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To improve
the brainstorm process in your organization, so far we have covered the steps
of setting the proper atmosphere, clarifying overall goals, setting immediate
expectations, and getting the ball rolling with idea generation. I put a lot of emphasis on the Idea
Generation Step of the Innovative Idea Process because it carries the highest
risk of frustration. It is the stage
that most often leaves people wanting to poke their eyes out with an
ice-pick. A growing body of research has
suggested that group brainstorming is actually less effective than just letting
people work alone. One study involved
three groups of people; Group One used the classic brainstorm model (involving
free association with no critique of others' ideas), Group Two encouraged open
debate of each idea, while Group Three was on their own to conduct the session
however they wished. The results were
surprising. The group that allowed open
debate had a wider variety plus a higher volume of ideas than the other two.
The
researchers of these studies concluded that group brainstorming is a flawed and
unproductive process. However, these
studies focused on the what and not the how of brainstorming, so they missed some
important elements. It is not whether
you allow debate that matters, it is how you allow debate. It is not whether you allow free association,
but how. It is not whether you work as a
group, but how. Debate that focuses only
on proving whether a single idea is worthy wastes time. Debate that looks at an idea from every
possible angle enhances creativity. Free
association that is not tied to the ultimate goal can lead nowhere, free
association that ties disparate ideas together into something new and exciting
is definitely time well spent. And
having a group work together creatively is the best way to go, unless the chaos
of being around people shuts you down; in that case it is better to be off by
yourself.
The
theories behind brainstorming--whichever style you prefer--are fine, it is the
execution that often falls short. Take
the question of debating an idea for instance; saying "We tried that once
already" is not a debate. It is a
negation. Negations are called such
because they do not offer any new ideas, they simply shut down others'
ideas. Saying, "The last time we tried
that it didn't work, let's talk about why" is the kind of discussion that leads
to new ideas and solutions. Effective
facilitation is the key to group brainstorming. It is difficult for the members of a group to police themselves; as
such, they often get stuck in endless loops of argument. That is when the facilitator must say, "It's
all been said, let's move on." After a
productive Idea Generation session has produced hundreds (or thousands) of
ideas, you then move to the Incubation Step. The brain's subconscious is capable of incredible feats, if given a
chance to work. Have everyone go away
and allow the ideas to percolate for a while; overnight is best (which is where
the phrase "Let's sleep on it" came from). When you return the next day, your subconsious mind will have popped
with great additions to the list.
After the
Incubation Step comes the Regeneration Step. Allow everyone to silently walk around the room looking at the ideas
posted on the wall from the Idea Generation session. The outcome of this step illuminates the
missing ingredient of those studies that suggest that working alone produces
more and better ideas. The brain is
rarely capable of a spontaneous original thought. New ideas are simply incremental changes of
previous ideas. While the brain rarely
creates original ideas, it is wonderful at connecting two dissimilar ideas into
one new concept. As the group wanders
the room looking at the ideas posted from the Idea Generation session, they
should write down a small change or addition next to the original idea. They may also write down a new thought that
developed during the Incubation Step. If
given the proper attention, the Regeneration Step is not only where you can add
many times more ideas to the list, but it is where you will find the most
outrageous, cool, and market disruptive ideas.
Up to this
point, the Innovative Idea Process can involve any number of people from a
small committee to a large group. With
proper facilitation, and enough scribes to write down ideas fast enough so as
not to slow down the thinking of the group, you can access the creativity of
everyone. I have facilitated sessions
with 80-100 people with no problem. The
next phase, however, requires a smaller group because now it is now time for
decisions and strategies. The Analysis
Phase answers the question of, "What do we do with all these ideas."
The brain
thinks best in clumps. Few people can
remember 6128251823, but clump it into 612-825-1832 and it is no problem. So the first step in the Analysis Phase is
the Categorization Step. Take all the
ideas and put them into categories. Some
ideas will have to do with marketing, some with client services, some with
inner-office communication, and so on. Clumping allows you to steer toward the initiatives that resonate most
with your business or your goals. Those
people that are particularly analytical can even create sub-clumps if they like
(go ahead and let them, they get real excited at this point).
Be careful
during this step not to simply toss out the "weird" ideas. It is easy to say, "That was just a silly
idea to get things rolling" but the you have to dig for gold. Historically, the most profitable ideas were
also met with the most resistance when first suggested. If you throw away the ideas you don't
immediately understand, you may be tossing money in the trash. Also, throwing away the weird ideas only
leaves you with the ones you immediately connect with, which is usually the
average stuff. Instead, take a moment
and justify the strangest idea. Find the
truth buried in the suggestion and you will develop usable ideas out of even
the oddest suggestions.
The next
step is the Prioritize & Strategize Step. It is a fairly simple task to prioritize which goal is most important,
you just have to remain balanced about short-term and long-term goals. Too many companies are so focused on
immediate profits-or so worried about fixing in-your-face problems-that they
forget to think about 5-7 years down the road. Strategies in this step need to take long-term goals into account as
well. Don't just think about
implementation; think about how the initiative will be maintained over
time. Many ideas start out with a bang
only to fizzle because the only emphasis was on getting the idea on the shelf.
The final
step is the Reward Step. Usually the
only person rewarded for a new idea is the one who brings it home; the one who
delivers it to the shelf. Indeed, there
are some people who develop ground-breaking innovations in their basement
laboratory, but those people are rare. Psychology dictates that all ideas are incremental changes from
previously existing thoughts, so almost every new innovation is the product of
many minds, whether the "inventor" is aware of it or not. The entire team must be rewarded simply for
being part of the process.
The Reward
Step isn't simply to be nice to your team (which is reason enough), it is to
develop the most important quality of an innovative workplace; the expectation
of creativity. People produce more when
they know that creative thinking is expected of them. Every employee at IBM could tell you the
slogan of the company: THINK. A plaque
with that single word was on everyone's desk, a constant reminder that your job
at IBM was not to simply complete a task, but to always being thinking of new
approaches, innovations, and products. My father, a long time IBM employee, upon retirement got a plaque that
read THNIK. Retirees, what a sense of
humor. That's it for this series on
innovative thinking.
Stevie Ray is a nationally recognized corporate
speaker and trainer, helping companies improve communication skills, customer
service, leadership, and team management. He can be reached at www.stevierays.org or stevie@stevierays.org.
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