The document outlines an 8-step process for creating a strategic vision through creative idea generation and evaluation. The process aims to ensure individuals feel creative, the team shares the same values, and a compelling vision is created. Key steps include defining problems, generating ideas through various techniques, evaluating alternatives, assessing risks, developing a final solution, and conducting a final review.

1. Creating the Vision Linking strategic intent with project delivery

2. Background During the last 10 years I have studied the works of various writers on Strategy, Leadership, Creativity and Innovation. Triz and associative thinking techniques forms the basis of this approach. In my personal life I believe my self to be creative. I am an accomplished musician and singer/songwriter. I also write and take photographs (occasionally) for the music magazine Maverick and have won a (modest) writing competition. I have always wondered why I was creative and have studied works by various writers who try to explain this phenomena. I also have an MBA, specialising in Strategic Management, and have taught project and programme management to a wide range of students. Bringing all these experiences together has enabled me to create an approach that links the creation of strategy with project delivery. What follows is a structured approach to creating and evaluating ideas in a business context. I have run these sessions many times over the years and results are always positive: people want to be creative but just need the time and focus…

3. Building the vision Overview of process Develop a Results Chain Build 2. Setting the scene Getting to know the team 3. Defining the Problem/ opportunity What is the problem? State contradictions 4. Idea generation Let’s build a model Golden rules Imagine the ideal solution Warm ups 5. Evaluating Alternatives Presenting the ideas Create Ideas Where are we now? (Presentations) What are the competition doing? Idea polishing Multi-voting Criteria-based matrix What does the customer really, really want? 6. Risk assessment What is going to prevent us being successful? 7. Develop final solution 8. Final review Cost/benefit analysis What are the risks? Establish options Develop the blueprint Who does what and when? Mobilise Environmental scanning Define what success might look like 1. Pre-work Commission Market research Sponsors introduction We know what success is We know the context! De Bono’s six hats We understand the risks We have a blueprint We have a cunning plan! Re-state the vision Building the vision What don’t we know? Strategy Performance Organisation Operations Demand Change What are the benefits? Pre-meeting with attendees Seek other information What is the overall objective? Interviews with stakeholders We have a vision! We’ve had some ideas

5. Mobilise Building the vision Overview of module Creating the right environment is crucial when it comes to encouraging people to think differently. Our Mobilisation phase is about building knowledge, finding out what other people are doing, looking for similarities and differences, finding out what the client really, really wants, analysing the environment we operate in, considering different points of view etc. etc. etc. The size and complexity of the problem we are trying to address will predicate the design and subsequent effort required in the mobilisation phase. Mobilise Environmental scanning Define what success might look like 1. Pre-work Commission Market research Pre-meeting with attendees Seek other information What is the overall objective? Interview stakeholders

6. Setting the scene Creating context is crucial when embarking on a process such as this. This stage of the process allows the team to share their experiences, knowledge and expectations. Through a series of planned events, such as presentations, talks, walkthroughs, role plays, etc. we create an environment where everyone starts from the same place. 2. Setting the scene Getting to know the team Where are we now? (Presentations) What are the competition doing? What does the customer really, really want? Sponsors introduction We know the context!

7. Define the problem (or opportunity!) Believe it or not, it is not always easy to define the problem! Sometimes we can describe the symptoms thinking we are describing the problem. However, some time must be spent clearly defining what the problem is. The next stage of the process is to “build a model”. This is really a metaphor for ensuring that we consider the complete problem – nothing is missing. We use an appropriate method to represent our problem visually. In order that we generate some idea of what success might look like, it is worth imaging the ideal solution. By describing the ideal state we can start to imagine what other outcomes may result from solving our problem. It is at this stage that we would try and identify the likely benefits of solving the problem, and therefore what success looks like. 3. Defining the Problem/ opportunity What is the problem? State contradictions Let’s build a model Imagine the ideal solution We know what success is What don’t we know? What are the benefits?

8. Idea generation The overriding aim of the process is to develop the teams ability to think creatively. This stage of the process uses a variety of techniques to encourage original thinking in the areas we are concerned with. In every case it is surprising how many useful ideas these sessions yield. This helps us to drive out value from the process. We would use a variety of prompts and inputs to encourage divergent thinking. Encouraging people to thing visually has been demonstrated to produce far more effective ideas. The process does require people to engage with the side of the brain that thinks in a associative way. 4. Idea generation Golden rules Warm ups Create Ideas We’ve had some ideas Strategy Performance Organisation Operations Demand Change

9. Evaluating Alternatives Deciding between alternatives must form part of the creative process. Evaluating ideas and then improving them so that they are bigger and better than the original idea is key to ensuring the overall creative process is successful. We may do a comparative cost/benefit analysis of several alternative solutions. 5. Evaluating Alternatives Presenting the ideas Idea polishing Multi-voting Criteria-based matrix Cost/benefit analysis De Bono’s six hats Re-state the vision We have a vision!

10. Risk assessment Your new ideas will require investment and there will be risks associated with pursuing them. This stage of the process establishes a risk profile for the proposed solution. If the risk profile is too high then the idea would not usually be pursued. The cost-risk-benefit linkages are also developed as part of the evaluation process. 6. Risk assessment What is going to prevent us being successful? What are the risks? We understand the risks

11. Develop final solution Throughout the building the vision process we have covered generating ideas. However, to deliver value from these ideas requires an understanding of how the benefits will be realised. This phase covers the essential stages in turning an idea into a doable, worthwhile project. Firstly we define the Blueprint – how will the organisational need to be organised to deliver the vision. There may be a few options regarding how we address specific issues. It is worth evaluating these to ensure we have optimal solution. The next step is to develop a Benefits Roadmap, represented visually in the form a Results Chain™ diagram. Develop a Results Chain 7. Develop final solution Establish options Develop the blueprint We have a blueprint

12. Final review This is the stage where we assign responsibility for the next steps in the process. It is always good practice to learn from doing. The end of the visioning process requires us to feedback our experiences so that we can increase the overall effectiveness of the process. It includes suggestions such as peer review, foreigner review etc. Attendees will be given a chance to discuss their own views of the process and the resulting vision in a one-to-one with the facilitator. This is to ensure that group-think hasn’t created an unreasonable vision that may prove impossible to realise. It also gives us a change to take stock and ensure everyone’s issues have been addressed and nothing has been forgotten. 8. Final review Who does what and when? We have a cunning plan!