Idea Crafting

Why do ideas need to

be crafted?
crafting innovation together

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 1

 Typically, in an organization,
ideas come from various channels
Employees
(work) Business &
Competitors technology
strategy

Customers
and customer R&D
facing teams
crafting innovation together

Ideas
Partners,
Organizational
suppliers and
processes
collaborators

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 2

 And these ideas may have various
purposes . . .

(New )product ideas

New service
ideas
crafting innovation together

Brand building improvement

continuous
and marketing Ideas for
ideas

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 3

 Ideas may also be

Serendipitous Orchestrated
crafting innovation together

OR

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 4

 Organizations have
some processes to
help ideas reach their
objectives
crafting innovation together

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 5

 A few ideas
New product or service or make it

business model ideas –

A typical funnel and stage
gate model Many get
stuck midway

And most
lose steam
very early
crafting innovation together

Ideas The filtration The stage gate

(from various funnel process
channels) (based on (with evaluation
and decisions at
various various stages)
criteria)

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 6

 Continuous improvement models
(these typically apply on the grass-roots processes and
activities and are aimed at gradual change)

(Deviations are bad!)

Standardize and
ensure repeatability
crafting innovation together

Six Sigma Focus on controlling

Reducing error and system parameters
deviations from the norm

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 7

 The Technology and Intellectual
Property value chains
Trade secret

Idea Invention Intellectual

Property
Patent

Value
crafting innovation together

Exploit Protect

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 8

 Clearly, at any given point in time there are
several different types of ideas being
conceptualized, implemented and pursued
across various levels of the organization

They have different purposes and

different rhythms
crafting innovation together

All of them contribute to the

innovation quotient of an
organization

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 9

 Why do our innovation processes not
work
as well as we think they should?
crafting innovation together

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 10

 Ideas are lonely

Several serendipitous
ideas may actually be
crafting innovation together

inherently
synchronous –
they can be combined

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 11

 Ideas may be disconnected
from the larger context
crafting innovation together

As opposed to getting launched

Ideas end up making an
out of a context
emergency landing in a context

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 12

 Filtration processes systematically
eliminate the outliers -
the ones that don’t fit into the
current and present
crafting innovation together

The outliers are actually

the real ideas!

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 13

 We are used to

Logical thinking
Analytical thinking
Reductionist Approaches
Linear approaches Ideas and innovation are
by their very nature
which helps us to
Non-linear
crafting innovation together

Exploratory
converge
Divergent
narrow down
select
decide

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 14

 Only live ideas can be productive

How to nurture ideas and keep them alive?

How to craft ideas?
crafting innovation together

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 15

 Idea Crafting
IDEAS are the genesis of change – many times fundamental.
These are thoughts that one doesn’t get in the regular run-of-the-mill thinking.

IDEAS can happen serendipitously in the human mind.

They can be fleeting glimpses of problem solutions, can be dreams of possible new opportunities, can
be new design structures or simply new experiences.

IDEAS don’t happen just like that. They come to prepared minds.
Only prepared minds can transform these thoughts into change. It requires ability to generate and
execute at the same time.
crafting innovation together

IDEAS need to be crafted through orchestrated immersion.

Contrary to popular belief of organizations having lots of ideas and “it is all about execution”, our
experiences show ideas need to be crafted through orchestrated immersion of minds that work inside
and with the enterprises.

Idea Crafting helps generate and build ideas that become the
genesis of change for large enterprises

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 16

 In addition to Analytical and Logical Thinking
we need . . .

Inventive Thinking
(inventive triggers,
laws of evolution,
scenario building,
focus on function) Systems Thinking
Lean Thinking
(holistic approach,
(Value maximization,
global optima,
experimentation,
expanded and
learning approach,
connected system
crafting innovation together

elegance)
context)
LIST
(Lean
Inventive
Systems
Thinking)

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 17

 Lean Inventive Systems Thinking
Powerful scientific structured
mechanisms to

Help individuals tap and

exploit their creative skills
crafting innovation together

Help teams synergize better and

exploit the non-linear energies of
brainstorming and set-based
concurrent approaches

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 18

 Lean Inventive Systems Thinking

Help teams and individuals

• Effectively diverge and converge

• Expand the context
• Explore non-linear paths
• Build future scenarios
• Generate truly novel ideas
crafting innovation together

• Connect ideas together

• Identify key value parameters
• Assess solutions in a structured
manner
• Take informed decisions

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 19

 Lean Inventive Systems Thinking

Help organizations craft their own

unique innovation processes that
are in sync with the overall
organizational culture and vision
crafting innovation together

There cannot be any cookie-cutter

solutions

One size doesn’t fit all!

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 20

 The cogs of the organizational
innovation wheel
Ability to reach out to and utilize
external talent and people networks
More creativity and skill in
individuals and teams

More productive, reliable, more and better

efficient internal processes functionality
Seamless integration with Improved fit in
external ecosystem processes the ecosystem
e.g. the supply chain
crafting innovation together

Closer to
customer needs

For the wheel to move

forward, all cogs have to
move synchronously, in
unison and feed energy to
each other
Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 21
 A question that often crops up . . .

Does this mean that in order for ideas to be effectively

crafted

We need to have all the systems and processes in place

All people trained on various frameworks, tools and techniques
Buy-in from top management across the organization

Before we can get started?

crafting innovation together

In effect, is it “all” or “none”?

Do we have to boil the ocean first?

The short answer is NO.

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 22

 Embedding Innovation DNA in organizations
• Short cycle experiments

• Application of innovation frameworks to multiple contexts – ranging

from grass-roots project activities to business and technology strategy

• Small successes breed larger successes

• “Learning by doing” is the best way to inculcate innovative thinking

crafting innovation together

• Build unique organic perspectives on innovation and design innovation

processes accordingly

• Innovation buzz and conviction spreads faster sideways as opposed to

top down – internal word of mouth marketing works best (only possible
if real value is seen by the people using the innovation processes)
Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 23
 To help craft ideas in any context,
Crafitti uses a broad 3-stage process

• Explore
– Connect with the practitioners; understand the context
– Explore multiple perspectives and dimensions
– Come up with a customized approach (usage of frameworks)
• Engage
– Co-craft innovation in a “live” context using the customized approach
crafting innovation together

– Facilitate deep learning of the innovation frameworks through “learning by

doing”
• Empower
– Hand-hold to maximize the probability of success
– Set the context for future experimentation and application
– Create a cadre of minds prepared for idea crafting (for organic diffusion)

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 24

 Details of the Idea Crafting Process used in business
strategy and growth contexts
Solution Evaluation/
prioritization Set-based concurrent
•Key Value parameters approach
•Analytic Hierarchy Process
•Playing out scenarios SPOT
•Strategy
Converge Create Solution depth •Process
•Key Value Parameters •Clustering •Organization
•Prioritization using the •Resources and constraints •Technology
Analytic Hierarchy
Process Idea Explosion
•Inventive triggers Creating
Collect and connect •Scenario building
•Mind Maps •Brainstorming solution
•Clustering execution
•Dependency Analysis
Generating strategies and
roadmaps
crafting innovation together

Expand and explore the multiple novel

context
•Scenario building and interesting
•Space-time expansion solution
•Value Networks
directions
Finding the right
problem/
opportunity

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 25

 Crafitti looks forward to
active collaboration and help
craft ideas in multiple
crafting innovation together

innovation contexts.

Confidential © Crafitti Consulting Private Ltd. May 25, 2011 26