EasyProblemSolving
i3 - inventive ideation to innovate
i3 is
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A fluid way to solve business problems
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An innovation tool
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A way to get a creative leap
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A problem-solving best practice
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Perfectly suited for online and offline application
Why the need for a new method
The world is now divided into two distinct categories, BC & AC (Before and After Corona). As a business leader, you are trying to grapple with the dynamism in the AC era. In our opinion, here are some key facets of this era:
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Every possible element is in flux - Customer expectations, Business and Regulatory ecosystem are evolving at a very rapid pace
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There are no precedents to learn from - The world was never as interconnected and hence the implications are global, what happens in NYC impacts Businesses in Hi-tech City, Hyderabad
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Traditional frameworks / methodologies of ideation are not of much help today
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As a Business Leader you want your team and organization to be agile (in thought) and nimble in execution
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Fail fast is good but can be expensive proposition
Output
What
How
Why
i3 can help here - with best practices curated from best of the breed methods, for their suitability to - "making innovation less hard"
What's the i3 innovation framework
i3 is based on best practices
To find the right problem to solve
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Design Thinking - a discipline that uses the designer’s sensibility and methods to match people’s needs with what is technologically feasible and what a viable business strategy can convert into customer value and market opportunity.
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Six Sigma – Data based method to find and confirm the problem/s and root causes
To solve the problem rightly
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ideaTRIZe - TRIZ (theory of inventive problem solving) identifies 40 inventive principles which were derived after study of 200K patents and patterns thus identified. i3 bases the ideation session on practical adaptation of these principles and other methods to get the creative leap. More about TRIZ can be read from The TRIZ journal
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Project & Program Management
To scale the idea
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i3 finds inspiration from Lean Startup methods & Change Management methods to ensure scaling of market validated ideas& of course
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Study and practice of several brainstorming methods.
i3 is a systematic, fluid way to find the right problems and then solve them rightly – helping businesses achieve their strategy.
The framework starts by finding a "valuable" problem - using Lean Six Sigma and/ or design thinking methods.
Then a cross-functional team gets together to use i3 tools and come up with ideas taking the path of "most resistance"
Team deals with initial contradictions, challenges, in the work shop itself and comes up with a project plan.
Once the idea is validated by the real customers in use - then the team scales it
Where can this framework be utilised
If you are looking for innovation in
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Current products & processes - Operations, Production, Sales, HR etc
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New Product Development
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New projects for self or client
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Service redesign
We customize all workshops – to ensure the outcome is achieved
Reach out to us - lets discuss, how you can best utilise this framework
How does this work
We have designed a workshop that delivers viable and feasible innovative ideas that meet customer requirements, in a short span of time
Pre-work – We work with you and team understand the context – the world in which problem exists and identify the right mix for the team and do initial interaction.
Arrive at a problem/ opportunity statement
Upon requirement:
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“user” interaction could be done
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Data analytics
In the workshop: A cross functional team gets together to
(1) Understand
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agree the problem and the world in which it exists
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agree on why process/product exists
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find the most useful function & the ideal final result
(2) IdeaTRIZe
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manipulate of components / process parts thru guided brainstorming
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Prioritise
(3) Validate
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check for viability
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check for feasibility
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list benefits
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list challenges
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Update
(4) Plan
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Plan for deployment 30-60-90 days
Post Workshop / Implementation
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Team proceeds with deployment and continues to use the framework to make changes on the spot
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We can either assign a competent project manager from our team to ensure implementation, while our innovation experts provide overall supervisions
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We can do an audit of progress and quality of deployment, at regular intervals and suggest changes as required
i3 Elements
We have developed i3 as a complete framework - with its own of distinct elements that we believe in the fulfilment of i3's vision of "thriving innovation" by "Making innovation less hard"
"Innovation is turning an idea into a solution that adds value from a customer's perspective"
i3 ideation tools - ideaTRIZe
TM
The i3 tools have emerged from an amalgamation of Triz – 40 principles of inventive problem solving, Lean tools and the experience of solving business problems on the ground for 20 years, we call it ideaTRIZe.
Each tool has its relevance in specific type of problem. Our experts pick the right tool and challenge questions within to work with in the workshop.
We start with determining the most useful function of the “process” or “product”
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Break: The tool starts by breaking the process/ product – down to relevant number of parts/ steps and then using the challenge questions. The challenge questions – push the participants to think within the box – to find innovations, that reveal themselves thru the parts/ steps.
Examples – ATM (no need for bank), exercise cycle (it’s not a mode of transport)
Change: This tool pushes the boundaries to change the way we are looking at the problem/process
Examples - Add an intangible (Cola ads, specially sprite), make uniform more non-uniform (you tube/ Netflix recommendations)
Manage: Effects of the product or process or environment should be pre-understood and managed accordingly… basically know the possibilities and manage them accordingly. This tool has challenge questions that review communication and decision channels
Examples - Google/ FB – sell your data to advertisers (in an aggregated form) – but also let you control which ads you see.
i3 Principles
Principles of i3, provide a guiding boundary within which the method works.
Valuable Problem – Problem framing matters, you could say – how to solve the traffic problem or how to solve the transportation problem – both will get you very different answers.
Our experts take longer in the problem space to find out and agree on the problem statement
Most resistance – human minds are programmed to take the path of least resistance. When watching TV/ Netflix – one often gravitates towards your standard genres (news, murder, romance …..).
In i3 we want to follow the path of most resistance, throw in conflicts too – because our belief is that’s when innovation happens.
Leap Change – As organizations grow, they need to leap to the next growth curve – innovation could become the wind beneath the wings.
Our facilitators, work with the participants to find suitable leap change ideas
i3 element - Project Management
Many ideas don’t see light of the day, sometimes even after being awarded the best idea.
One of the reasons in lack of implementation drive – commitment, communication & integration.
I3 ensures that high level implementation plan is carved out in the workshop with owners.
Our experts ensure that this commitment gathered utilized with communication to relevant stakeholders and then integration of the work plan with goings on in the organization.
Sometimes the path taken is of “peripheral innovation” where the communication & integration in the early stages are reduced and as the idea matures it is integrated with current processes in the organization as required
"Creativity is thinking of something new
Innovation is implementation of something new"
i3 element - Organisation Culture
For innovation to be embedded in the organization – it needs to be owned, be visible and should become a part of the common language.
I3 helps in paving the way for an innovation culture through extensive change management exercise after success of a few workshops. The initiatives, involve trainings, workshops, visual management and metrics.
Individual Learning path for Innovation
Organisational path to innovation culture
Train & empower your team
Reach out and we will customise the deliver the above program for your team
ideaTRIZe
Bring a problem theme/ area - we will validate the problem statement & hold a ideaTRIZe session for your team.
Outcomes: Innovative ideas to solve the problem, with a high level roadmap
Time: Outcome in 2 weeks
Solve a complex problem
Use the complete i3 - innovation framework to solve a complex problem. We will find the specific problem - develop an approach path to solve and validate - ideaTRIZe
Outcomes: Innovative ideas to solve the problem, with a high level roadmap & audit/ project management of the deployment with outcome based pricing
Time: 2 to 6 weeks to recommended path and deployment time
Accelerate the cultural change
LEADin is a program created with experts in cultural change, mindset change, digital transformation & on ground innovation using i3. The program address below areas. Know more here
