE AND HOW WE WANT TO BE DIFFERENT

D e s i g n t o o l :

V a l u e

p r o p o s i t i o n

d e s i g n ,

G o l d e n C i r c l e

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We believe in designing for people

and not just for enterprises.

As explorers and inventors, we think

that every project is a chance to

change the world around us.

Through our work we aim to benefit

our clients as well as society.

And have a lot of fun in the process.

WHAT

WE BELIEVE IN

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We pioneer new ways to create products and services

at the intersection of design and technology.

Combining your experience with our designers,

strategists and technologists the magic of innovationcan happen for real.

Thanks to the capabilities of Reply Group,

we are accountable for the ideasfrom conception to production.

HOW

WE DO IT

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We are Spark Reply, the Strategic Design firm of Reply Group.

We support our clients in designing and delivering prodigioustransformative physical and digital product-service systems,

helping them tap into the opportunities of the digital age.

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2. WE UNDERSTOOD

OUR SHARED VALUES

Be a great person

with col leagues and cl ients

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2. WE UNDERSTOOD

OUR SHARED VALUES

Be effect ive

in what you do

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2. WE UNDERSTOOD

OUR SHARED VALUES

Never stop

explor ing

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2. WE UNDERSTOOD

OUR SHARED VALUES

Have a

good impact

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2. WE UNDERSTOOD

OUR SHARED VALUES

Have fun!

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3. BELIEVE AND ACT ACCORDING

TO THOSE VALUES

SPARK THE WORLD

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4. DECREASE

OUR CULTURAL BARRIERS TO CHANGE

CELEBRATE FAILURES

Simple rules:

1. Anyone in Spark can candidate for

recognizing a mess up, in any

internal public moment (Spark days)

2. I approve the error

3. The person receives a badge

4. End of the year, a prize is assigned.

Counting restart

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We are not yet the most known Strategic Design

company in the world,

but give us some more iterations

and we might get there.

Happier than when we started.

d.vitali@reply.com