How do you use brainstorming to generate creative solutions in your team?

1 Step 1: Define the problem

Before you start brainstorming, you need to have a clear and specific problem statement that defines the goal, scope, and criteria of your solution. This will help you focus your brainstorming session and avoid irrelevant or unrealistic ideas. You can use tools such as the 5W+H method (who, what, where, when, why, and how) or the problem tree analysis to identify the root causes, effects, and stakeholders of the problem.

2 Step 2: Prepare the session

The next step is to prepare the brainstorming session by choosing the participants, time, place, and format. You should aim for a diverse and balanced team that represents different perspectives, skills, and backgrounds. You should also allocate enough time and space for the session, ensuring that everyone is comfortable and has access to the necessary materials and equipment. You should also decide on the format of the brainstorming session, such as individual or group, verbal or written, online or offline, and structured or free.

4 Step 4: Generate ideas

Now you are ready to start generating ideas. To stimulate your creativity and divergent thinking, you can try brainwriting by writing down your ideas on paper or sticky notes and passing them around for others to add or modify. You can also ask open-ended questions that challenge assumptions, explore alternatives, or provoke curiosity. Additionally, there are online or offline tools that provide prompts, templates, or frameworks for generating ideas, such as mind maps, SCAMPER, or random word generator. Finally, you can play games that involve imagination, association, or humor such as word association, what if, or improv. The goal is to generate as many ideas as possible without filtering or evaluating them.

5 Step 5: Evaluate ideas

After generating a large number of ideas, it’s time to evaluate them and select the best ones for further development or implementation. Dot voting, SWOT analysis, PMI analysis and criteria matrix are all useful techniques for assessing the feasibility, desirability, and viability of your ideas. By using these tools, you can compare and rank the ideas based on predefined criteria and weights. The ultimate goal is to narrow down your ideas to a manageable and realistic number.

6 Step 6: Implement ideas

The final step is to implement your ideas and turn them into solutions. You can use SMART goals, prototyping, pilot testing, and an action plan to plan, test, and refine your solutions. Additionally, it is important to monitor and evaluate your solutions and make adjustments as needed. SMART goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals for your solutions. Prototyping involves creating low-fidelity or high-fidelity prototypes of your solutions and getting feedback from users or stakeholders. Pilot testing is a small-scale experiment or trial of your solutions that allows you to measure the results and outcomes. An action plan includes details such as actions, resources, responsibilities, and timelines for your solutions.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?