Month: December 2013

Hey Leader! Don’t forget that you are a human-being

One of the very important fact that every leader should know is not to be too hard on himself.  It is important that the leader should not beat himself for “falling off the surfboard” and avoid panic.  By this mindset, he can learn a lot. The failure should be considered as a way to improve the skills and to understand oneself better.

The leader should also ensure not to detach himself from the people around him for the purpose of complying with the wishes of the superior.  The “human” factor always looks for “team working” and the fantastic ideas of togetherness and hence it’s important.  Also, it is important to accept help from colleagues or friends, HR managers or consultants.  The offers of help should not be considered as an “attack” and hence should not be turned back.”Living the life” is also important to the leader as they can use the intelligence, senses and experience to connect with other and “make sense” of the context.

Managers cannot do the best all the time.  Sometimes, they need to “survive”, “cope” or “live” the situation.

Hey Leader! Don’t forget to “Live the moment”

It is important to present yourself as a “knowing” person like where to focus attention, how to work, with whom to work and in which direction the organization should go? At the same time you should put your mind in an inquiring mode by keeping an open mind and asking open questions.

A leader should also be able to face the realities of past and present while discovering the opportunities for the future.  The more a leader can live intensely and at the moment, the more effective they are in managing a “change”. It is also important to take the decisions at the right time and seize the moment.

Leaders should also know how to “manage” the relationship with their subordinates so that the subordinates feel comfortable to attach to them and, at the same time, leaders could stand apart. A leader should know how to navigate between personal goals and organizational goals and sometimes, for effectiveness, it’s always good to put priority on personal goal.  It is also critical to learn how to “effectively” delegate depending on the seriousness of the task. A leader should also show case the self-belief that he would be able to handle the stress of the task and will be able to face challenges and obstacles. There’s always a delicate balance between “being strong” and “too soft” which should be maintained to get the people following the leader be happy.

In a nutshell, there is always a dynamism involved in the moment or situation a leader is in.  To tackle this uncertainty, a leader should be there in the “moment”.  By being in the middle of these, a leader can understand the contextual , group and personal dynamics of the situation which is important to successfully confront the situation.

The relevance of “Creativity” template

Every new product design should start with the “idea” and the “idea” should be the driving force while designing the product.  Here comes the relevance of “creativity templates”(p-1).  The creativity template discovers and traces the regularities associated with creative ideas or products.

For example, the “Compaq computer whose battery is charged by typing on the keyboard and Edison using the ‘energy used for opening gate” to fill up his swimming pool “ is a subset of examples which harnessed the energy source from immediate environment and serves as a good example of “creativity template”.

Traditionally. We have been using the normal methods of product ideation by just analyzing the market. But it has become relevant that the product based information is critical for any new product ideation . In some cases, analysis of the market will give more information whereas in others the analysis of regularities in product changes will be more effective.  There comes the relevance of “Creativity templates” which can be exploited to take advantage of minimum market information by focusing more on the product’s evolution.

In the nutshell, any NEW product idea should focus on the current prototype of the product rather than relying too much on the market research.

The perspectives of “Creative template” approach

The “Creativity template” ideation framework has three major perspectives(p-41).

1. The templates underlying product evolution can serve to predict new candidate products.
2. The restricted scope principle, which focus on thinking in pre-defined inventive routes to target creative thoughts.
3. The function follows form principle, which is manifested in the sequence of first proposing new configurations for a product, and then inferring benefits.

The “Creativity template” approach vs. other approaches for creativity enhancement

The below describes various creativity enhancement methodologies(p-44)

1. Methods for “management of ideation session” vs. the method which affect or manage cognitive processes (“Creative templates” is in this category).
2. Methods trying to enhance randomness vs. methods that are analytical and focused. (“Creative templates” is in this category).
3. Generalized vs. specific methods. Creativity template approach is narrower and hence stronger whereas generalized methods are weaker because it’s broad.

How to implement “Creativity template” for a successful product ideation

1. Setting up the attribute dependency which involves connecting two variables that are not previously connected(p-59). For example, converting disposable diapers into day and night diapers.  The absorbency and comfort needs of the diaper are different at night than in the day time.
2. Replacing the resource or component existing in the system or in its immediate environment (Replacement template) in order to fulfill a necessary role(p-99). For example, the farmers sometimes burn a thorn-field, and the scorched earth serves as a partition stopping the spread of the fire.
3. Eliminating a component from the configuration of a system along with its functions (Displacement template) to create a new product that is targeted to a new market(p-124). For example, Motorola’s Mango cellular phone which does not have the flexibility of an outgoing call. This way Motorola could address the concerns of parents on the excessive use of phones by children that enabled children’s segment to be targeted.
4. By making a new link between a component in the internal environment of the product and a component in its external environment (component control template)(p-134).  The best example is the radiation filtering computer screen where the screen “component” was “controlled” to filter the radiation.

P numbers: All page numbers (P) referenced herein are drawn from the following book: “Creativity in Product Innovation” by Jacob Goldenberg and David Mazursky.