UseBrainstormingtoKickOffYourProject
Planning
By Kay H. Roman, PMP® Most project teams jump directly into problem solving before they’ve considered all the factors related to their projects. Brainstorming is a great tool you can use to kick off and improve your project’s planning process. Unlike most project management skills and methods, the first stages of the brainstorming process are often a free‐thinking or random technique. Consequently brainstorming is not a natural approach for many people whose mains strengths are in systems and processes. Brainstorming with a group of people is a powerful technique. Brainstorming creates new ideas, solves problems, motivates and develops teams. Brainstorming motivates because it involves members of a team in bigger management issues, and it gets a team working together. One way to help very organized, logical‐thinking people to think randomly and creatively is to provide process to your brainstorming. This includes both the overall process of collecting the ideas and following up and the actual brainstorming session. TheBrainstormingProcess
The brainstorming process requires a flip‐chart or alternative. This is crucial as brainstorming needs to involve the team, which means that everyone must be able to see what's happening. Brainstorming places a significant burden on the facilitator to manage the process, people's involvement and sensitivities, and then to manage the follow up actions. Following are the primary steps to follow to ensure your project planning brainstorming is effective. 1. Brainstorm ideas and suggestions having agreed a time limit. 2. Categorize/condense/combine/refine. 3. Assess/analyze effects or results. 4. Prioritize options/rank list as appropriate. 5. Agree on action and timescale. 6. Control and monitor follow‐up. Use brainstorming well and you will see excellent results in improving the organization, performance, and development of the project team. TheRulesofBrainstorming
During the brainstorming session, the following “rules” help facilitate and ensure the process is successful. 1.
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There are no bad or dumb ideas. Build on other people’s ideas. Quantity counts – not quality. Be creative Withhold judgments and discussions until all of the ideas are captured. When using these rules, you can also add structure to your session by using a technique called Round Robin. This technique allows all participants to have their ideas heard and captured. Round robin works this way: each person, in turn, shares one idea – and only one idea. Then the next person shares one idea. This process continues allowing all participants to put forth one idea until all of the ideas are shared and captured. The important component of round robin is sharing only one idea at a time. This allows everyone to have an opportunity to have an idea captured – instead of one person giving all of the ideas. And, it allows participant’s to easily build on other’s ideas.