Page 135 - 100 Great Business Ideas: From Leading Companies Around the World (100 Great Ideas)

I he Role ot the Group Leader: Ihe group le.hIcf,

chosen prior to the session, informs the group, pretcrobly in

advance of their meeting, that a given topic will be discussed.
He or she sets forth the facts, the issues, the questions in-
volved, and the purposes of the session. These points should
be restated at the beginning of the session. The leader then
writes the focal question or problem on a whiteboard or other
large visible surface. (Open-ended "how" or "what" ques-
tions are advisable.) Next the leader calls for solutions to
the problem. Once the brainstorming session opens, the
leader functions primarily as a facilitator, recognizing con-
tributors, stimulating group members to come up with new
ideas, keeping the group focused on the subject at hand, and
making sure the four rules of brainstorming are followed.
The most important of these rules is that no criticism is al-
lowed. if criticism occurs while ideas are being generated, the
whole point of brainstorming has been lost. The leader too must
refrain from commenting on the value of ideas.

Sometimes group members begin to tire and the flow of new
ideas diminishes. At this time the leader should offer verbal
encouragement or call on particular members to suggest solu-
tions. Another method is to give each member thirty seconds
to come up with a new idea, moving around the room in order
until the time allotted for the session is gone.

The same leader or a different one may lead the evaluation ses-
sion. Ideas should be sorted into types and ranked according
to priority. As additional research may be necessary, the group
may have to convene more than once. In an evaluation session
the leader must not allow the group to dismiss ideas simply
because they are unusual, but should encourage examination
of far-out suggestions, perhaps by asking for different versions
or ways to adapt them. Moreover, the leader should not allow
ideas to be dismissed because of a lack of funds or other re-
sources. If an idea is a good one, ways should be found to
make it happen. The leader's role includes counteracting un-
reasonable negativity during the evaluation process.

The Secretary: The secretary records each contributor's ideas
on some visible surface in front of the group. In small groups
the leader and the secretary may be the same person, but it is
preferable to have different people performing these functions.

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