Lateral Thinking
Systematic Creativity Tools
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Strengthen your business with fresh new thinking—bring
innovative solutions to life. Joel Barker has made the business case
to create new paradigms. Lateral Thinking provides a flexible
framework with systematic creativity tools—the “how to,” so you can. |
De Bono divides thinking into two methods:
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Lateral Thinking:
unconventional thinking. Deliberately setting out to look at challenges
from completely different angles to find great solutions that would
otherwise remain hidden. Focused on “what could be.” Will yield multiple
creative solutions from which to choose.
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Vertical thinking: conventional, logical, critical and
analytical thinking. Focused on “what is.” Will not yield creative
solutions. Click here for our DATT tool kit if this is the kind of
thinking that you need to strengthen.
Lateral Thinking is Powerful DuPont
benchmarked every creativity process on the market for its Creativity
Center. Dr. David Tanner, former technical director of DuPont, says that
“the de Bono Techniques were the most useful” to DuPont. For example, an
employee’s suggestion — the reengineering of a manufacturing process for
Kevlar® — eliminated nine steps in the process, leading to savings of $30
million as a result of using Lateral Thinking™ techniques.
The Lateral Thinking Process and Tools
When teams engage in Lateral Thinking they are practicing parallel
thinking—everyone is using the same tool at the same time on the same
challenge. This speeds up the process saving everyone time. Each person’s
unique thinking on the challenge is included which ensures a stronger
solution is implemented, supported and is well thought out.
Lateral Thinking training will equip your teams with a
process and proven tools to lead and participate in productive creative
thinking sessions. You will see a measurable increase in practical ideas
that can be implemented and supported.
Lateral Thinking Process Checklist:
| Focus Tools:
Planning tools to help prepare for creative and innovative thinking
sessions. |
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Current thinking checklist — screen for areas of opportunity. |
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Creative hit list — work with one to make creativity an everyday
activity. |
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Multiple focus statements — generate from many different angles
to uncover where to focus for ideas. |
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Redefine the problem — identify many different problem
definitions to help determine where to focus for ideas. |
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Design the creative session agenda — select focus statement/s,
decide which tools to use, plan for timing. |
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Guidelines for a formal creative session. |
| Idea Generating Tools:
A robust menu guaranteed to help you find new solutions that will
set you apart. |
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Alternatives: Top of the head, brain dump. |
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Concept Triangle/Fan: How to extract concepts from ideas to then
select powerful / fresh / new concepts to generate more new ideas. |
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Random Entry: How to use unrelated input to open up new lines of
thinking. Fresh ideas. |
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Provocation: How to move from a provocative statement to
practical new ideas. |
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Challenge Why CBA?: How to constructively challenge the status
quo to uncover practical new ideas. |
| Idea Sorting Tool:
A tool that enables teams to quickly organize their idea
output into a framework for action. |
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Harvesting: How to manage your idea output for long term value.
Select ideas to build on right away. Identify ideas to work on
later. Expand your list of concepts for future consideration.
Determine the nature of the ideas generated to help you move towards
different kinds of ideas next time — break patterns. |
| Idea Building Tools:
Now it's time to work with one idea at a time. Build on an
idea to see if it can be made viable. Very often articulated ideas
haven't been explored in any detail and they get killed too early in
the process — at the idea-generating step.
Tremendous potential is discarded. |
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Treatment: Can the idea be made to work within real-life
constraints? How can it be strengthened? Can it be tailored to work
within resources available? What weaknesses need to be overcome? |
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Assessment: Checklists and assessment questions that take into
consideration corporate alignment, risk, fit, power, etc. |
| Implementation and Change
Management Tools: Organizations have in place project
management and change management methods that work very well. Our
process likely overlaps with your internal assessment tools. You
will want to incorporate your assessment tools and use your own
project management method for implementation. |
Lateral Thinking is Powerful "By
the end of this year we will have doubled our business since our creative
thinking session with you, and we are 60% of the way to the goal. It's
almost time to raise the bar!- Dan Weare, National Business Manager, Sears
Canada Lateral Thinking Tools are Perfect For:
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Groups in need of new
thinking.
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Companies with an
“innovation” initiative in need of tools that actually work.
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Executives feeling the heat.
Same old, same old just isn't working anymore.
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Teams frustrated with old
predicable ideas that keep surfacing in their creative thinking
meetings.
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Professionals in the new idea
development business — R&D, PD, marketing, advertising.
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Scientists and engineers who
need systematic tools to break open their thinking.
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HR/OD professionals needing
tools to facilitate ideation meetings.
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Proactive people that want to strengthen their
Innovation Instinct™— their ability to generate, build on and implement
valuable new ideas.
Lateral Thinking Workshop Options:
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Three-day workshop which
includes our two-day standard workshop and one additional day for real
world job application and coaching.
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Two-day standard workshop.
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One-day short course focused
on learning idea generating tools.
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Half-day power session to learn the concept fan idea
generating process.
Lateral Thinking Will Help Individuals Develop Skills
To:
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Increase productive idea
output.
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Design the future.
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Find fresh new solutions to
intractable problems.
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Escape the constraints of
routine thinking.
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Appreciate the diversity of
thinking among team members.
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Plan and lead innovation
meetings that deliver powerful results.
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Secure your company’s
leadership edge.
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Find new areas of opportunity.
Lateral Thinking Application Support:
Our de Bono Thinking 24x7 software is available to support job application
and skill development back on the job. It can also be used to facilitate
ideation meetings. Click here to learn about our 24x7 software and how you
can purchase it.
Lateral Thinking Seminar Pre-reading:
Click here to download
our free PDF booklet. Four Ways You Can Learn de
Bono Lateral Thinking™ Tools and Process: Attend a
Lateral Thinking™ Seminar
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Have us lead a customized
Lateral Thinking™ training event at your organization. Call 818-507-6055
for details.
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Attend one of our public workshops.
View our current
dates, locations and registration details.
Become a Lateral Thinking™ Certified Trainer
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Have us lead a Lateral
Thinking™ instructor certification training event at your company.
Develop a group of your own expert trainers that will train your
internal clients. Call 818-507-6055 to discuss details.
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Attend a public Lateral Thinking™ instructor
certification training event. View our current dates, locations and
registration details.
Lateral Thinking™ Materials: attendees will always
receive the official de Bono Thinking Systems, Inc. materials. Some
clients may choose to supplement their training with our Innovation
Instinct™ Personal Assessments. Our Instructors: de
Bono for Business is different. Training is led by highly qualified
business experts who understand the fast pace of work and rapid change
driving business. Many are successful leaders of their own companies. This
is what sets us apart from other training organizations—we live and
breathe in the world of business—we understand it. We are results driven.
Book us to present or keynote at your conferences, team meetings and
executive retreats.
Call 818-507-6055 to discuss the ways we can add
value to your events by stimulating the thinking of your groups.
Lateral Thinking™ is Powerful
"I have found that there are 3 basic pillars
supporting creativity and innovation: the Osborn/Parnes problems solving
model (CPSI), and Dr. Edward de Bono's Six Thinking Hats® and Lateral
Thinking™ tool kits. They form the foundation for all the other twists
and tweaks that innovation gurus are marketing. This is where you should
start. Lynda Curtin is the right person to do this training."-
Roland Boose, Product Development, Innovation & Training, Nestle USA
Prepared Foods Division
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