Finding better approach in Group Thinking

1. Why Brainstorming sucks…
or finding better approach in group thinking
Image Credit: Clix

2. Hi, I’ve got a problem x
in my company.
Could you suggest an
idea or two
Wait, give me
some time to
think about it…
In a land far far away, called advertising agency..
common Creative Problems in 1938 (and until now probably)….
Client that Agency Guy
BBDO

3. In a land far far away, called advertising agency..
common Creative Problems in 1938 (and until now probably)….
Client that Agency Guy
BBDO
2 Weeks passed…
I’ve got an Idea!
Let’s build this solution
for your problem!
Sorry, I don’t like yours.
Do you have another
alternative?

4. In a land far far away, called advertising agency..
Client that Agency Guy
BBDO
Alex Osborn
Guys, this is very
ineffective!!
Let’s bring some guys and
discuss ideas together!
And that’s how brainstorming was born

5. So what is Brainstorming?
“a group creativity technique by which efforts are made to find a
conclusion for a specific problem by gathering a list of ideas
spontaneously contributed by its members” - Wikipedia
•No Criticism
Don’t evaluate any ideas until you’ve finished generating them
•Freewheeling is welcome
The wilder the idea, the better
•Quantity is the goal
the more ideas you think up, the more likely you are to find the best ideas
•Look for combinations
of previous ideas and for improvements on previous ideas
Source: “Your Creative Power” - Alex Osborn, 1938

6. And the results is…
“At IDEO we have dedicated rooms for our
brainstorming sessions, and the rules are literally
written on the walls:
Defer judgment. Encourage wild ideas. Stay
focused on the topic. The most important of them,
I would argue, is "Build on the ideas of others.”
Tim Brown - CEO of IDEO
Individual Brainstorming
“Brainstorming enhance creative
performance by almost 50%”
Alex Osborn
YourCreativePower

7. everything sounds good…
so what’s wrong?

8. 12 Brainstorming Groups
(each 4 People)
48 People think
Individually then discuss in
Groups
(each 4 People)
Solve 3 same
problems
Measure the
ideas generated
?
Separate into
Methods
2
Method B
Method A (Brainstorming)
In 1958, three Yale
Psychologists recount
Osbourne’s number
using these methods
YALE

9. And the result is…
Source: “Group Genius” - Keith Sawyer, 2007
NUMBERS OF
IDEAS GENERATED
ORIGINALITY OF
IDEAS GENERATED
MEASURE IDEAS BASED ON
FEASIBILITY,
EFFECTIVENESS,
GENERALITY
Method B wins!
Method B wins!
} Method B also wins!
Brainstorming: 0
Method B: 3

10. Method B, also known as
Nominal Group Technique (NGT),
proven to be more powerful than Brainstorming
(we’ll discuss about NGT later)

11. So where Brainstorming failed?
Free Rider Theory
Social Loafing
is the phenomenon of people exerting less effort to
achieve a goal when they work in a group than when
they work alone.
Social loafing can be explained by the "free-rider"
theory and the resulting "sucker effect", which is an
individual’s reduction in effort in order to avoid pulling
the weight of a fellow group member.
That “I don’t wanna be
this sucker” - effect
when working in group

12. Social Loafing - How did it happen?
Maximillien Ringelmann, French
Agricultural Engineer, discovered that
as more and more people are added
to a group, the group often
becomes increasingly inefficient,
ultimately violating the notion that
group effort and team participation
reliably leads to increased effort on
behalf of the members.

14. So where Brainstorming failed?
Evaluation
Apprehension
(or Fear of Judgement)
Evaluation Apprehension
predicts that when we work in the presence of
others, our concern over what they will think
can enhance or impair our performance.

15. So where Brainstorming failed?
Audience
Idea Presenter
Dominant Mode
Evaluating Mode
• Reduce performance
when still learning
• Increase performance
when expert
•Give Judgement
} Increase in
psychological
arousal
Zajonc’s Theory
}
Extrovert will
perform better
Introvert will
perform less

16. Who are the introverts?

17. To sum it up…

18. So what’s the solution?

19. Nominal Group Technique
Facilitator explains the
specific problem
Write down the ideas
anonymously
(hide the identity of
Idea contributor)
1
2
3
Vote to prioritise
Ideas collected
Idea contributor explain
and discuss more detail
on that specific topic
Iterate to next
Ideas or Problem

20. How NGT help?
Incentivise People
with good idea by
providing a room for
them to speak-up
Facilitator will keep the
discussion to focus on
specific problems, so the
discussion will stay
efficient and effective
1
2
3
Remove Social Matching
since the voting done
anonymously
Get direct feedback
from Vote results on
Idea Quality
Remove Fear of
Judgement since all ideas
submitted anonymously
Social Loafing will reduced
since everyone need to
contribute their ideas
Remove Production
Blocking since all members
write their ideas on parallel

21. Rangga Wiseno, Solution Architect | rangga@icehousecorp.com | 021 573 6225
At Ice House, we implement best-practice on every aspects of our
processes, including the cultivation of ideas, so we can innovate more.
Got a problem to solve or another
app ideas to build? Let’s talk.