Ideate
Having understood the problem or opportunity in more detail you are now ready to engage in the idea generation process. This step is fun and full of energy. It is however where people can easily lose track of the end goal and lose focus. It is therefore important that you have a well defined plan and approach, good facilitation is the key to getting through this phase.
We have applied a range of techniques for ideation. From our experience there are some common ingredients for success regardless of approach. These include:
- Preparing participants – to get the most from this phase people need to know what to expect, how to participate and what the end goal of the activity is;
- Prepare the environment – the physical environment is critical, you need to shift people from their current mode of thinking to a new mode. The location and layout of the environment can make or break the ideation sessions;
- Prepare the facilitator – ideation sessions are a high energy sport, the facilitator needs to be mentally and physically prepared.
- Provide many ways to engage – not everyone is comfortable speaking their mind. Provide different ways for people to engage and contribute, that way you will be able to consider all perspectives.
We have a facilitation model called DeepDive that brings participants together in a productive and creative working environment. It is very open, requires full participation and allows for ideas to be refined and improved through the process. We augment this approach with collaborative online environments to allow ideas to grow and develop after the initial ideation sessions.
