Bridging the gap between human and technology: Using empathic design strategically to provide citizen-friendly services

Finnish cities are undergoing rapid transformations due to technological advancements and shifts in demographic structures. The increasing diversity necessitates a more inclusive approach to digital governance in response to widening societal disparities. This paper proposes a model for developing citizen-friendly services by integrating empathic design with design management, employing benchmarking and systematic literature review methods. Initially, a preliminary benchmarking of five major Finnish cities—Helsinki, Espoo, Turku, Tampere, and Oulu—was conducted to map the prevailing challenges in the strategic application of design principles. A systematic literature review then follows to identify specific challenges in city governance through the lens of design management. Consequently, this study proposes a model that elucidates the connections between the identified challenges and various levels of design management. The proposed model facilitates the strategic decision-making process by incorporating empathic considerations and ensuring the effective allocation of resources to address multiple levels of managerial challenges.