Sometimes it can be difficult or impractical
to come up with totally new ideas. You might need to look outside your normal
surroundings and scan the market for new thoughts and innovations. Although this
can be done in a variety of ways, dependent upon the consultant’s preferred
style; there are a number of common approaches. These are built around two key
variables. First is the breadth of the search - is the search based within the
same industry grouping or does it move into a totally different area? The second variable is
the balance between a passive and active search. For the passive, systems are
put in place and then left to react to ideas as they surface. Alternatively, the
active approach is where you go out to search for new ideas in a proactive way.
The relationship between these two continuums produces the following:
 |
Ration
- There is only limited interest in searching for new knowledge. This is
seen in only a passing desire to subscribe to industry journals, join
committees or scan the Internet. |
|
Radiate
- Ideas from other
areas are of interest but little positive action is taken to pick up on
them. Benchmarking is one example of a positive process for identifying
new ideas, although the extent to which other people’s ideas are
actually adopted will indicate whether a reactive or proactive stance is
being taken. |
|
Rummage
- The creative team
will take the time to interact closely with new people but the search is
still limited to the local area. New ideas are forthcoming but they are
likely to be ones that are already in common use. |
|
Roam
- A positive decision has been taken to look aggressively for inspiration
beyond the local area and to actively look for ideas from counterparts in
other industries and across more diverse fields. |
(c) Mick Cope