Sometimes, two questions can be answered by the same thing, while having different connotations, right?

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As user experience practitioners working on B2B digital services, it’s easy to get lost in who we’re solving which problem for.

You have internal stakeholders, internal users, customer buyer roles and multiple end-user types.

In times of service upheaval (”transformation” is probably the more common word), best to keep the (actual) customer in mind.

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I’m now taking care of two goals - internal (employee) productivity and end-user satisfaction. When facilitating change, let’s just remind each other that the latter one keeps the lights on.

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How does this apply to project briefs?

1. Solution goals are an option, a proposal. A variable; not the constant. The business need and user context should be shared first. Those are the true foundations.
2. When communicating the need, don’t stay on the level of the team/department concern. That’s self-referent and easier to push back on. Reinforce the customer orientation - make sure it’s about how that department issue impacts the end-user/stakeholder experience.