Sir_Excellence 2

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alternative_course_of_action.docx

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Due 11/12

Determine alternative courses of action (for business problem statement)

TOPIC

Read the text and view PowerPoint Ch. 2 related to the Strategy text.

1. Build alternative courses of action for your business problem statement and objectives from last week's discussion posting. You may change your scenario.

2. Start by copying your BRIEF problem statement and objective - summarize! This content does not count for your length objective.

• The length must be between 250 and 300 words. A reminder that your problem and objective input does not count

• This discussion considers your personal input and does not need to follow APA guidelines; however, if you copy, paraphrase, or quote someone, then you need to include correct APA citations and references

(Strategies for Creative Problem Solving 2nd Ed. By Fogler and LeBlanc) book we use

chap2.ppt

Creativity
and
Problem Solving

“Don’t give people goals; give them directions” (i.e., roughly aim them). “Encourage contrarian thinking.”

Dissent stimulates discussion, prompting others to make more perceptive observations. It ultimately influences decision making for the better.

“Getting ordinary people to reach beyond themselves and do extraordinary things can be the result of establishing a nurturing creative environment.”

To establish this type of atmosphere requires the reconciliation of traditional corporate attitudes with more iconoclastic entrepreneurial attitudes.

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“The safer you make the situation, the higher you can raise the challenge.”

The workplace should be safe, so that the workers are not afraid to take risks and make mistakes, but the standards should be set high.

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“Build a textured environment to extend not just people’s aspirations but their sensibilities.” You can’t buy creativity, you can inspire it.

Creative people require an atmosphere conducive to thinking in nonstandard ways. The work environment needs to be informal and relaxed.

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“Build emotion into the system.” Defensiveness is the bane of all passion-filled creative work. One way to keep defenses down is to encourage problem-finding as well as problem-solving. The world is moving so fast that problems are being created all the time. The people who can find them have tremendous powers of creative observation.

“Encourage accountability over responsibility.” Traditional responsibilities, like punching a clock from nine to five, can inhibit creativity. Instead, people are made accountable for the results of their work.

The Boss

by Dora Dodge

The boss drives his men.

The leader coaches them.

The boss depends on authority.

The leader depends on good will.

The boss inspires fear.

The leader inspires enthusiasm.

The boss says “I”.

The leader says “We”.

The boss assigns a task.

The leader sets the pace.

The boss says “Get here on time.”

The leader gets there ahead of time.

The boss knows how it’s done.

The leader shows how it’s done.

The boss makes work a drudgery.

The leader makes it a game.

The boss says “Go”.

The leader says “Let’s Go”.

Everybody needs leaders, but nobody needs a boss.

Problem Solving Heuristic

Generating Solutions

Lateral Thinking

Free Association

(Unstructured Idea Generation)

Vertical Thinking

OSBORN’SCHECKLIST

FUTURING

OTHER PEOPLE’S VIEWS

UNRELATED IDEAS

RANDOM STIMULATION

RELATED IDEAS

The

Brainstorming Process

It’s against our policy.
We’ve never done it that way before.
It’s too expensive.
That’s not practical.
We can’t solve this problem.

That won’t work.
That’s too radical.
It’s not our job.
We don’t have enough time.
That’s too much hassle.

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Can bring you to a screeching halt!!!

QUIZ PROBLEM #1:

What is one half of twelve?

Give several different answers.

QUIZ PROBLEM #2:

Trace a path from Point A to Point B.

Two Solutions to the Nine Dot Problem

Another Solution to the Nine Dot Problem

Defining the problem too narrowly.
Attacking the symptoms and not the real problem.
Assuming there is only one right answer.
Getting “hooked” on the first solution that comes to mind.
Getting “hooked” on a solution that almost works (but really doesn’t).
Being distracted by irrelevant information, called “mental dazzle.”
Getting frustrated by lack of success.
Being too anxious to finish.
Defining the problem ambiguously.

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Lateral Thinking

Free Association

(Unstructured Idea Generation)

Vertical Thinking

OSBORN’SCHECKLIST

FUTURING

OTHER PEOPLE’S VIEWS

UNRELATED IDEAS

RANDOM STIMULATION

RELATED IDEAS

The

Brainstorming Process

Suggest safe playground equipment that could be made from old cars.

Adapt? .......... How can this (product, idea, plan, etc.) be used as is? What are other uses it could be adapted to?

Modify? ........ Change the meaning, material, color, shape, odor, etc.?

Magnify? ...... Add new ingredient? Make longer, stronger, thicker, higher, etc.?

Minify? ........ Split up? Take something out? Make lighter, lower, shorter, etc.? Substitute? ... Who else, where else, or what else? Other ingredient, material, or approach?

Rearrange? .... Interchange parts? Other patterns, layouts? Transpose cause and effect? Change positives to negatives? Reverse roles? Turn it backwards or upside down? Sort?

Combine? ...... Combine parts, units, ideas? Blend? Compromise? Combine from different categories?

Rerraange

Com

bine

Osborn’s Checklist

for Adding New Ideas

Rearrange

Minify

Mag

nify

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PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT

FROM OLD CARS

Osborn’s Checklist

Combine: use the side panels and roofs to make a huge canopy or fort.

Rearrange: Turn the car upside-down and use it as a teeter-totter.

Substitute: use the cars’ seats in swings

Modify: remove the engine and side panels and make go-carts.

Adapt: take the hood off and use it as a toboggan in winter.

Magnify: over inflate the inner tubes from the tires and use them to create a “romper room” / jumping pit.

Minify: crush the cars into cubes and allow the kids to climb on the blocks.

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all, albatross, airplane, air, animals, bag, basketball, bean, bee, bear, bump, bed, car, cannon, cap, control, cape, custard pie, dawn, deer, defense, dig, dive, dump, dumpster, ear, eavesdrop, evolution, eve, fawn, fix, find, fungus, food, ghost, graph, gulp, gum, hot, halo, hope, hammer, humbug, head, high, ice, icon, ill, jealous, jump, jig, jive, jinx, key, knife, kitchen, lump, lie, loan, live, Latvia, man, mop, market, make, maim, mane, notice, needle, new, next, nice, open, Oscar, opera, office, pen, powder, pump, Plato, pigeons, pocket, quick, quack, quiet, rage, rash, run, rigid, radar, Scrooge, stop, stove, save, saloon, sandwich, ski, simple, safe, sauce, sand, sphere, tea, time, ticket, treadmill, up, uneven, upside-down, vice, victor, vindicate, volume, violin, voice, wreak, witch, wide, wedge, x-ray, yearn, year, yazzle, zone, zoo, zip, zap

PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT

FROM OLD CARS

Random Stimulation

random word:

DOCUMENT

ART

PAPER

COLORS

CAR

PAINT

ALLOW KIDS TO PAINT GRAFFITI ON CARS

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Think about walking around on your knees; how would this change your perspective--that is, imagine the playground from a child’s height.
What was your favorite playground toy? How could this be mimicked with used auto parts?

Example: From a child’s viewpoint, the intact car would be an exciting change to pretend to be a “grown-up.” Just take off the doors and remove other equipment (electrical, etc.) and let the kids pretend to drive. Just leave the car as it is!

PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT FROM OLD CARS

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Painting

Let Kids paint graffiti on cars
Paint targets and use to throw balls at
Paint as covered wagon--play cowboys

Whole Car

Teeter totter (upside down)
Go-Cart
Crush and make blocks
Drive as is
Open doors and use as goals for field hockey

Parts

seats-swings
Roof / doors--fort
Tires--jump on
Hood--toboggan
Springs for wobble ride

Upside Down

Teeter Totter

OLD CARS AS

PLAYGROUND

EQUIPMENT

PAINTING THE CARS

WHOLE CAR

PARTS

Police Car

(Cops/Robbers

Space Ship

(Star Trek)

Seats as Swings

Crush into Blocks

Tires–Jump On

Springs–Wobble

Ride

Go–Carts

Open Doors for

Hockey Goals

Covered Wagon

(Cowboys)

Let Kids Paint

Graffiti

Roof/Doors–Fort

Hood–Toboggan

1. How can airlines save money?

2. Ways to increase gas mileage.

3. Ways to dispose of car batteries.

4. Uses for auto tires.

5. What items in a landfill could be re-used?

6. Think of a name for________and prepare an advertising campaign to sell it.

7. List ways to make it easier for people confined to wheelchairs to prepare meals.

8. Make up a game that could be played in zero gravity.

A) For a personal fun sport.

B) For a professional spectator sport.

9. Separating chemicals with items in a first aid kit.