How can you effectively brainstorm with a large group?

To brainstorm effectively with a large group, start with a clear objective, gather a diverse group, and appoint a skilled facilitator. Set time limits, establish ground rules, and begin with a silent brainstorming phase. Encourage the sharing of ideas without critique, group and cluster similar ideas, and use a voting system for prioritization. Document all ideas, utilize technology for virtual sessions, and incorporate visual aids. Embrace unconventional ideas, rotate facilitators for long sessions, and plan for idea implementation. Gather feedback for continuous improvement.

Remember that human beings need time - unlike AI - because many of our best ideas come to us after we sleep on it, or while we're doing something else like taking a shower or going for a walk. Instead of planning a single session, where people must come up with their best ideas on the spot, consider an extended event that combines writing, discussions, and time alone to think or even let the mind wander. At least two days at minimum or a full week if the problem to be addressed is big, complex, or appears to be unsolvable.

To effectively brainstorm with a large group in an L&D context: 1. Set clear learning objectives aligned with program outcomes. 2. Encourage diverse perspectives for innovative ideas. 3. Share pre-reading materials for a productive session. 4. Foster a non-judgmental, psychologically safe environment. 5. Utilize technology and collaboration tools for virtual participation. 6. Manage time and create a structured agenda. 7. Collect feedback for ongoing improvement.

It is also important to create a safe space for people to be able to share their ideas without fear of being reprimanded one way or another. This means creating clear ground rules on how the brainstorming will take place, and possibly the time dimensions. The process needs a transparent moderator thereafter.

There are two issues with brainstorming in a large group: First, is narrowing the focus to a single goal per brainstorming session. Second, I would break the group into smaller groups to encourage participation by all members. Each group would present their group’s best ideas.

One thing I've found helpful is using the "1-2-4-ALL" technique of Liberating structures, using which we can make sure all the participants can bring in their views, perspectives and pointers to the discussion.

If the group brainstorming lacks psychological safety with one another, choose or devise methods that grant anonymity during the idea solicitation phase. The HIPPO effect (highest paid person's opinion) can impact the quality and quantity when you hold a public submission of new ideas. I like using anonymous surveys, but tools like Mural offer an "anonymous" mode so that people can submit ideas without others knowing who suggested what.

I will break the big groups into smaller teams, I will ensure that everyone will be playing a role in order to contribute to the brainstorming it will be a waste of time for the participants. We then start to do some storyboards, persona and goals. They have 5 to 10 minutes of independent thinking time. Then they work in groups.

I break the group up into smaller teams. I ensure that people are already seated in their teams. I introunce the group to tools like idea chains or storyboards. They have 5 to 10 minutes if independent thinking time. Then they work in groups. I reconfigure the teams so each individual gets to present the results their team generated.

Brainstorming methods must align with your team's dynamics and the problem at hand. Classic brainstorming boosts engagement through verbal idea sharing, while silent methods leverage individual contemplation. Hybrid approaches or digital platforms can offer flexibility for diverse teams. Tailor your method to your team’s size and style for effective problem-solving. #InnovationStrategy #TeamDynamics

Best brainstorming sessions will include one specific rule, and that is silence. The power of not using words, but writing our ideas down, on perhaps post-its, will make a large number of people use up the same time to simultaneously write ideas, instead of when we talk, when we have to go 1 by 1 with others waiting to speak and not hearing to understand. It should be about speed, so time stamping each of your iterations is a great advantage as well, as it makes people do more in shorter periods of time.

A productive brainstorming session starts with setting the right tone. Establish ground rules to foster a safe space where creativity thrives: no idea is too small, no critique is allowed, and every voice is valuable. Encourage building on ideas, valuing diverse perspectives, and adhering to the agenda. Empower participants to contribute to the rules for collective ownership. #BrainstormingBestPractices #CreativeCulture

Aside from simply setting the rules, there are tools that can help do this in a clear and engaging way, de Bono's 6 Hats is a great example. Another is by using game-based tools that guide participants in a familiar way without it feeling like hard and fast rules or parameters set out by a facilitator.

Often, I start by defining brainstorming - not in a prescriptive way, but organically as part of my introduction to the method that I am using. This helps with setting the tone and expectations.

Rules are very important in brainstorming. A safe environment where people feel safe to express themselves is critical for deriving diverse views. The moderator should be able to understand the non verbal communication coming from the group and be able to prevent the dominating group from overwhelming those less outspoken

Keep in mind, "the process" does not need to happen all at once, or on the same day. Introducing time in between live sessions for quiet introspection, silent writing, or even just giving human brains the break they need to refresh themselves, is vitally important to good brainstorming.

Facilitators, steer your brainstorming sessions to success. Begin by clearly articulating goals and procedures. Enforce rules gently but firmly, spur creativity with open-ended questions, and celebrate each contribution. Summarize ideas to ensure clarity, navigate through disputes, and be vigilant of the clock. Don't underestimate the power of icebreakers—they can transform the energy in the room. #FacilitationSkills #CreativeMeetings

This is actually the main problem with brainstorming nowadays. As people tend to perceive it as a banal activity that needs "no serious management", when instead it requires a dedicated person, a facilitator, who will not actively participate in idea generation, but help others do it in the best possible atmosphere and style. What most of the brainstorming processes lack today are dedicated facilitators, who would put a head and a tail to this little monster of activity. If not, it very often turns into a high manager speaking and others being afraid or not seeing value of their own contributions.

Meetings can be tough for people so the job of the facilitator is to make sure people are engaged. Having a positive attitude and a fast pace between idea generation phases helps keep people alert.

As a facilitator you also need to be reading the participants for non verbal communication and be able to see those who check out of the process. Also important is to display fairness to ensure that you get participation from everyone.

A great way to record ideas and ensure that they are referred to beyond just the session in which they were created is by having an artist sketch the conversation as the day unfolds. This creates a memorable and engaging mural that can be placed in the workplace where it can be seen and referred to on a regular basis.

I have seen so many brilliant ideas being generated in a brainstorming session but many of them not seeing the light of day because the group did not give that much importance to documenting the ideas and creating a way forward with responsibilities appropriately given to the participants. And then after sometime those ideas are forgotten! Hence it is important to have a process in place regarding what is to be done with the ideas generated including allocation of responsibility and defining timelines.

Might even be helpful to divide a big group into smaller groups and consolidate contributions from smaller groups to larger groups and then the larger group.

If you are using post-its, it gets very easy to move and therefor manage your content. And when it comes to brainstorming with large groups of people, there can be more than 300 post-its to manage after a single brainstorming sessions. This is why it is of crucial importance to have a methodology for voting prepared, as well as the methodology for filtering down the ideas created. I.e. a great methodology for filtering large amounts of data with large amounts of people is called 2x2 Matrix, while Dot voting is a great visual way of voting without any discussion.

The best way to do it is using various online tools such as Miro as the whiteboard, putting up sticky notes and then discussing it, drawing out a quick road map with the ideas and goals. With the new Microsoft Team and Copilot feature it can be done as well and generate useful insight afterwards.

Be sure to remind the participants that when we prioritize ideas or choose action items for the top ones, we still value ALL the ideas generated, and indeed many may be followed up on by subgroups of those in attendance. In other words, while we choose some ideas to focus on, we are not rejecting all the others.

Define actionable tasks Post-evaluation, translating ideas into actionable tasks is crucial. Break down selected ideas into manageable tasks, assign them to individuals or sub-groups with clear roles and deadlines. Use action plans or task management software to outline steps towards fruition. Ensure tasks are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound (SMART) for clarity and focus. Encourage regular review of progress, address roadblocks, and adjust tasks to stay aligned with goals. Transitioning from brainstorming to actionable tasks propels the group from ideation to implementation, ensuring effective execution of innovative solutions.

Finalize your brainstorming with a clear and fair evaluation. Consider voting, rating, or open discussion to distill the wealth of ideas into actionable plans. This step should reflect the collective insight of your team, prioritizing ideas by feasibility and impact. Engage everyone in this critical phase to ensure buy-in and clarity on next steps. #BrainstormingSuccess #IdeaSelection #TeamCollaboration

Again the issue of transparency and fairness is very important. It’s important to note that people are learning beings. If one brainstorming session does not work out as planned, future participation will definitely be impacted.

Pre-work. A lot of large groups brainstorming sessions lack pre-work, and it is not an easy task, because facilitating a large group of people needs long period of time to work on pre-work such as demographics isolation, Intellectual identifications, gender segregation which all this pre-work can help to facilitate a better brainstorming turn out. Anyone might say, why bother, impromptu brain work brings out all the creativity! But at the same time, there are just instances of going nowhere, because we do not know our brainstormer. Everyone has different levels of things in their head let alone where they came from and what they do. Lastly, will be the problem, pre-work helps us to close that gap so that there will be a meaningful takeaway.

Brainstorming is not a "magic wand activity", meaning that most of the times it will require repetition, or iterations as we call them in Business Design. When planning for brainstorming, especially with greater amounts of participants, it is crucial to plan for shorter activities that are repeated, instead for one big activity. Also, for an even bigger scale of achievement in terms of quality of outputs, different methods with different people during different periods of time are a complete necessity. This is why we consider brainstorming a tool, because it is still us who have to master it. And if we don't know our tools well, are we even masters? To become a master is one thing, but to remain one means constant effort and learning!