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I spent last weekend attending two days of training (Yes, that’s right – both Saturday AND Sunday!). After spending the last couple of years focused primarily on running innovation workshops, I was surprised to find that I was sitting in the role of ‘workshop participant’ with a fresh pair of eyes – and when IRead more

We have all experienced it in one form or another. A problem solving or idea generation workshop that results in minimal results thanks to ineffective group discussion and lack of progress. Sure the pastries were tasty, but as a participant it feels like a wasted half day. As a facilitator, it feels like failure. WhileRead more

Think back to the last time you got people together for an idea generation session. Chances are the usual suspects were in involved, the same old people who are pulled on time and time again to solve problems. Perhaps they might be people from your team who are easy to work with, or perhaps theyRead more

In the last few years, many of us at Inventium have spent countless hours trying to find great workshop venues in Melbourne. So much time has been wasted on Google, trawling through dull venue after dull venue with the hope of finding a hidden gem, somewhere in the heart of Melbourne. And it always endedRead more

Have you ever heard the saying ‘if you fail to plan, then you’re planning to fail’? Well when it comes to running a successful idea generation workshop, it could be said that if you fail to plan, you may as well just write down a list of your own ideas and call it a day.Read more

When you need to solve a really sticky challenge, getting a group of people to put their heads together for some dedicated time is a great way to go. At Inventium, we take group composition seriously because we know that the quality of ideas generated is a direct reflection of the people in the room.Read more

So, you need to run a “brainstorm” or an innovation workshop and you’re thinking of who to invite. If you’re like most companies, you tend to invite the same group of people – let’s call them the Usual Suspects. These might be some of the more vocal people from marketing. Or perhaps you just inviteRead more

Longer term subscribers of this newsletter may have heard us bang on about why brainstorming is bollocks. One of many reasons why brainstorming is so ineffective is because of a psychological phenomenon known as social loafing. Social loafing relates to the fact that as humans, we have a tendency to work harder when working onRead more