Module 5: Ideas, prioritization, and ACTION
STEP 1: UNDERSTAND
Ideas with action are, well, just ideas. The real test comes when it is time to say, "ok, now that we have all of these ideas let's put something into action. The goal of this Module is to encourage you to DO SOMETHING. Starting with small ideas is just fine. There is nothing that says that you need to solve world hunger - although that would be great - right from the start. Through these small actions momentum will grow and people will see that this process is not just another initiative that will, over time, fade away. No. This is about creating a sustainable innovative culture that produces RESULTS.
Watch these videos on idea generation and prioritization
STEP 1: UNDERSTAND
Ideas with action are, well, just ideas. The real test comes when it is time to say, "ok, now that we have all of these ideas let's put something into action. The goal of this Module is to encourage you to DO SOMETHING. Starting with small ideas is just fine. There is nothing that says that you need to solve world hunger - although that would be great - right from the start. Through these small actions momentum will grow and people will see that this process is not just another initiative that will, over time, fade away. No. This is about creating a sustainable innovative culture that produces RESULTS.
Watch these videos on idea generation and prioritization
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STEP 2: EXPERIENCE
1. You can do this exercise with another person, or in a group. Get some sticky notes and generate ideas to the following question: "How can I (we) ________________. (fill in the bank). The blank could be anything that you want. "How can we get tickets to the Super Bowl?" or "How can we travel to Mars?" Make it light, fun, and non-work related. The goal is to just get you generating ideas. Challenge yourself to come up with at least 20 ideas per person in less than 3 minutes! Go, go, go. Fast, fast, fast. Here are some 'rules' for the exercise:
a. anything goes
b. only one idea per sticky note
c. it is recommended you say the ideas out loud as you come up with them
d. ideally each idea starts with a verb, i.e. 'SAVE money....' or 'BECOME an astronaut...'
e. no judging or discussion the ideas....just get them out as fast as possible
f. put the ideas on a flipchart or a wall as you come up with them
NOTE: This approach is also great when creating your PLAN to implement your ideas. Simply write out one TASK per sticky note and then order them in the sequence they need to be completed.
2. Now take all of your ideas and plot them on an impact vs. difficulty matrix. An Impact versus Difficulty matrix is one of the best and easiest tools to help get you focused. The idea with this tool is to quickly take ideas and identify those that would have a high impact with a low amount of difficulty.
1. You can do this exercise with another person, or in a group. Get some sticky notes and generate ideas to the following question: "How can I (we) ________________. (fill in the bank). The blank could be anything that you want. "How can we get tickets to the Super Bowl?" or "How can we travel to Mars?" Make it light, fun, and non-work related. The goal is to just get you generating ideas. Challenge yourself to come up with at least 20 ideas per person in less than 3 minutes! Go, go, go. Fast, fast, fast. Here are some 'rules' for the exercise:
a. anything goes
b. only one idea per sticky note
c. it is recommended you say the ideas out loud as you come up with them
d. ideally each idea starts with a verb, i.e. 'SAVE money....' or 'BECOME an astronaut...'
e. no judging or discussion the ideas....just get them out as fast as possible
f. put the ideas on a flipchart or a wall as you come up with them
NOTE: This approach is also great when creating your PLAN to implement your ideas. Simply write out one TASK per sticky note and then order them in the sequence they need to be completed.
2. Now take all of your ideas and plot them on an impact vs. difficulty matrix. An Impact versus Difficulty matrix is one of the best and easiest tools to help get you focused. The idea with this tool is to quickly take ideas and identify those that would have a high impact with a low amount of difficulty.
A note on why we like this tool. There are many tools and approaches to prioritizing and decision making. If you already use certain tools in your organization that is great! One particular tool we want to caution you to use is voting. Too often teams come up with ideas and then say, "let's vote." The risks with voting are:
The impact versus difficulty matrix is designed to foster conversation, understanding, and even the building upon the ideas that have been created. In addition, the team becomes more collaborative along the way. Finally, it helps you identify where to start since all of the other ideas still may have merit and may still be valid. The team can them come back to the matrix and constantly evaluate the priorities. Again, this is just one tool that works so do what is best for your team, group, or organization.
- there is a 'winner' and a 'loser'
- it can get political
- it can create pressure on people
- it can get personal
The impact versus difficulty matrix is designed to foster conversation, understanding, and even the building upon the ideas that have been created. In addition, the team becomes more collaborative along the way. Finally, it helps you identify where to start since all of the other ideas still may have merit and may still be valid. The team can them come back to the matrix and constantly evaluate the priorities. Again, this is just one tool that works so do what is best for your team, group, or organization.
STEP 3: REFLECT and DO
1. Questions
2. Complete this quick survey (optional)
For custom data collection please contact us.
OPTIONAL:
The following two questions are optional. However, we hope that you will strongly consider addressing these three questions to ensure that your team, group, or organization can truly embed all that you have learned through these five Modules.
A. How do we embed the NEWIDEA process into our culture?
B. What is a real life scenario we can work on to put all of this into action and build momentum?
C. What will we do to ensure that we keep the process going, especially as new people join the organization or team?
1. Questions
- What are the advantages of conducting idea generation using the process above? How does this process help people who may be introverted?
- Look at how many ideas you created in such a short period of time. How many ideas do you think you would have had if people sat around a table and just talked or maybe used a flip chart but no sticky notes?
- What are the advantages of saying the ideas out loud as they are generated?
- What happens if you stop to judge someone's idea?
- In terms of using the matrix to prioritize ideas why do you think we often suggest that the boss not move the sticky notes?
2. Complete this quick survey (optional)
For custom data collection please contact us.
OPTIONAL:
The following two questions are optional. However, we hope that you will strongly consider addressing these three questions to ensure that your team, group, or organization can truly embed all that you have learned through these five Modules.
A. How do we embed the NEWIDEA process into our culture?
B. What is a real life scenario we can work on to put all of this into action and build momentum?
C. What will we do to ensure that we keep the process going, especially as new people join the organization or team?