Page 183 - kf fyi for your improvement license eng 3-4-15

Originally developed by Alex Osborn, creative problem solving consists of (1) Identifying the general
challenge or wish. (2) Gathering information and insights. (3) Clarifying or redefining the problem
once you have useful data. (4) Generating lots of ideas/options. (5) Selecting and strengthening
solutions with the greatest potential. (6) Planning for action—tests, implementation, follow-up. Get
some training and practice to effectively participate in or lead this process.

11. Want creative ideas while brainstorming? Use multiple tools and techniques. Generate ideas
using divergent thinking, which is about being open and exploring possibilities. Strive for three
things—fluency (high quantity), flexibility (different categories of ideas), and originality (unique and
unusual). Establish classic brainstorming guidelines like deferring judgment and combining and
building on ideas. After clearly defining the problem or challenge, generate ideas with the group using
techniques such as:

• Asking a lot of questions: What if? What else? Why not? What if the problem is turned upside
down? What if the opposite of our assumptions is true? What if the worst-case scenario occurs?

• Analogies, forced connections, and parallels. Show images/objects and ask, “How does this
picture or object relate to the challenge?” Or “How is the organization similar to what’s found in
nature (e.g., a river or an oak tree)?”

• Storytelling, storyboards, or collages. These convey the current or desired customer experience
through stories and images.

• Mind mapping and affinity diagrams. These show how things associated with the challenge are
linked or connected in a non-linear way.

• Brainwriting, where individuals write down their ideas in silence and then pass them to each other
to stimulate further thoughts.

• Visualizations or guided imagery, which prompt ideas to surface when people are in a relaxed
state.

Go online or take courses to build your repertoire. Some groups like to have team members take
turns leading activities. Others prefer to engage a neutral facilitator. After you’ve generated ideas,
you’ll then shift gears to sort through and evaluate them.

12. Ready to select a solution? Evaluate and strengthen options first. To select the most promising
ideas, go into “convergent thinking” or evaluation mode. If you have a large quantity, first do a quick
vote to narrow the list. Weigh the remaining options against specific criteria that need to be met (e.g.,
cost, quality, time to completion, stakeholder satisfaction, appealing design). Discuss the positives,
negatives, and interesting features of each remaining option. How can you make the best ideas even
stronger? How can you overcome any concerns or mitigate risks? Pay special attention to outliers
who voice contrary opinions. Recognize the value their unique perspective brings. Together, plan how
you’ll test the solution, measure results, and execute on time and within budget. Build in feedback
loops with stakeholders to make sure the solution meets or exceeds your targets. Keep track of all
data so you can course-correct when needed, replicate wins, and share outcomes with the enterprise.

13. Eager to put things to the test? Experiment and learn. Most innovations aren’t created instantly.
They’re the result of a long road of trial and error, risk taking, mistakes, even accidents. The more you
experiment, the more chances you have to discover and improve things. So instead of debating pros
and cons endlessly, make ideas more concrete. Share rough concepts or mock-ups with stakeholders
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