We caught up with Riccardo, a Service Designer at Admiral Pioneer whose role is almost as varied as his background. He’s Brazilian by birth, but has lived in both America and Australia, giving him a cultural versatility that has influenced his worldview and work.
We caught up with Riccardo, a Service Designer at Admiral Pioneer whose role is almost as varied as his background. He’s Brazilian by birth, but has lived in both America and Australia, giving him a cultural versatility that has influenced his worldview and work.
How did you get into Service Design?
I studied Advertising at university, and so I started my career there. Whilst I enjoyed the creative side of it, I felt at times that it was superficial. We would work hard on the communication of a product, only to read comments and reviews that the user experience wasn’t the best it could be. I wanted the ability to work from the inside out to solve problems and improve customer experience, so I decided to go into Service Design.
It required me to broaden my experience - I started reading more about Service Design processes, took a few courses and built up my skillset. I then took on more responsibility in my Advertising role, focusing on product design and strategy, eventually taking on a Product Role which built up my tech skills a little more – particularly in terms of understanding APIs and customer information processes.
My role at Admiral Pioneer is my first role as a Service Designer, and it’s a fantastic place to start. Not only do I work on launching and building new brands, but I also get the chance to build new products from scratch, which is what I have always wanted to do. It’s a chance to use all my skills to build a brand, communicate it, problem solve and bring it all together through great user experience.
What’s it like to be a Service Designer at Admiral Pioneer?
Service Design is a really varied role, so every day is different. It depends on the product or project that I’m working on – it could be anything from creating different screens for an app to working collaboratively on different processes with another team – there is always a new challenge to get stuck into.
At the moment, I’m focusing on one of our new brands, looking at the customer experience across our digital platforms. I’m working hard on trying to map out all of the possibilities of the customer’s experience and making sure that we cater for them. It’s a case of covering every scenario so that they have the best experience possible!
In general, it’s a role that is focused on customer experience, working collaboratively and constantly designing and re-designing our services to optimise that. I would say that service design is not a specific role – it’s based on our customers and what they want, and because of that all kinds of experiences come your way.
Why did you decide to work at Admiral Pioneer?
The most exciting thing about Pioneer is that we are building things from scratch and can define our culture ourselves. We are not stuck to a specific process or way of working but have the flexibility to figure out what works best for us. We’re making sure that we are collaborative and different, both in what we do but also how we do it. As a team, we’re ‘playing’ together to do something different and making sure our process works for everyone. Nothing is handed down to you – there is real autonomy in what you work on, which makes it a great place to be.
At Admiral Pioneer, you really can put your hand up to anything you want to do. I have a background in Brand Strategy, so when there was an opening for that, I was able to get involved, even though it’s probably outside my normal role remit. There is no hierarchy in meetings – your voice is heard no matter who are, and your input is always treated as valuable, which hasn’t always been my experience at other companies. More than anything, the people are great – friendly and open to learning together, which makes for a fantastic team and working environment.
How would you define Admiral Pioneer’s culture?
It’s definitely the best of both worlds. We have the independence and ability to chase after what we care about, but the Admiral name adds massive amounts of value and gives us the resources, support and structure to do something bigger than we could do on our own.
Our whole process is underlined by research – we put a lot of work into understanding trends - what our customers want, what they are interested in and how we can meet those needs. We have a lot of different avenues, and focus on design-thinking, homing in on solving specific problems. It’s a ‘finger on the pulse’ kind of environment, where we are always looking to innovate and improve our product and brands but are also planning for the future through looking at sustainability, health and tech, to keep ourselves relevant. In all of this, there is a high value on experimentation and a test and learn approach, as well as getting feedback as soon as possible. This opens you up to learn more, and I think it’s quite unique.
What’s your favourite thing about your role?
Admiral Pioneer has given me massive capacity to learn. In every area of my role, I am constantly challenged and able to learn more, and I love that.
Working as a Service Designer has given me a real understanding of people and what they like. I love creating a service and then getting the opportunity to see the customers’ feedback right away. Admiral Pioneer allows you the flexibility to make changes accordingly, so it’s exciting and fast-paced every single day.
Who would enjoy working at Admiral Pioneer?
Someone with a thirst for knowledge coupled with creative flexibility. It’s a talented group of people, and everyone is open to our collaborative mentality and test and learn approach. We’re a close-knit team with genuinely friendly people that support ideas, but above all we relate to each other as people. We’re really open across the board, and it’s a welcoming environment to start in.
As you look towards your future in Admiral Pioneer, what are you the most excited about?
I have a chance to touch every step of the process, from basic research, launching a brand, growing and developing that brand and creating new products. Getting the opportunity to understand that whole path, from idea creation to a self-sustaining company is hugely valuable. Other than that, it’s the satisfaction of seeing customers happy with products and services I’ve worked hard on.
