Strategic Integration of Service Design Thinking, Co-Design, and Leadership for Advancing Multidisciplinary Software Product Design: A Case Study

Abstract

This thesis investigated the strategic integration of service design thinking, co-design, and leadership to advance multidisciplinary software product development. It examined how service design principles can enhance leadership effectiveness, foster cross-disciplinary collaboration, and enable iterative product improvement through continuous feedback and reflection. The research combines a comprehensive literature review covering service design, co-design, and leadership theories with an empirical case study of Project Y, an AI-driven staffing platform developed within a multidisciplinary context. Findings demonstrate that embedding service design and co-design into leadership practice strengthens leaders’ ability to facilitate collaboration, cultivate empathy, and guide decision-making in complex, dynamic environments. The study contributes to theory by showing how design-led and participatory approaches can be strategically embedded into leadership practice to build organizational capability for innovation and sustainable collaboration. In practice, it offers the Strategic Co-Design Integration Framework (SCIF) as a replicable model for organizations seeking to integrate service design and co-design into leadership development and multidisciplinary product design processes.