Mapping the Actual Customer Journey Through Immersion-Based Service Design

The Challenge

Leadership had process maps. Operations had workarounds. Sales had customer promises. IT had system flows. Each department operated with partial visibility, making strategic decisions based on assumptions about what actually happens from order to delivery.

The Approach

Ethnographic Immersion

Instead of interviewing teams about their work, I was embedded in warehouse operations for one week. I followed the full chain: from digital touchpoints like order placement, to when orders hit the warehouse computer system, to the backend actions triggered for warehouse workers, to how they pick and stack tires for loading various-size trucks for local and national delivery — all the way to customer doorstep. This immersion documented actual workflows, informal systems, and hidden handoffs — the things teams do but never write down because “that’s just how it works.”

Dealer tire selling journey map with consumer and dealer lanes, context quotes, confidence indicators, and friction points — Dealer tire selling journey map documenting consumer and dealer touchpoints, confidence levels, and friction points from immersion research.

End-to-End Mapping

Connected all touchpoints across departments into a unified operational reality. From digital order placement through delivery completion, the service blueprint captured every handoff, workaround, and informal process that shaped the actual customer experience.

Visual data synthesis showing 669 responses organized into natural themed clusters through affinity mapping — Visual data synthesis: 669 responses categorized into natural themes through grouping and discussion.

Cross-Functional Alignment

Used the service blueprint as a foundation for strategic workshops. When all five departments could see the same operational reality for the first time, the conversation shifted from defending assumptions to collaborating on improvements.

Parts ordering high-level journey map showing actions, jobs-to-be-done, dealer needs, expertise, and friction points across five stages — One of several journey maps produced from the immersion study. Actions, jobs-to-be-done, dealer needs, expertise required, and friction points — mapped across every stage from diagnosis through warranty claims.

The Results

$2M+ in revenue opportunities identified through customer analysis across 15+ segments

Before

Five departments with five versions of reality. Strategic decisions based on assumptions. No shared understanding of the actual customer journey.

After

Unified service blueprint documenting real workflows. Shared operational truth. Cross-functional improvement planning based on evidence.

What Was Delivered

1-week immersion study documenting complete customer and employee experience across all operational touchpoints
Comprehensive service blueprint revealing actual workflows, system handoffs, and informal processes
Stakeholder alignment foundation replacing five departmental assumptions with unified operational truth
Strategic workshop framework using shared reality for cross-functional improvement planning
Immersion methodology template adopted for future operational discovery projects

What This Demonstrates

The ATD engagement demonstrates the value of immersion-based research over interview-based discovery. When organizations have operated with separate versions of reality for long enough, interviews only surface what people believe happens — not what actually happens. The 1-week warehouse immersion captured the informal systems, hidden handoffs, and undocumented workarounds that no interview could reveal. The methodology was valuable enough to be templated for future use.