A Science Daily report throws some doubt on the usefulness of “brainstorming,” one of industry’s favorite tools for idea generation and creativity:
“An upcoming study … suggests that this may not be the best route to take to generate unique and varied ideas. The researchers from Texas A and M University show that group brainstorming exercises can lead to fixation on only one idea or possibility, blocking out other ideas and possibilities, and leading eventually to a conformity of ideas.”
I’ve personally participated in, led and moderated many of these group brainstorming activities. Formats vary widely – from an hour or so to a few days duration; face to face, relatively no-holds-barred discussion or communication via keyboard; small, select group of insiders vs outside experts and lay persons. But regardless of format, the structure is nearly invariable:
– ‘Divergent’ brainstorming (the “there are no bad ideas” phase)
– Combining and ‘building out’ related ideas
– Assessing, rating and prioritizing of the ‘processed’ ideas
The A&M study provides substance to what I’ve long suspected – that the ideas that come out of group brainstorming sessions are long on consensus and conventional wisdom and short on breakthrough innovation. A major part of the problem is the “nothing new under the sun” phenomenon – that truly new and truly valuable ideas are also truly rare. Even the best idea generation strategy can’t fix that, but brainstorming methodology can be made better:
1. Use a mix of inside experts (to ground the discussion in reality) and informed outsiders (to broaden horizon and challenge conventional wisdom), but be diligent in suppressing the experts’ tendency to dominate.
2. Separate, as much as possible, the idea generating steps from the evaluation and selection parts of the process. Assign plenty of time and resources to flesh out and ponder the possibilities and consequences of each idea before passing judgment.
3. If you face a legitimate “We tried that back in ….” objection (and they’re often more legitimate than conventional wisdom will admit), succinctly identify what went wrong way back then and focus on what is different in the situation today.
There is, of course, no perfect recipe for coming up with the Next Great Idea, but there are some ways to increase the value and frequency of your successes.
I’m sure that people would appreciate hearing about your idea generation experience and techniques.
