Idea evaluation methods are always changing. The latest trends are helping businesses succeed. Companies are using new and creative ways to assess their ideas, from brainstorming to advanced analytical tools. These methods help organizations make better decisions, reduce risks, and increase their chances of success. Let’s explore some exciting developments in idea evaluation methods and how they’re impacting businesses.

Starting Strong: Setting Idea Goals

Setting idea goals and starting strong involves evaluating any idea in terms of desirability, feasibility, and viability. To build a dream team for generating ideas, assemble a diverse group with unique perspectives and skill sets. Thinking outside the box and using constraints to help come up with new ideas may involve adding limitations, recombining ideas, and reframing concepts to encourage creative thinking.

Building the Dream Team for Ideas

Find a Leader

When looking for a leader for a project or team, it’s important to consider qualities like strong communication skills, empathy, and the ability to inspire others.

Adaptability, resilience, and strategic thinking are also key traits in a leader. Assessing their track record, seeking feedback from previous team members, and observing how they handle conflicts can help ensure they have the necessary skills.

To choose a leader who can foster a creative and innovative environment, involving team members in the selection process, assessing their ability to embrace diverse perspectives, and evaluating their track record of encouraging new ideas can be helpful.

Using surveys and interviews to gather feedback can also be effective in identifying a leader who can foster creativity and innovation within a team.

Choose Creative Minds

Creative minds are chosen for more than just their creative abilities. It’s important to find individuals with a mix of creative thinking, analytical skills, and problem-solving abilities. Team members need to have innovative ideas and the skills to bring them to life, like working well with others, strong communication, and a good understanding of the industry.

To foster creativity and innovation, a few things are needed. This includes promoting open communication, encouraging taking risks, and celebrating both successes and failures. It’s also about creating a safe space for brainstorming and trying new things, and giving access to resources and tools that support the creative process.

Including Different Skills

Including different skills in a team is beneficial. It can lead to a wide variety of ideas and enhance the overall success of idea generation and decision-making processes.

For example, a team with members who possess different skill sets like problem-solving, creativity, and technical expertise can generate more diverse and innovative ideas. This is because they approach challenges from various perspectives.

As a result, breakthroughs can occur as each team member brings their unique knowledge, experience, and views to the table. Furthermore, including different skills can lead to more creativity by fostering an environment where ideas are recombined and reframed, resulting in innovative solutions.

Cool Ways to Come Up With Lots of Ideas by Yourself

1. Using the Balanced Breakthrough Model by Peter Drucker has been really helpful for him. This model evaluates ideas through three lenses: Desirability, Feasibility, and Viability. By using these criteria, he can prioritize the ideas worth pursuing. It focuses on qualifying ideas and has been extremely useful.
2. He suggests thinking creatively by generating raw ideas, adding constraints, and recombining and reframing those ideas. Constraints force him to think more creatively and come up with innovative solutions. This method has been effective in generating new and unique ideas.
3. The blog also discusses four best methods for qualifying and evaluating innovation ideas: Three Lenses of Innovation, Urgency vs. Business Value – Matrix, Idea Question Checklist, and ATAR (Awareness Trial Availability Repeat). These methods provide a systematic approach to evaluate and rate ideas effectively. He emphasizes the importance of considering many ideas and being open to input from various sources.

Think Outside the Box: Constraints that Help!

Constraints can inspire creativity and innovation. They push individuals or teams to think beyond obvious solutions.

For example, limitations on resources or time can lead to new and unexpected ideas. Budget restrictions, time limits, or narrowing project scope are some useful constraints. They prompt individuals to find alternative solutions. Working within constraints encourages creative thinking and unconventional methods, leading to more innovative outcomes.

Mix and Match: Making New Ideas with Old Ones

The concept of “Mix and Match: Making New Ideas with Old Ones” is all about using existing ideas to create fresh and valuable concepts. One example is the Seven-Step approach by Wharton Executive Education and Wharton’s Center for Leadership and Change Management. This approach focuses on framing questions, building diverse teams, generating raw ideas, adding constraints, recombining and reframing ideas, voting on ideas, and committing to follow-up.

By combining different ideas and perspectives, valuable and unique solutions can be created. Embracing diverse perspectives and skills allows for the integration of various viewpoints and expertise. This approach ensures that mixed and matched ideas benefit from a range of insights and skills, enabling the development of truly valuable and groundbreaking solutions.

Let’s Take a Vote: Picking the Top Ideas

When evaluating and voting on the top ideas, a group can use the Balanced Breakthrough Model by Peter Drucker. This model evaluates ideas through desirability, feasibility, and viability. By analyzing these aspects, the group can ensure that the top ideas are well-rounded and promising.

To ensure a fair and equitable selection process, best practices include considering a large number of ideas and being open to input from various sources. Additionally, not focusing on too many details early in the idea process and ensuring that the ideas solve real problems can contribute to a more equitable selection process.

Once the top ideas are chosen, effective communication and implementation within the organization or group can be achieved through a systematic approach. This can include using the Three Lenses of Innovation, Urgency vs. Business Value – Matrix, Idea Question Checklist, and ATAR methods. These templates can help in implementing the chosen ideas and ensuring their effective communication and implementation.

Time to Commit: Making the Decision

When deciding on an idea, consider its desirability, feasibility, and viability.

These are the three lenses to evaluate ideas for potential success.

Ensure the chosen idea aligns with goals and vision using the balanced breakthrough model.

This model evaluates ideas based on desirability, feasibility, and viability.

Effective strategies for evaluating and selecting the best idea include:

1. Three Lenses of Innovation.
2. Urgency vs. Business Value – Matrix.
3. Idea Question Checklist.
4. ATAR (Awareness Trial Availability Repeat)

Have a systematic approach to qualify ideas and be open to input from various sources.

Avoid focusing on too many details early and ensure the ideas solve real problems.

How Big Shots Use These Tricks

Big shots build their dream team for generating and evaluating ideas by focusing on diversity and complementary skills. They aim to have team members with different perspectives and backgrounds, leading to more creative thinking and balanced idea evaluation.

They also mix and match old ideas to create new ones. This involves using methods like recombining and reframing ideas. By looking at existing ideas from different angles, adding constraints, or changing the context, they can achieve breakthrough innovations.

Furthermore, big shots use the Urgency vs. Business Value – Matrix to determine if an idea is both urgent and valuable for implementation. This method helps them prioritize ideas that address critical needs and have the potential for significant impact.

Choosing the Right Way to Evaluate Ideas

The Three Looks at Innovation

Leaders can evaluate and prioritize ideas within their team using the Three Looks at Innovation. This approach employs the Balanced Breakthrough Model, which involves assessing ideas through the lenses of Desirability, Feasibility, and Viability.

In the Desirability lens, leaders assess whether there is a demand or need for the idea. In Feasibility, they examine whether the idea can be implemented. In Viability, they evaluate whether the idea is financially sustainable. The checklist for a great idea includes balanced Desirability, Feasibility, and Viability.

It’s important for individuals to integrate new and old ideas to generate innovative solutions. This can be achieved by recombining and reframing ideas and building diverse teams to ensure a variety of perspectives and approaches.

We welcome your feedback and insights on other frameworks for Idea Evaluation.

Happy Learning!

Making Sense of the Urgent and Valuable Ideas

When assessing urgent and valuable ideas, it’s important to consider their desirability, feasibility, and viability. The Balanced Breakthrough Model, introduced by Peter Drucker, helps evaluate ideas through these three lenses.

To evaluate a valuable or urgent idea, individuals should assess its desirability, feasibility, and long-term viability.

By using this framework, decision-makers can effectively prioritize urgent and valuable ideas based on their potential impact and likelihood of success.

This approach ensures that valuable ideas are given priority, leading to a more efficient and successful innovation process.

The Checklist for a Great Idea

The checklist for a great idea has three key considerations: desirability, feasibility, and viability.

Desirability involves whether the idea is attractive and valuable to the target audience.

Feasibility focuses on the practicality and achievability of the idea.

Viability measures the profitability and sustainability of the idea.

By looking through these lenses, we can determine if the idea will be noticed and continue to be used.

The final tips suggest that an idea with balanced desirability, feasibility, and viability is worth pursuing and should be prioritized.

This framework provides a systematic and comprehensive approach for evaluating the potential of an idea and ensuring that it aligns with the needs and capabilities of the organization.

Will People Notice and Keep Using It?

The idea can be presented in a way that will grab people’s attention and make them want to use it by ensuring it addresses a real and specific problem, has a clear and compelling value proposition, and is presented in a visually engaging and concise manner. Using storytelling to communicate the idea’s potential impact and benefits can also enhance its appeal.

Factors that will contribute to the longevity of the idea’s use include its adaptability to changing circumstances, its ability to evolveand expand in response to user feedback, and its seamless integration into existing workflows or systems. Maximizing these factors involves continuously testing and refining the idea, fostering a user-centered approach to development, and anticipating potential challenges or obstacles to adoption.

Additionally, establishing a support network and resources to sustain the idea’s implementation and usage is crucial for its long-term success.

Final Tips for Rating Your Ideas

When evaluating ideas, it’s important to consider the urgency and value of each idea.

The Urgency vs. Business Value – Matrix method can help determine the importance and potential impact of an idea.

It’s also vital to ensure that chosen ideas will be noticed and continue to be used for successful implementation.

The ATAR (Awareness, Trial, Availability, Repeat) method allows organizations to track and measure the awareness, trial, availability, and repeat usage of an idea, ensuring its long-term success.

When creating a checklist for a great idea, specific criteria such as the potential to solve real problems, uniqueness, and alignment with organizational goals should be included.

These criteria help systematically evaluate and qualify ideas, ensuring that only the most promising ones are pursued.