Productive Brainstorms Take the Right Mix of Elements
Most people know what brainstorming means, but few are ever taught how to do it effectively.
Matt Bowen, president and chief executive of Aloft Group Inc., a 28-employee marketing firm in Newburyport, Mass., devotes much time to teaching his employees the ropes of effective brainstorming.
Q: Why are creative thinking and brainstorming technique so important to a small company like yours?
A: We found that most companies, and certainly some of our clients, tend to be very tactically driven. So what makes us attractive to our clients is that we offer the creativity that they don’t feel they have.
Q: Does this affect how you hire?
A: Yes. It’s very important that the candidate understand that innovation is a key component of the job and that they’ll be expected to think forward. Some people will naturally weave themselves out of that process while others will embrace it.
Q: Once you hire the right people, how do you get them to use that creativity in a productive way?
A: Everyone in the company is trained in how to properly brainstorm. We put together our own little guide on brainstorming, and in every room we have house rules posted. You can’t walk around without seeing these rules about creative thinking and how not to squelch other people’s ideas.
The only way you can learn brainstorming, though, is by doing it. We rotate who the facilitator is, so that each employee gets the chance to lead and learn.
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Photo by clix.
jaeda on August 18th, 2008 3:54 pm
yeah, this is much better.. for them to learn.
cassy on August 20th, 2008 1:19 am
Brainstorming is a tool for increasing creativity in organizations and by sharing all the ideas of a group to find techniques that can help the process work effectively. It can really help a business to be successful.
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