3 Ways to Turbo-Charge Your Innovation

Workshop Day March 26, 2014

#shlearn | @siliconhalton | www.siliconhalton.com

@SynergeticMan ca.linkedin.com/in/trevormcalpine www.synergeticmanagement.com @SynergeticMan

3 Ways to Turbo-Charge

Your Innovation

How to use pro-actively use creativity to

invent, innovate and design the future

(and add a dash of guerilla leadership too!)

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@SynergeticMan ca.linkedin.com/in/trevormcalpine www.synergeticmanagement.com @SynergeticMan ca.linkedin.com/in/trevormcalpine

Who is Synergetic Management?

• The Synergy of:

o Performance Improvement

o Business Coaching – Owners & Executives

o Creativity & Innovation Acceleration

Synergies that accelerate your success

[email protected]

416 – 873 – 8671

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A Warning

RIGHT vs. WRONG

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• Adopt any and all processes & tools • Use what works – try out new things

CANNOT LEARN LESS


A Warning

RIGHT vs. WRONG

Learning does NOT get you Results

Doing gets you Re$ult$

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3 Things You MUST Have

• Working process

• Improvement process

• Innovation process

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3 Things You MUST Have

• Working process

• Improvement process

• Innovation process

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Creativity/Invention/Innovation/Design

• Where does an innovation process fit in?

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Environment

Person(s) Process

New & Useful Product Service

Theorem Idea …

Process of Invention

Change Personal Societal

Commercial etc.

Process of Innovation

Massive Change

“Killer Apps” Tipping Pt.

etc.

Process of Design

Based on Puccio, Murdock, & Mance (2007) + Hirsh & Roach (2012)


Creativity/Invention/Innovation/Design

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Environment

Person(s) Process

Environment

Person(s) Process

Environment

Person(s) Process

Environment

Person(s) Process

New & Useful Product Service

Theorem Idea …

Process of Invention

Change Personal Societal

Commercial etc.

Process of Innovation

Massive Change

“Killer Apps” Tipping Pt.

etc.

Process of Design

External Events


50+ Years of CPS Development

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1942 • Alex Osborn’s work entitled How to Think Up published

1952-1953 • The first recognizably CPS works: Osborn's Wake Up Your Mind (1952); Applied Imagination (1953)

1963

• Further refinements - Osborn reduced his original seven CPS steps into three composite steps: • Fact-Finding (including problem definition, data gathering, and analyzing) • Idea-Finding (including idea production and development) • Solution-Finding (including evaluation and adoption)

1967

• Others began to modify the original Osborn CPS model: • Parnes published a five-step revision that became known as the Osborn-Parnes model

1985-2000 • Six other versions of CPS released by different authors / teams of authors

2005

• CPS: TSM released by Puccio, Murdock, & Mance

(The definitive CPS: TSM work Creative leadership: Skills that drive change is 1st published in 2007)


50+ Years of CPS Development

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• CPS is one of the 3 seminal sources of creativity training o Synectics – Gordon, Prince o deBono

• Works in academia and the field o Regular “updates” o Relevant to where we live and work


What is Creativity?

• Anything that leads to something

NEW

&

USEFUL

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What Needs Creative Input

Situations that are: • Ill-defined

o Unclear – even the end goal may not be fully visible

• Novel o Can’t just do what was done before (no default)

• Complex o Missing or contradictory information, criteria or

evaluation methods

• Mutable o Changing; in flux

ONLY work on what you own / can influence

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Can Creativity be Learned?

YES 14


How is Creativity-Enhancement Taught?

Combination of: • Models • Tools • Cognitive skills • Affective skills • Meta skills • Motivation / courage Requires a high-level of well-organized domain-

specific knowledge & skills to be creative in a specific field

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Area of

Discovery Area of

Discovery

Are

a o

f F

am

ilia

rity

The Engine of Creativity

Diverge expanding away from original idea Converge narrowing in towards a new common idea

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Based on Puccio, Murdock, & Mance (2005) – used with permission


Diverge / Converge Rules

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Definitions and Rules for Divergent and Convergent Thinking

Divergent Thinking Convergent Thinking

A broad search for many diverse and novel alternatives

A focused and affirmative evaluation of the alternatives

Rules: Defer judgment Strive for quantity Seek wild and unusual ideas Build on other ideas

Rules: Be affirmative Be deliberate Check your objectives Improve ideas Consider novelty

Definitions – Puccio, Murdock, & Mance (2007), p.39

Rules – Miller, Vehar, Firestien, (2001a), pp.22-23

Wildcard Principle Be Open to Incubation


Creative Problem Solving

The latest model: The Thinking Skills Model

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CPS:TSM Explained

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CPS:TSM Steps

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Using and recognizing each step

Step When to use Related words

Assessing the Situation

IF you need to describe, identify, gather, and select relevant data OR determine the next process step

Assess, evaluate, determine, monitor, recognize, sort, find, seek, decide, interpret, explore, etc.

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Assessing the Situation also requires: o Metacognition o Impeccable honesty o Unquestionable courage





Exploring the Vision

IF you need to establish the goal or desired outcome of your efforts

Picture, dream, look at, forecast, contemplate, see, speculate, ponder, wonder about, etc.

Formulating Challenges

IF you need to identify the obstacles or barriers that need to be addressed to achieve the desired outcome

Clarify, untangle, explicate, define, decipher, clear up, uncover, discern why, etc.

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FourSight preference: Clarifier Based on Puccio, Murdock, & Mance (2007) – used with permission




Exploring Ideas

IF you have identified a specific challenge(s) that, if overcome, will move you in the direction of your desired outcome, but you do not know how to address this challenge(s)

Come up with, invent, break through, originate, innovate, hatch, fashion, think up, find a way, make up, design a way, etc.

Formulating Solutions

IF you have ideas that need to be transferred into workable solutions to overcome a challenge

Develop, elaborate, evaluate, flesh out, strengthen, refine, analyze, maximize, build on, etc.

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FourSight preferences: Ideator - Developer Based on Puccio, Murdock, & Mance (2007) – used with permission




Exploring Acceptance

IF you have solutions or a proposed changes you wish to carry forward and want to ensure that the environment will support your thinking

Sell, convince, market, promote, leverage, influence, persuade, pitch, position, introduce, advocate, popularize, recommend, etc.

Formulating a Plan

IF you have solutions or a proposed change and you are not sure what steps need to be taken, and in what sequence, to implement your thinking

Execute, implement, do, script, orchestrate, devise, plot, outline, organize, roll out, sequence, act, carry out, etc.

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FourSight preference: Implementer Based on Puccio, Murdock, & Mance (2007) – used with permission


Thinking and Affective Skills

Step Thinking Skills Affective Skills

Assessing the Situation Diagnostic Mindful Curiosity

Exploring the Vision Visionary Dreaming

Formulating Challenges Strategic Sensing Gaps

Exploring Ideas Ideational Playfulness

Formulating Solutions Evaluative Keeping Options Open

Exploring Acceptance Contextual Sensitivity to Environment

Formulating a Plan Tactical Tolerance for Risk Taking

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!


3 “Universal” Affective Skills: Openness to Novelty; Tolerance for Ambiguity; Tolerance for complexity


Key Diverging Tools

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5 W’s & H Who, What, Where, When, Why & How + modifier: else

Why / Why Diagram Ask “Why?” about why the situation exists; keep asking “Why?” to challenge these answers

Wishful Thinking “Wouldn’t it be nice if …”; “Wouldn’t it be awful if …”

Storyboarding Draw a series of panels depicting the progress from today towards desired solution

Statement Starters in Formulating Challenges

Stem + Subject + Action Verb + “Receiver” HMW – How Might We … ? IWWMW – In What Ways Might We … ? H2 – How To … ? WMB – What Might Be … ?

Web of Abstraction “Why?” & “What is stopping me/us?” + modifier: else



Key Diverging Tools (cont.)

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Brainstorming Follow the rules for Divergent Thinking + use support

Forced Connections Pick any object & ask “What ideas does this give you about (the challenge)?” – Use multiple objects

Metaphorical Thinking (Make the familiar strange & the strange familiar)

Similes – X is like (something unrelated) … ? Personal Analogy: (When I am X), I … ? Direct Analogy: what is X like in the world of … ? Comparative Analogy: X is like … & … because …

Generating Action Steps

Generate the action steps required to implement the change or solution – use divergent thinking rules

How – How Diagram Ask “How can (this solution or change) be achieved?” – ask “How can (this answer) be achieved” – Repeat …



Key Integrative Tools

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Criteria Challenge ideas along key criteria: “Will it…?”; “Does it…?”

Evaluation Matrices (>4) Ideas vs. Criteria – 2x2 matrix – relative weighting

PPCO

Plus – What works about the idea Potentials – What’s really interesting/new possibilities Concerns – What are major concerns – diverge to solve Overcome – How can you overcome concerns

Assisters vs. Resisters

5 W’s & H – Identify factors & people who will assist or resist implementation of the change – use divergent thinking to find all of them

Stakeholder Analysis

X-reference key individuals / groups vs. a scale (strongly oppose to strongly support) – determine action steps to shift people to the minimum support levels needed to ensure the implementation succeeds



Key Converging Tools

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Hits What data points do people feel (on a vote) are the most significant?

Highlighting Can significant Hits data be grouped together to show relevant themes or trends?

Success Zones 2x2 matrix x-referencing Degree of Importance vs. Probability of Success – Choose the most promising candidate(s)

Sequencing

Define the deadline by which to implement the solution or change – define 4 time horizons (now, short-term, mid-term, long-term); determine Who will do What by When and slot in all action plans

Performance Dashboard

For each key outcome, determine a graphic way of representing progress towards the outcome



Kirton Adapter-Innovator (KAI)

KAI • Measures creative style, not level of creativity • Adaptive style

o Tends to tinker with and modify what is existing – “improve the box” thinking

• Innovator style o Tends to create whole new solutions –

“break the box” thinking • Macro-level, plotted on a single axis • Those to the left are more “Adaptive”, those to

the right are more “Innovative”

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FourSight Diagnostic Tool

• Determine your key problem solving preferences

• 4 preferences o Clarifier o Ideator o Developer o Implementer

• Quick, simple, effective for individuals & teams

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Clarification

Implementation

Transformation


Environment

Ekvall’s 10 dimensions of creative climate

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Challenge & Involvement Playfulness & Humour

Freedom Debates (appropriate challenges)

Idea Time Low (Interpersonal) Conflict

Idea Support Risk Taking

Trust & Openness Dynamism

Based on Puccio, Murdock, & Mance (2007)


End Goal

It’s all about the re$ult$

• Pro-active o Choose to act, do not wait to be acted upon

• Deliberate o Achieve real $ and other (measurable) goals

• Focused o Real constraints – time, $ and resource

• Repeatable o “Magic people chemistry” & pixie dust are unreliable

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End Goal (cont.)

It’s all about the results (cont.)

• Sustainable o Does not take greater and greater e- to get results

• Ennobling o Leaves people better for having engaged / adopted it

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Moving theory into practice

• Theory and Practice are the same... ONLY IN THEORY!

Innovation is experiential – so go innovate!

2014-03-31 35 Synergetic Management


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Questions

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CPS:TSM Reference

The Thinking Skills Model of Creative Problem Solving (CPS:TSM)

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Creative Leadership: skills that drive change Puccio, Murdock, & Mance 2007 (1st ed.), 2010 (2nd ed.)

Technology

3 Ways to Turbo-Charge Your Innovation