6.2 Generating and evaluating potential solutions

Creative problem-solving is all about balance. You need to generate tons of wild ideas, then narrow them down to the best ones. It's like throwing spaghetti at the wall and seeing what sticks, but with a method to the madness.

Divergent thinking helps you come up with loads of ideas through techniques like brainstorming and mind mapping. Convergent thinking helps you evaluate and pick the winners using methods like scoring matrices. It's a one-two punch for innovation.

Divergent Thinking for Creative Solutions

Techniques for Generating Ideas

Top images from around the web for Techniques for Generating Ideas

• 

  Creative Thinking View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Técnicas de creatividad: técnica SCAMPER – NEXT Proyecto View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Brainstorming - the SCAMPER method View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Creative Thinking View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Técnicas de creatividad: técnica SCAMPER – NEXT Proyecto View original

  Is this image relevant?

1 of 3

Top images from around the web for Techniques for Generating Ideas

• 

  Creative Thinking View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Técnicas de creatividad: técnica SCAMPER – NEXT Proyecto View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Brainstorming - the SCAMPER method View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Creative Thinking View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Técnicas de creatividad: técnica SCAMPER – NEXT Proyecto View original

  Is this image relevant?

1 of 3

• Divergent thinking generates creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions in an emergent cognitive fashion
• Brainstorming is a group creativity technique designed to generate a large number of ideas for the solution to a problem
  • Key principles include deferring judgment, building on each others' ideas, encouraging wild ideas, and aiming for quantity
• Mind mapping visually arranges ideas and their interconnections, often around a central concept, to generate and link ideas
• The random word technique selects a word randomly and brainstorms its attributes to generate novel ideas and solutions
• SCAMPER is an acronym that provides a structured way of assisting creative thinking through a series of thought-provoking questions
  • SCAMPER stands for Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put to another use, Eliminate, and Reverse
• Provocations make deliberately stupid statements (provocation), in which something that we know to be wrong or impossible is proposed
  • New ideas emerge as a result of our responses to the provocation

Benefits of Divergent Thinking

• Divergent thinking helps overcome creative blocks by encouraging the exploration of multiple possibilities without judgment
• It allows for the generation of a large quantity of ideas, increasing the chances of finding novel and useful solutions
• Divergent thinking techniques facilitate making new connections between seemingly unrelated concepts, leading to innovative ideas
• These methods encourage breaking away from habitual thought patterns and considering a problem from diverse angles
• Divergent thinking fosters a collaborative and open-minded approach to problem-solving, as all ideas are initially welcomed and built upon

Convergent Thinking for Idea Refinement

Techniques for Evaluating and Selecting Ideas

• Convergent thinking takes a finite number of ideas and converges them down into the single best solution
• Affinity diagramming organizes many ideas into their natural relationships by grouping items based on their similarity or dependence
• The ICE method scores ideas based on three key dimensions: Impact, Confidence, and Ease
  • This allows comparison of ideas on specific, discrete scales
• The NAF method evaluates ideas on three criteria: Novelty, Attractiveness, and Fit
  • Novelty refers to how unique the idea is
  • Attractiveness refers to the potential appeal to customers or users
  • Fit refers to the overall suitability and feasibility of the idea
• Idea selection matrices objectively compare ideas against pre-specified criteria that are important to the challenge at hand
  • Criteria are assigned weights, ideas are scored, and the highest scoring ideas are shortlisted
• Concept screening compares each concept against a reference concept using criteria scored as better than, worse than, or same as the reference

Importance of Convergent Thinking

• Convergent thinking is essential for narrowing down a large pool of ideas to identify the most promising solutions
• It allows for critical evaluation of ideas based on key criteria such as impact, feasibility, novelty, and fit
• Convergent thinking techniques facilitate prioritization and selection of ideas with the highest potential for success
• These methods bring structure and objectivity to the idea refinement process, reducing bias and focusing efforts
• Convergent thinking helps align selected ideas with strategic goals, resources, and constraints for effective implementation

Decision-Making Frameworks for Solution Assessment

Evaluating Feasibility, Desirability and Viability

• Feasibility assesses whether a solution is realistically achievable given constraints such as time, budget, technical capability, and regulations
  • Key questions explore what is technically and organizationally feasible to make the solution happen
• Desirability assesses whether the solution is desired by the intended users and other stakeholders
  • It examines if the solution will be welcomed, embraced and adopted
  • Key aspects include appeal, usability, and fit with needs
• Viability assesses a solution's potential for long term success and profitability
  • It examines aspects like market demand, cost structures, revenue streams, and competition to determine if the solution can be sustainably executed
• The Venn diagram framework asserts that breakthrough ideas lie at the intersection of feasibility, desirability, and viability
  • The most promising solutions balance all three

Considering Unintended Consequences

• Assessing potential unintended consequences is critical when evaluating solutions
• Examining possible negative outcomes or ripple effects helps select more optimal solutions
• Considering unintended impacts on diverse stakeholders promotes more inclusive and responsible solutions
• Proactively identifying risks and pitfalls allows for contingency planning and solution refinement
• Weighing unintended consequences against benefits is key for sound decision making and anticipating future issues

Collaboration for Diverse Perspectives

Leveraging Diversity in Ideation

• Cognitive diversity in a group enhances ideation by providing a wider range of knowledge, perspectives, and thinking styles to draw upon
• Demographic diversity (gender, ethnicity, age) can enhance creativity in a collaborative context by reducing groupthink and increasing the range of perspectives shared
• Breakout sessions, where a large group is split into smaller sub-groups, can facilitate greater participation, parallel processing of key issues, and cross-pollination of ideas
• Online collaboration tools (virtual whiteboards, mind mapping software) can enhance the effectiveness and inclusiveness of remote ideation sessions

Facilitating Constructive Collaboration

• Constructive conflict, or productive debate, enhances ideation by stress-testing and strengthening ideas
  • The key is to critique the idea, not the person, in an environment of psychological safety
• Effective facilitation is critical for keeping ideation sessions on track, ensuring equitable participation, and creating an environment where diverse perspectives are welcomed and built upon
• Establishing clear ground rules and norms for collaboration sets the stage for respectful and productive interactions
• Encouraging active listening, open-mindedness, and building on each other's ideas fosters a collaborative spirit
• Celebrating and rewarding diverse contributions reinforces the value of different perspectives and maintains engagement
• Facilitators can use techniques like nominal group technique, round-robin brainstorming, and brainwriting to ensure balanced participation