Combining Teamwork, Creativity, and Risk Management to Create Stakeholder Focused Solutions

One Day

Every firm needs innovation.  Innovation needs creativity. And creativity needs to be grounded in a thorough understanding of stakeholders and what brings them value.

This course presents principles and specific techniques of the three pillars of applied creativity.

• Pillar One: Understand the context.  Get the facts and identify the people who will be involved and affected.
• Pillar Two: Invest in creativity. Invest the time and expertise to bring a fresh perspective and to develop original ideas.
• Pillar Three: Reduce the risk.  Refine the solution through rigorous risk and cost-benefit analysis to increase the value.

• Increase the trust that enables creativity to flourish
• Increase creativity that leads to more original, more valuable solutions
• Foster collaboration with a framework that provides a common, practical language for creative problem solving
• Produce solutions that are rooted in stakeholder understanding

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Apply a framework and principles for taking an idea to a proposal.
• Analyze an issue from our stakeholders’ perspective.
• Promote creativity in yourself and your team.
• Improve an idea through iteration and risk reduction.

Teams and leaders that want to promote innovation within their organization.  This course presents principles that form a culture and that apply at all levels of an organization.

1. Idea to Value Journey: Process & Principles
   1. Your environmental factors driving the need for creativity and innovation
   2. Three pillars of applied creativity
   3. Principles of a collaborative group process
2. Pillar One: Understand the context
   1. Stakeholders rule!
   2. Inspiration or pain? Name the opportunity
   3. Get the facts.  Understand the circumstances
   4. Envision the future.
3. Pillar Two: Invest in creativity
   1. Creative obstacles: Why aren’t we doing this already?
   2. Principles of a creative group process
   3. Set the dynamic. Turn off analysis and turn on creativity
   4. Techniques that promote original ideas
   5. Your tip sheet for leading creativity
   6. Fostering your own creativity
   7. An environment that promotes creativity
4. Pillar Three: Reduce the risks
   1. Idea ranking techniques for teams
   2. Refining through iteration
   3. Risk analysis makes you stronger
   4. Stakeholders: advocates, enemies, and by-standers
   5. Cost/benefit analysis: The numbers have to work
   6. The proposal summarizes the journey
5. Course Summary
   1. Principles re-cap
   2. The leader’s role
   3. Taking action