Innovative Team: Post #5--Clarifying

Clarifying the Situation. The authors call this phase “the starting gate in any innovation.” Understanding what the real problem is before trying to solve it, not only saves time, but also gets teams to solve the right problem. First diverge…using brainstorming, mind mapping, and simply asking the key questions of who, what, why, how, when, where, and open-ended questions.  Such questions open up discussion and result in team learning. When converging into areas, themes, or buckets, look for natural groupings that make sense. Then, ask challenge questions such as, How might… or In what ways… to help explore these buckets further. Remember an elegant solution to the wrong problem isn’t any better than the wrong answer to the right question.
7.    Generating Ideas: This phase involves looking at the buckets related to your pressing issue or problem and then exploring them to generate novel ways to answer the challenge questions, How might… and In what ways? Again divergence and convergence play into the mix here. In divergence, remember some rules: Defer judgment, generate a lot of ideas, don’t be afraid of innovative thinking, group themes or ideas. In convergence, be kind to others, be thoughtful and focus on the goal and innovation—not personalities.