One of the hottest ways to generate solutions to company problems, develop new product ideas, and identify attractive business opportunities is by utilizing brainstorming and ideation sessions. These types of meetings, which generally last 2 to 3 hours, vary in their level of effectiveness depending on the clarity of purpose, ability and willingness of participants to become involved in creative thinking, and the skill with which the brainstomers are led through a collection of creative-thinking exercises and activities.
In order for your next corporate ideation session to be more effective, here are five key points for you to explore as you ready ready for your ideation meetings:
1) Setting the Stage. To get your meeting off to a great start, you've got to have a working understanding of what constitutes a positive creative environment. If it's possible, hold your meeting in a quiet place off-site so as to reduce diversions. Provide cozy seating, a selection of drinks, and some light refreshments in order to make the session of increased appeal. Have all of the extra equipment you require at the ready: writing instruments, paper, flip charts, visual and auditory stimulus, and so on.
2) Creating Expectations. As you start your meeting, make sure that all the attendees know the goals of the session, what is expected of them, a basic agenda (with assurances that there'll be scheduled breaks for them to make use of the restroom and to check their messages), and what will happen to all of the inputs generated from the ideation session. Remind them to keep open minds, to desist from critical comments and attacks, and to be willing to build on seemingly "bad" or "off-base" ideas. Before you start, ask the attendees to silence and put away their cellular telephones.
3) Keeping It Fresh. It is important to have a number of exercises and games ready in order to view the issue at hand from different vantage points, hold the attention of the attendees in the meeting, and keep the energy level high. There are a wide variety of books on icebreakers, brainstorming activities, and creativity builders. As you explore these, you'll want to base your selection on the issue at hand, your knowledge of the meeting participants, and your own level of experience.
4) Finding the Right Leader. Although it is certainly feasible to conduct brainstorming and ideation sessions on your own, hiring an outside ideation expert is a wise and surprisingly cost-effective option that can reduce bias and increase objectivity, keep the meeting from going stale, and bring a wide variety of custom-tailored exercises to your ideation session quickly and easily.
5) Wrapping up Your Priorities. At the end of the meeting, leave plenty of time for the group to chat about and prioritise the range of ideas and opportunities that've been covered. One easy way to do this is by asking them to vote on their favorite concepts. Doing this as a group can make the next steps that follow the brainstorming session much more clear cut and manageable for the person or people in charge of moving forward.
As someone who leads brainstorming sessions for some of America's top branding firms, these five fundamental components of successful brainstorming meetings will serve you well, whether you are embarking on your first ideation meeting or your 50th. Keep them at the forefront of your own brainstorming plans.
In order for your next corporate ideation session to be more effective, here are five key points for you to explore as you ready ready for your ideation meetings:
1) Setting the Stage. To get your meeting off to a great start, you've got to have a working understanding of what constitutes a positive creative environment. If it's possible, hold your meeting in a quiet place off-site so as to reduce diversions. Provide cozy seating, a selection of drinks, and some light refreshments in order to make the session of increased appeal. Have all of the extra equipment you require at the ready: writing instruments, paper, flip charts, visual and auditory stimulus, and so on.
2) Creating Expectations. As you start your meeting, make sure that all the attendees know the goals of the session, what is expected of them, a basic agenda (with assurances that there'll be scheduled breaks for them to make use of the restroom and to check their messages), and what will happen to all of the inputs generated from the ideation session. Remind them to keep open minds, to desist from critical comments and attacks, and to be willing to build on seemingly "bad" or "off-base" ideas. Before you start, ask the attendees to silence and put away their cellular telephones.
3) Keeping It Fresh. It is important to have a number of exercises and games ready in order to view the issue at hand from different vantage points, hold the attention of the attendees in the meeting, and keep the energy level high. There are a wide variety of books on icebreakers, brainstorming activities, and creativity builders. As you explore these, you'll want to base your selection on the issue at hand, your knowledge of the meeting participants, and your own level of experience.
4) Finding the Right Leader. Although it is certainly feasible to conduct brainstorming and ideation sessions on your own, hiring an outside ideation expert is a wise and surprisingly cost-effective option that can reduce bias and increase objectivity, keep the meeting from going stale, and bring a wide variety of custom-tailored exercises to your ideation session quickly and easily.
5) Wrapping up Your Priorities. At the end of the meeting, leave plenty of time for the group to chat about and prioritise the range of ideas and opportunities that've been covered. One easy way to do this is by asking them to vote on their favorite concepts. Doing this as a group can make the next steps that follow the brainstorming session much more clear cut and manageable for the person or people in charge of moving forward.
As someone who leads brainstorming sessions for some of America's top branding firms, these five fundamental components of successful brainstorming meetings will serve you well, whether you are embarking on your first ideation meeting or your 50th. Keep them at the forefront of your own brainstorming plans.
About the Author:
Marie Elwood runs Increased Results, an Atlanta marketing consulting firm that helps top marketing companies launch new products by understanding their consumers' wants and needs.
