Topic: Lesson 4: Requirements for Service Elements, Users and Applications | WMO Marine Services Course Template

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Lesson 4: Requirements for Service Elements, Users and Applications
In this lesson, you will compare the WMO's guidelines for marine forecast products (e.g., wind, waves, visibility) and user requirements (e.g., SOLAS vessels, fishery operations, recreational boating) with your organization's offerings. Knowing your specific users' requirements is fundamental to offering effective products and services. It is a key tenet to the WMO's Service Delivery Strategy and should be at the center of your organization's thinking when considering improvements to services. Over the course of this lesson, you will be asked to define your customers, develop a customer needs survey, and interview several customers directly. You will also create an inventory of your current marine forecast products to see how those compare to your customer's needs.
The outcomes of this lesson will be important components of the portfolio of documents that will make up your Marine Service Delivery Context Analysis.
- Reading Assignment: Begin by reading the following sections in the previously downloaded documents:
  
  WMO-No. 471: Guide to Marine Meteorological Services: Sec. 2.5 and 2.6
  
  WMO-No. 558: Manual on Marine Meteorological Services: Part II-V, pp. 25-35
- Matching products to customer needs: Knowing your customers' needs and providing the proper forecast products to serve those needs is a primary goal of the Service Delivery Model. The following videos and resources present insights on the importance of meeting customer needs.
- Marine Stakeholders and Forecasters Interviews Page
- Assignment - COMET Lesson: Understanding Marine Customers, 2nd Edition
  
  The COMET/MetEd lesson, Understanding Marine Customers, 2nd edition, introduces various marine forecast customers and discusses what forecast information they need to know and why they need to know it. While this lesson is based on customers of the U.S. National Weather Service, the information is universally applicable.
- Understanding Marine Customers Certificate Assignment
  
  Make a submission
- Assignment - Defining your Customers: Who exactly are your marine customers, the specific users of your marine services? Referencing WMO-No. 471, Sec. 2.6, use this spreadsheet to identify your current or potential marine customers. See the Assignment link below for more details.
- Defining your customers Assignment
  
  View Make a submission Receive a grade
- Assignment - Customer Needs Survey: Knowing your specific customers' needs is the only way to assure that you can provide useful services that will get used. For this assignment, you will develop a survey for querying your customers' needs.
- Customer Needs Survey Assignment
  
  View Make a submission Receive a grade
- Assignment - Marine Forecast Products Inventory: What products is your service currently capable of issuing? Based on customer needs, your organization may need to expand the inventory of forecast products or tailor them to customer needs. For this assignment, you'll conduct a marine forecast product inventory. See the Assignment link below for more details.
- Marine Forecast Products Inventory Assignment
  
  View Make a submission Receive a grade
- The following Page contains a list of exemplary marine products offered by a variety of organizations. Use it to assess your products and as reference for extending your product offerings.
- Exemplary Marine Forecast and Warning Products Page
- Assignment - Customer Interviews: Identify a focal point from at least two of your customers. Conduct an interview and administer the Customer Needs Survey that you developed earlier in this lesson. See the Assignment below for details.
- Customer Interviews Assignment
  
  View Make a submission Receive a grade
- Use this forum to share your experiences of how meeting customer needs leads to better forecasts and improves maritime safety.
- Customer Needs Forum