Brainstorming Breakthrough Thinking

Action Planning Toolkit Creative Thinking ToolsBrainstormingA technique that we have all probably used; brainstorming is used to generate a lot of ideas from a group in a short time. Take a group of 8-12 people. Clearly identify a problem. Create the conditions for a free-wheeling atmosphere and let fly the ideas. Make sure someone is capturing the ideas on a flip chart.

The simple rules are:

1. Postpone and withhold judgement until the end2. Encourage wild and exaggerated ideas

3. Quantity counts at this stage, not quality

4. Build on the ideas put forward by others

5. Every person and every idea has equal worth

For a refresher on everything to do with brainstorming, including how to prepare and how to run a brainstorming session, go to: http://www.brainstorming.co.uk

Reverse BrainstormingEspecially useful when the team is in a cynical, sarcastic or hostile mood – using that negative energy to spark creativity. You change the brainstorming topic to be the opposite of what you really want. For example, if your team is supposed to brainstorm ideas for increasing customer loyalty, the team brainstorms ways to decrease customer loyalty. Trying to improve employee morale? Brainstorm ideas for destroying morale.

After the team has filled the wall with ideas for lowering morale or chasing away customers, you are ready to get down to identifying potential solutions to your problem.

Ask the team to analyze the list and develop ideas for solving the problem. Many solutions can be found simply by reversing some of the ideas on the list. Others can be discovered through patterns and interesting combinations of negative

Created for SMU-CAMC Essentials of Management Consulting© 2005 Kevin Schwenker, FCMC - 1 -

http://www.brainstorming.co.uk/

ideas. In either case, the list of "bad" ideas is a tremendous stimulus for generating "good" ideas. (Excerpted from the article by Tom LaForce found at: http://www.team-creations.com/Articles/art2498.htm)

BrainwritingSelect one question you want to answer and put it at the top of a flip chart, one person writes an answer and passes the pen to the next. They write their comments and their answer – all in silence. No one dominates.

20 AnswersWrite a focused question at the top of a page. Write 1-20 down the left hand of the page and force yourself to come up with twenty answers. Be creative, list opposites, variations. The first 10 will come easy, the next 5 a little harder and the final five very hard. The latter ideas may be your best. This can be done as a group exercise or by yourself.

4+s and a WishThis can be used as a first step creativity exercise, or as a way to refine ideas generated with some other method. The first person throws out an answer to a focused question around a problem. The second person then suggests four things that are good about that answer and concludes with a wish around how it could be better. The next person answers suggests four things that are good about the wish, then provides a wishful idea of their own to improve upon the wish, etc.

Attribute ListingList the main attributes of the idea or object, then examine each one with members of the group or an individual making suggestions on how it can be changed and improved. It is normally used on tangible rather than intangible things. (See Kubr p. 210)

Forced RelationshipsTake objects or ideas and ask the question “In how many ways can these be combined to give a new object or idea. (See Kubr p. 211)


http://www.team-creations.com/Articles/art2498.htm

Morphological AnalysisDetermine all the variables to develop a new process or to do something in a new way. Then identify the sub variables. Put them in a matrix and then cross pollinate. (See Kubr p. 211 – instructive example provided for developing new forms of transport.)

SynecticsSimilar to Brainstorming and 4+s and a Wish, a group of around 9 people take on a problem. One person is the ‘client’ who takes ownership of the problem, explains it to those assembled, and the participants put forward suggestions for solving it. The ‘client’ responds with what s/he likes about the suggestion, and then touches on drawbacks. The participants then suggest ways to overcome the drawbacks. New suggestions follow along with analyses in the same manner. (See Kubr p. 210)

Affinity AnalysisCreative tool that can be used to create then gather large amount of quantitative data and organizes it into groups. It is useful when; Issues seem to large to comprehend, a breakthrough in traditional concepts is needed, or when consensus is needed concerning implementation.

Assemble team of 5-6 and define the problem. Generate and record ideas on cards. Display the completed cards, then arrange cards into related groupings. Create header cards by looking for central idea that ties card together.

For a fuller explanation and an example go to www.team-creations.com then go to “Toolbox”. It is listed under Problem Analysis Tools, but is an extremely useful to generate ideas and group solutions. It can also be applied to the results of brainstorming to organize the data generated.

Scenario PlanningInitially created by military intelligence, it has been adapted to help organizations think about and develop long term strategic plans or solutions. There are about a dozen steps in the process:

1. Identify the key question/problem to be addressed by the analysis2. Set the time frame and scope


http://www.team-creations.com/

3. Identify stakeholders

4. Map basic trends and the driving forces

5. Find key uncertainties

6. Combine or link forces – pair down to two major forces

7. Identify the extremes of the outcomes of these major forces

8. Define 2-4 scenarios

9. Write out the scenarios

10. Assess the scenarios

11. Identify research needs

12. Develop quantitative methods to quantify consequences

13. Decide on the scenario that will address the key question/problem facing the organization.

For a fuller examination of scenario planning see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scenario_planning

Process Flow DiagramsA useful tool from diagnosis can be turned into a creative exercise. Flow Charting sets up a concise picture of the way particular processes are completed within the organisation. This makes it easier for you to move on to the next logical step which is to make changes for the better. In the creativity process, you start with the existing process and figure out creative ways to get around its current problems, or you can start from scratch, creating a new flow.

How to draw a Flow Chart –

1. describe the process to be charted (give it a name)2. start with the event that initiates the process

3. note each successive action concisely and clearly,

4. go with the main flow (i.e. when you reach a branch of alternatives, go with the most important flow, put other branches, extra detail in other charts)


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scenario_planning

5. make cross references to supporting information; include detail on timing, critical issues problems or symptoms that impact on or impede the flow

6. follow the process through to a useful conclusion

See: http://www.team-creations.com. Look under Tools/Games – Problem Analysis, Flowcharting

The Six Thinking Hats Edward De Bono (1987) - Participants put on these hats and use them in the creative session:

White assessing available and required information

Red feelings and emotions about the issue

Yellow looking for gains and advantages

Black constraints and risks

Green creativity, new ideas and possibilities

Blue pulling the whole thinking process together and managing it

Breakthrough Thinking Gerald Nadler & Shozo Hibino (1994) Seven Principles of Creative Problem Solving:

1. The Uniqueness Principle: Each problem is unique and may require a unique solution. Studies of effective people show over and over again that they do not assume that previous successful solutions should govern the current problem situation or that analysis techniques and data collection are at first critical. For example, achieving an industry benchmark leaves a company behind because the competitor has already moved ahead. Also, in trying to simply to match its competitor, the company may lose again, because it did not adhere to its own unique characteristics or market niche.

2. The Purposes Principle: Focusing on and expanding purposes helps strip away nonessential aspects of a problem. The more intelligent problem solvers put more of their time 'up front' in problem solving, in order to enable themselves to operate more efficiently once they get down


http://www.team-creations.com/

to details. In fact, they avoid the conventional urge to start by collecting data and analyzing the situation.

3. The Solution-After-Next Principle: Having a target solution in the future gives direction to near-term solutions and infuses them with larger purposes. The successful people studied say lofty ideals and vision are essential if one is to enjoy continuing outstanding results. Conventional thinkers try to apply knowledge directly to the problem situation. Innovative thinkers use knowledge to stimulate new conceptions and of ideal solutions.

4. The Systems Principle: Every problem is part of a larger system of problems, and solving one problem inevitably leads to another. Having a clear framework of what elements and dimensions comprise a solution ensures its workability and implementation. The successful solution-finders studied had a framework in their minds, one they used to formulate a solution of any sort. Intuitively, they were applying a systems perspective.

5. The Limited Information Collection Principle: Excessive data gathering may create an expert in the problem area, but knowing too much about it will probably prevent the discovery of some excellent alternatives. The successful leaders and problem solvers studied know that it is impossible for data to be accurate. Realizing that there is no such thing as "hard" data, they know how to cope with "soft" data. They further realize that it is not possible to get all the data. Their advise is to identify the purposes of the information you think you need to collect about the system or problem and limit your data collection.

6. The People Design Principle: Those who will carry out and use the solution should be intimately and continuously involved in its development. Also, in designing for other people, the solution should include only the critical details to allow some flexibility to those who must apply the solution. The concept of including many people in the solution process is not new. Yet a study showed that only 5% of companies had given employees any training in group decision making or problem solving in the past year.

7. The Betterment Timeline Principle: The only way to preserve the vitality of a solution is to build in and then monitor a program for continual change. The sequence of Breakthrough Thinking solutions thus becomes a bridge to a better future. The successful leaders and problem solvers we studied sought to move as quickly as possible to achieve their ultimate


vision. Therefore, change was continual through all of their efforts and was intuitively based on repeating the Breakthrough Thinking principles.

Lateral Thinking (Outside the Box)Looking at all ideas, including those that do not appear to be directly linked to the problem; lateral thinking is to tackle the problem by encouraging a breadth of ideas. Some ideas generated from brainstorming, for example, may appear to be ‘outside the box’. Edward de Bono suggested putting a ‘PO’ in front of those ideas, meaning “give the idea a chance, don’t kill it too quickly, it may lead to other ideas” as we start delving vertically, i.e. as we analyze such an idea in greater and greater depth. Discussion of it may also spark a useful alternative.

Quote from, Edward de Bono, Lateral Thinking: A textbook of creativity (1977)


Documents

Brainstorming Breakthrough Thinking