Today’s installment in the goldWERT series “Seeing Change as an Opportunity” focuses on a key element that makes all the difference in any improvement process: brainstorming ideas as a team. Good ideas rarely happen by chance. They emerge when all perspectives are brought to light and everyone views change as an opportunity to learn. That’s when “we really should…” turns into real progress.
What should you keep in mind to ensure that ideas actually emerge?
First, you need psychological safety. No one should be afraid of being “wrong” with a suggestion. Ideas can be tentative. Second, you need clarity: What exactly is the goal here? Without a clear focus, brainstorming quickly turns into a general venting session. Third, structured facilitation ensures that everyone gets a chance to speak and that it’s not just the loudest voices that dominate.
How can ideas be collected?
Use a simple framework that allows you to take action quickly. For example, with guiding questions:
- What is already going well—and how can we build on that?
- What's the biggest challenge right now?
- What is the likely cause of this?
- What small idea could we try out without having to completely overhaul everything?
It is also important to understand the roles within the team. This allows each person to make a meaningful contribution: whether through process knowledge, the customer’s perspective, technical capabilities, risk assessment, or implementation planning.
How are ideas put into practice?
Putting ideas into action is key to success. That’s why, once you’ve gathered them, you need to clearly prioritize them: Which idea offers the greatest benefit while remaining realistically feasible? Implementing ideas also involves testing them out, so briefly define the following:
-> Who will do what by when?
-> How will we measure success?
-> When will we evaluate the results?
And this is exactly where the cycle becomes clear: gather, test, evaluate, refine. Change isn’t a one-time event, but an ongoing process of development. If you actively shape this process, you’ll become more successful as a team, step by step.
Sincerely,
Kathrin Fuchs
Executive Coach
goldWERT _ events & coaching
Click here for the main article, “Successfully Implementing Change as a Team.”
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