Observation

The method can be used to highlight the selected OHS problem, possibly as preparation before a design sprint. You can use the method to make your own observations or the participants in a workshop can do it together to acquire a joint understanding of what is going on.

You can observe a person perform one or it may be a room with activities you observe yourself or with others. What, how, and who observes will depend on what the purpose is.

Observation is suitable for examining OHS problems that may otherwise be difficult to map through interviews. The tool can help with a specific and detailed description of the elements of a task or procedure.

Before observation • Allocate a specific amount of time. • Consider what is ethically responsible. It is generally always a good idea to inform the participants about the observation. • If you are several persons, then agree internally who does what. Who takes notes, who takes pictures, who focuses solely on participating? • You may write down what you want to focus on. This may be layout, procedures, communication, or something else.

During observation • Keep your observations by means of notes, photos, and possibly video.

56

9 • Tools 1 : PreParatIon of desIgn sPrInt

After observation • Review your notes. • The insights from this can be used to describe procedures or some fragments of the observation can be selected as a starting point for reflections by the participants during the sprint. • You can also choose instead to write the most important observations on post-its and gather them in an affinity diagram.

9 • Tools 1 : PreParatIon of desIgn sPrInt

57