Scattered Showers' Meetings Suck

The scene is set. You might have been called to do one of the following:

• Generate thoughts on what the company's new web site should be.
• Determine the best ways to build team morale and unity.
• Develop new ideas for the marketing campaign.

Yes, you're off and running in the classic brainstorming meeting.

What's the goal of a brainstorming meeting? Its main impetus is the belief that lots of people can generate more ideas in a short amount of time by using ideas that come up to trigger even more ideas. This format also helps participants bond around a common goal and increases their commitment to the outcome. Besides, it's social and can be upbeat and fun—especially for those who don't get out much.

Group sourcing for ideas can be rewarding in big and small ways. At the same time, it's critical to keep inherent problems in mind to avoid your brainstorming meeting from sucking all the moisture from the space around you.

What can make a brainstorming meeting ineffective? Let's start with:

• Poor facilitation
• Pathetic follow-up on the ideas
• Poor time management of meeting (lasts too long)
• Low level of participation from attendees
• Lack of focus because discussion isn't narrow enough
• Too many people talking over one another so no one can hear
• Emphasis on evaluating ideas that come up instead of generating new ones

The biggest problem with brainstorming meetings centers on what happens to the ideas generated, which is often nothing. Lack of follow-up could be due to laziness or in-experience. Many times, it can be because your leader had an idea in mind to begin with, but wanted to pretend that “the group came up with it.” Then, you expand on your (excuse me, the leader's) idea and everyone feels involved in the process. (If you are this manager, stop wearing your me-me-me mantra on your sleeve. Instead, open fully to a group decision!)

Also, if you want to generate a mass of ideas from a variety of sources or demographics, it's wise to access greater spheres of influence. With the easy ability to poll for feedback and post comments, why limit yourself to the mere mortals gathered around you? Assuming you can talk publicly about the subject, open it up to the world. If not, at least open it up internally to those in your entire organization (if appropriate). Intranet, wikis, and internal project pages work well, as long as people know what's available and participation is encouraged. In this environment, you don't even need to set the meeting time. Go ahead and “Triple T” your meeting now (see Agenda Item 3).

Facilitator SRDs

If you're destined to lead the classic brainstorming meeting, follow these solid SRDs to a “T.”

• Keep the scope specific. The more detail you can include about the meeting's desired outcome or concept, the more detailed and on target the responses. Wide-open topics of discussion will get wide-open results with less chance of real traction. If you have multiple topics to address, break them into separate sessions, or discuss them on different days or in different online folders.
• Keep the idea generation focused and short. There's no time for tangents. Most people don't often engage in creative thinking; they tend to do their jobs the way they've always done them. Besides, using the other half of the brain takes energy. In the meeting, when ideas dry up, move on or ask clarifying questions. Idea selection and evaluation happens after the idea generation and will require additional time.
• State ground rules and suggested timing up front. Aim to spend 10 minutes on generating multiple ideas, 10 minutes expanding and enhancing viable ones, 10 minutes selecting the finalists, and then 30 minutes evaluating top selections.
• New ideas come at any time, not just when you're in a brainstorming meeting. Encourage texting or messaging ideas you can add to the selection list later. Why can't the morning shower be the brainstorm location of choice?
• No fire-hosing! That's when a participant shares an idea and someone jumps all over it with a “been-there-done-that-didn't-work” comment. Remember, you never want to put out the fire of any ideas. There is an idea-generation phase and an evaluation phase, so stay true to both. If you want people to clam up and stop sharing ideas, allow someone to hose initial ideas. This results in two things: hurt feelings and a wealth of squashed ideas.
• When face-to-face brainstorming groups are more than 10 people, break into smaller groups. Why? Because it's easy for people and ideas to hide in large groups. It also evokes fear of being ridiculed in front of an audience. Generate ideas within small groups and collect the best ones for the selection and evaluation phase.
• Want increased participation? Ask group members to bring with them at least three starter ideas. This helps beat the “Tom-already-said-my-idea” excuse heard in idea-generation sessions.
• When everyone is blurting out that first batch of ideas that come so freely, it can be tough for one person to write them all down. Have two or more scribes take notes, and ask people to direct their comments to one person or the other. Another option: Pull out your smart phone and hit the “memo record” function. Scribes can listen to the playback and jot down ideas they missed.
• Find a creative space for brainstorming. Use other meeting styles, or try speed meetings, both of which are discussed in Agenda Item 3, to keep the blood flowing to the brain and to keep people active.

Attendee SRDs

• If the facilitator has not set up a focused element for brainstorming, ask clarifying questions to get to a finer point, and don't allow anyone to lose sight of it. Rewrite that focus at the top of the board, paper, or Web page header.
• If a plan wasn't shared about the process you'll be following, ask for one, and set a specific amount of time to be spent on each issue.
• If the facilitator doesn't stop the fire-hosing, jump in early and quickly with a question to the facilitator like this: “Are we finished with new ideas?” Do this every single time it's needed, even though people can finish the sentence for you.
• Bring a squirt gun and, whenever someone fire-hoses, ready … aim …fire! Having multiple guns in the room equals exponential fun. Just watch out. You don't want to ruin anyone's phone, or you'll have one extremely upset attendee!

If you want new ideas to be innovative, why not be innovative in the way you develop them? Get in the game of making a more productive and creative session by providing a format that fosters what you want. You can let the skies open up and flood the team with new ideas instead of simply clouding over with the same foggy results.