u/Ssg16

Hi! I’m a Service Designer currently working in the UK public sector. I have almost 6 years of experience overall, around 3 years in the private sector in Colombia and 3 years in UK government.

Lately, I’ve been having a bit of a career crisis and questioning whether I actually want to continue as a Service Designer.

I’d really like to hear from people working in Service Design in the private sector in the UK. What has your experience been like? How different is it from the public sector? What are the culture, pace, responsibilities and day-to-day work like in other industries?

I think I’m mainly trying to understand whether I’m tired of Service Design itself, or whether it’s more about the organisation/environment I’m currently in.
Would really appreciate hearing about other people’s experiences!!!

Hi! I’m a Service Designer currently working in the UK public sector. I have almost 6 years of experience overall, around 3 years in the private sector in Colombia and 3 years in UK government.

Lately, I’ve been having a bit of a career crisis and questioning whether I actually want to continue as a Service Designer.

I’d really like to hear from people working in Service Design in the private sector in the UK. What has your experience been like? How different is it from the public sector? What are the culture, pace, responsibilities and day-to-day work like in other industries?

I think I’m mainly trying to understand whether I’m tired of Service Design itself, or whether it’s more about the organisation/environment I’m currently in.
Would really appreciate hearing about other people’s experiences!!!

I’m a Service Designer with 6 years of experience, and I’m thinking about moving into Product Design.

Most of my background is in service design:
mapping journeys, understanding complex systems, identifying pain points, working with stakeholders, research synthesis and shaping future experiences. I’ve also worked around UX and product, but I’m not a UI-heavy designer.

I’m curious to hear from Product Designers:

- What does the role actually involve day to day?
- How much of it is UI/screen design vs discovery, strategy, user flows and problem-solving?
- Which parts of my Service Design background would be useful?
- What would I need to improve to be competitive for Product Design roles?
- And how would you recommend positioning my CV/portfolio so I can pass applications?

Thanks in advance, I’m trying to understand whether this is a realistic transition or whether I should look for more hybrid roles.

I’m a Service Designer with around 6 years of experience, and I genuinely love the field. I enjoy thinking deeply about processes, journeys, pain points, opportunities, and how services connect.

However, I’ve been doubting myself lately because I’m not naturally very talkative in meetings, and I don’t particularly love running workshops. I can do it, but it drains me, and I don’t feel it’s my strongest skill. I’m much stronger when I have time to think, analyse, map things out, and connect the dots.

I also recently received interview feedback saying I had good experience, but needed more delivery experience, more authority, and more visibility of the intent and commercial outcomes behind my work. That really knocked my confidence.
I’m now wondering if this is just a confidence/growth issue, or if service design might not be the best fit for me long term.

Do you need to be naturally confident, talkative, and workshop-heavy to be a good Service Designer? Or is there space for people who are more reflective, analytical, and systems-focused? are there similar roles that could be a better fit for someone like me, but still connected to service design? I don’t think UX/UI, User Research or Content Design are the right paths for me either.

I’d really appreciate any advice.

I’m a Service Designer with around 6 years of experience, and I genuinely love the field. I enjoy thinking deeply about processes, journeys, pain points, opportunities, and how services connect.

However, I’ve been doubting myself lately because I’m not naturally very talkative in meetings, and I don’t particularly love running workshops. I can do it, but it drains me, and I don’t feel it’s my strongest skill. I’m much stronger when I have time to think, analyse, map things out, and connect the dots.

I also recently received interview feedback saying I had good experience, but needed more delivery experience, more authority, and more visibility of the intent and commercial outcomes behind my work. That really knocked my confidence.
I’m now wondering if this is just a confidence/growth issue, or if service design might not be the best fit for me long term.

Do you need to be naturally confident, talkative, and workshop-heavy to be a good Service Designer? Or is there space for people who are more reflective, analytical, and systems-focused? are there similar roles that could be a better fit for someone like me, but still connected to service design? I don’t think UX/UI, User Research or Content Design are the right paths for me either.

I’d really appreciate any advice.

I recently saw a UX post asking how designers are actually using AI in their workflow, and it made me reflect on something that happened in an interview for a Senior Service Designer role.

I was asked how I use AI in service design, and my answer was mostly around:
- summarising large documents
- structuring journeys
- organising information
- building presentations faster

The feedback was that my answer felt too surface level. That made me realise most AI conversations in design still seem very focused on UX/UI and productivity, while service design operates at a much bigger systems and organisational level.

So I’m curious:
How are service designers genuinely using AI in practice beyond admin/productivity tasks?
Where do you actually see value in areas like systems thinking, research synthesis, operations, blueprints, transformation work, dependencies, or decision-making?

I’m really passionate about service design and I’m starting to think about my next move. I’m currently mid-weight, but I’m now aiming for senior roles.

Lately I’ve been a bit worried about where service design is heading. It feels like there are fewer roles, or that it’s being absorbed into other disciplines, so I’m exploring alternatives.

One option I keep coming across is product design. From what I’ve seen (and I know it depends on the company), it seems to be more in demand and often better paid.

So I’m trying to understand:

- Is product design actually a better move right now?

- How different is it from service design in practice?

- Has anyone here made that switch, was it worth it?

- What are your thoughts on the current service design market?

- How do you personally see product design vs service design?

Would really appreciate any honest perspectives, especially from people who’ve worked in both.

I’m really passionate about service design and I’m starting to think about my next move. I’m currently mid-weight, but I’m now aiming for senior roles.

Lately I’ve been a bit worried about where service design is heading. It feels like there are fewer roles, or that it’s being absorbed into other disciplines, so I’m exploring alternatives.

One option I keep coming across is product design. From what I’ve seen (and I know it depends on the company), it seems to be more in demand and often better paid.

So I’m trying to understand:

- Is product design actually a better move right now?

- How different is it from service design in practice?

- Has anyone here made that switch, was it worth it?

What are your thoughts on the current service design market?

- How do you personally see product design vs service design?

Would really appreciate any honest perspectives, especially from people who’ve worked in both.

I’m looking for senior service design roles and trying to go beyond the usual places. Right now I mostly use:

- LinkedIn

- Company websites

- Sometimes Google Jobs

Glassdoor hasn’t been very useful.

Where do you usually find good opportunities?

Any job boards, recruiters, or communities you’d recommend? Feels like I might be missing something. (Also I’m avoiding the public sector, I’m coming from it)