Design Thinking provides a simple framework for contextualizing a problem, generating a wealth of ideas related to the problem and then converging on a worthwhile solution or improvement by ‘connecting the dots’ and implementing those ideas that provide the best ROI whilst provisioning for learning and adaptation along the way.
Kanban – managing your ideas portfolio
Earlier this week I watched a webinar discussing the use of Kanban for Portfolio Management. Basically it was being used to add a structure to the process of prioritizing projects for an organization. It seems that Kanban is enjoying a new lease of life with an ever-increasing range of applications.
Engagement – motivation and feedback
Essentially, the level of engagement exhibited by an individual is predicated on both their capability and their motivation. BJ Fogg’s behaviour model suggests that these two factors must both be present at the time of some trigger event.
Divergent Thinking – getting creative
There are a number of ways for generating great ideas. The key is to create an environment for divergent thinking and most often this is down to the types of questions that get asked.
Risk – the seven biggest mistakes
As the title suggests, let’s take a look at what we believe to be the seven biggest mistakes related to dealing with risk (and opportunities).
Socrates, Ladders and Chains – what do you really want?
Recently I met with some Lean practitioners and we spent some time discussing the use of the Five Whys questioning technique for discovering to a root cause or underlying reason. Here I add a comparison with Socratic questioning and also a modification based on Means-End Chain Theory.
Controlling the Dimensions of Innovation Risk
The risk associated with developing and deploying integrated systems has many dimensions – complexity, novelty, speed, technology, social, political and others. The greater the risk the greater the need for some form of overarching governance and the adoption of risk mitigating approaches.
the Problem with Requirements
When developing a new product, system or service there are two primary ways you can end up going down the wrong path: (a) inadequate requirement capture means that you are developing something that may not work properly, (b) inadequate requirement validation means that you may be building something that nobody wants.
Verification and Validation – begin with the end in mind.
Developing any new product, service or system requires that it be both verified and validated. Providing the necessary assurance can require considerable time, effort and infrastructure to enact and it is important that this is considered from the outset.
the Agile Trap
A key element missing from some of the popular support tools for Agile software development (eg Jira/Greenhopper, Rally, Basecamp et al) is dependency management. This, coupled with an approach to architecture that is often seen as an emergent element, creates a trap for those that might try to adopt Agile ‘Project Management’ without considering the higher levels of abstraction.