Slides. With facts. And pictures. And lots of bullet points.

1. Markus Hormeß & Adam Lawrence at SDGC 2020
Lessons from
10 years of Jam
Jams, hacks and sprints in service design

2. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Safe space for discovery.
•In the Global Jams, local Jams
are simultaneous, physical
events lasting about 48
contiguous hours*.
•All local Jams share the same
Secret Theme and timelines.
(They can choose to be
shorter, but not longer).
•All Jammers (participants)
publish their prototypes on an
online platform.
What is a Jam?
* exceptions apply in COVID-year 2020
PicDamianBakarcicatFlickr
Collage by N.P. at Global Jams

3. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Safe space for discovery.
•Local Hosts are free to plan their
own Jam within the deadlines.
•Most use a service design /
design thinking approach
including street research,
ideation, prototyping and street
testing.
•Local Jams are often linked to
others around the globe.
•In 2020, virtual Jams joined the
mix.
What is a Jam?
Pic by Sarah Stern LA Jam

4. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Safe space for discovery.
•Jams are often playful, but
very focussed events.
•There is a strong emphasis on
prototyping and a motto of
“doing, not talking”.
•It is estimated that at least
10,000 people have
experienced service design
via Jamming.
What is a Jam?
Pic:BASF
Collage by N.P. at Global Jams

5. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Ten years of Jamming
•The first Global Service Jam
took place in 2011. In total,
59 cities took part.
•It was soon followed by Global
Sustainability Jam (2011)
and Global GovJam (2012).
•Well over 1000 local Jams
have taken place over the 10
years.
•The smallest local Jam had 2
people; the largest around
500. About 30 seems typical.
The Global Jams

6. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Pressure-cooker formats
•Jams have much in common with
hacks, sprints and other fast
formats.
•Hacks emphasise the clever or edgy
use of tech. Sprints focus on
building solutions fast (outputs).
•Jams also have outputs, but
emphasise understanding both
problem and solution spaces, while
promoting learning (outcomes).
•“Jams can make innovation, but
they usually make innovators.”
Jams/Hacks/Sprints
Pic: Sarah Stern, LA Jams
Pic BASF

7. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
A growing movement
•Pressure cooker formats are
becoming increasingly
popular. Design Sprints are an
obvious example.
•The Global Jams have led to
spin-offs like Cyclehack, Global
Goals Jam and EduJam.
•Organisations like adidas,
Facebook, BASF and many
more are also jamming.
Other events
Pic:BASF
Picadidas/BASF

8. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Where Global Jams can help
•Global Jam events offer a space
for inexperienced designers to
build confidence, and for
experienced ones to try new
approaches.
•Global Jam events offer
facilitators an opportunity to
experiment.
•Agencies can use Global Jam
events to let their clients
experience design. Many
agencies also recruit at the Jam.
Yes we Jam…
Pic:BASF
Pic Global Jams

9. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Where Jams are useful
•Jams are a great introduction to
(service)design methods and
mindsets – empathy,
experimentation, iteration.
•Jams help orgs begin to explore
new domains or changed reality.
•Jams are a useful and
productive way to connect to
partners, customers and other
stakeholders in community
building.
Jamming at work
Pic:BASF
Pic Global Jams

10. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Where Jams are useful
•Jams fit well inside projects.
They generate attention, focus
interest and boost progress.
•Jams let us prototype
collaboration patterns and even
teams
•As you meet the whole person at
a jam, they are great for team
building and onboarding.
•“Even better projects come after
Jams.”
Jam at work
Pic:BASF
Pic BASF

11. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
Where Jams fall down
•When too short, jams become
meaningless. Two days is nice.
•If the output of a jam is
important, then the input will
need serious attention.
•Jams are easy to do, but quite
hard to do well.
•Like all pressure cooker formats,
jams do not replace real projects.
Some folks find that hard to
understand.
The limits of Jam
Pic:BASF

12. globaljams.orgSDGC 2020
The future of the Jam
•In 2020, Global Jam hosts and
others have experimented
successfully with online and
asynchronous Jamming.
•A new conference, CMPRSSD,
will further explore the world
of pressure cooker formats:
jams, hacks and sprints.
•For more, follow the news at
www.globaljams.org
Where next?
Pic:BASF

13. Markus Hormeß & Adam Lawrence at SDGC 2020
www.globaljams.org
#GSJam / #GGovJam / #GSusJam