If you’ve ever held an ideation workshop, you know how fun it can be when people come up with fantastic ideas and everyone gets excited. And then what comes next?
… Crickets.
It’s almost like it’s one of the great mysteries in life (or work) – how to implement ideas from an ideation workshop? We mean, how to actually see an idea through from concept all the way through to it being launched as a great product or service.
We’ll take a look at why some great ideas never reach it to the finishing line and, more importantly, what you can do to make sure more of them actually do. This way, you’ll know how to implement ideas from an ideation workshop, turn them into great proposals, and end up with a viable concept for a successful product.
Why some ideas don’t come to fruition
Ideation is an exciting process. The possibilities are endless. The sky is the limit. The sticking point is that people often deal with ideal scenarios at this point. Ideation identifies the consumer’s needs and generates ways to meet them, but the process takes place in a vacuum.
As a result, there is often a disconnect between what should be and what is. When the team breaks the huddle and each member goes their separate ways, that’s when reality sets in. People start realising that there might be legal issues that were not considered or design implications that might make mass production impossible or at least impractical.
What happens to the list of great ideas from the workshop? Nothing. It stays exactly what it is – a list of great ideas.
So, how to implement ideas from an ideation workshop? Let’s look at steps to take to keep those ideas moving along the creation pipeline.
#3: Taking the Next Steps
Towards the end of the meeting or immediately after it, talk about the next steps that have to be taken. To do this effectively, it might be necessary to make a list of who has to do what and by when. A high-level action plan is better than none at all.
As a team, we work with our clients to discuss what needs to be done next, and appoint a project leader right after. It helps to choose someone passionate about the cause! If you are running multiple projects at once with multiple leaders, it also helps to appoint an overall project leader. Doing this immediately after rides on the post-ideation high, and everyone is clear on what needs to be done. Even if they weren't listening...it is not too late to clarify.
You can also check out other tips for your implementational challenges.