The 'Define' stage of the VeriSM™ model is focused on designing a service that meets consumer expectations. The process of "gathering requirements" is central to this stage. It involves translating the identified consumer needs and desired outcomes into a specific, documented set of criteria. This collection of requirements forms the tangible "definition of what good service looks like," serving as the foundation for the service blueprint and guiding the subsequent 'Produce', 'Provide', and 'Respond' stages. This process ensures that the service is designed with a clear, agreed-upon understanding of success.

A. Create the service blueprint: Creating a service blueprint is an activity that produces a visual model of the service; it is an output derived from the requirements, not the process of defining them.

B. Create the solution: This activity belongs to the 'Produce' stage of the VeriSM™ model, which occurs after the service has been designed and defined.

C. Define consumer needs: This is a critical input to the requirements gathering process. Understanding needs is the first step, but gathering requirements is the process that formalizes these needs into a concrete service definition.

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1. Agutter, C., England, R., & Van Hove, S. D. (2017). VeriSM™: A service management approach for the digital age. Van Haren Publishing.

Section 4.2.1, 'Define', Page 58: This section describes the Define stage, stating its output is "a clear understanding of the consumer, the desired outcomes, and a service blueprint". It explicitly lists "understanding the high-level requirements for the service" as a key activity. The process of understanding and documenting these requirements is what produces the definition of a good service.

2. EXIN. (2017). EXIN VeriSM™ Foundation - Preparation Guide.

Section 3.3, 'The VeriSM™ model', Page 15: The guide outlines the Define stage's purpose: "During this stage, you learn about the consumer’s needs and the high-level requirements for a product or service are defined." This confirms that defining requirements is the core process for establishing what the service should be.