Business Skills for Chemical Scientists

Ingenuity Part 1

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Agenda

• Ingenuity  Example  Explanation  And chemistry • This session –  PHASE ONE RED CARD • Ahead for next session 2

What is ingenuity? In action…

Apollo 13 The Million Dollar Homepage

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Ingenuity starts with #1

• • A focus on the ‘Huston we have a problem’ moment rather than ‘EUREKA! here’s the solution..’ In the tradition of  The entrepreneur (in the Schumpeter (1921) sense not the everyone in business sense)  Shifting the paradigm (Kuhn, 1962)  Tensions – between innovation and orthodoxy 4

Ingenuity starts with #2

• • And YOU… Problem solving …  Mechanically?

 Tacit knowing and trust ?

 Need for divergent thinking before rushing to convergent production of a single solution too soon 5

Phase I Definition

• The INGENUITY process • Example

Phase II Discover

Problem Description Problem Structure Strategy to Solve Problem Problem Statement Ideas-Opportunities Potential Concepts

Phase III Determine

Final Concepts Selection Process Implementation Plan for Optimal Solution 6

• The RED card

Phase I Definition

Problem Description DESCRIBE THE SYMPTOMS Problem Structure FIND THE ROOT CAUSES Strategy to Solve Problem DECIDE HOW TO ATTEMPT A SOLUTION 7

Thoughts on problem definition…

‘have lots of ideas and throw away the bad ones….You aren’t going to have good ideas unless you have lots of ideas and some sort of principle of selection’

Linus Pauling

• Top TIPS  Listen (to yourself AND each other)  Don’t interrupt  Some useful questions when defining the problem, see p47-59 8

Thoughts on problem definition…

‘Intelligent people can juggle a half-dozen concepts simultaneously and make good decisions rapidly – and many of them seldom have a creative moment. They are so good at the standard answers and so eager to move on to the next decision that they never play around with nonstandard possibilities… There is such a thing as being “too good” because, in much of life, there are no correct answers. You have to invent new ones and contemplate them for some time.’ W. H. Calvin

• • • • Top tips Open your mind, say anything Pause, slow down - notice when you are rushing ahead with the one solution Stay on task… define the problem 9

Phase 1 – define

• • • How does the problem manifest itself?

Who does the problem affect?

What is the impact of the problem?

• Analyse the evidence; describe the symptoms 10

Lack of parking in the city

• Describe the problem - who, what, when, where, how, why (symptoms)  Time parking - stress and ? productivity  Cars being driven around unnecessarily • • Pollution / health issues City life unpleasant • • • Slows all traffic Accidents Waste of petrol / car damage 11

Phase 1 – discover

• • • How does the problem work?

Is it simple or complex?

What are the root causes? • Explore the structure of the problem, find the root causes 12

Phase 1 – determine

• • • What are the criteria for success? What are the constraints in both time and resource? What are the priorities? • Decide how to attempt a solution

Lack of parking in the city

• • Problem Structure  Lack of parking  Public transport inefficient/ unattractive  People like privacy/ space  The car Problem Strategy  Pilot solution in Nottingham area 14

• The RED card TASK

Phase I Definition

Problem Description DESCRIBE THE SYMPTOMS Problem Structure FIND THE ROOT CAUSES Strategy to Solve Problem DECIDE HOW TO ATTEMPT A SOLUTION 15

Global challenges and chemistry

• • • • Population growth Scarcity of resources Disease Consequences of the industrialised and globalised world  Population - ageing

healthcare

 Resource scarcity – non-

renewables; energy; water; land

 Disease - obesity; HIV;

cancer; infection

 Late modern world -

climate change; sustainability and waste; urbanisation; mobility

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Business Skills for Chemical Scientists

Ingenuity Part 2

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Agenda

• Ingenuity  Revisit key points  Review progress •

This session –

 PHASE TWO ORANGE CARD • Ahead for next session 18

What is ingenuity?

Phase 2…

Apollo 13 Phase 2– generate lots of IDEAS

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• The INGENUITY process

Phase I Definition Phase II Discover

Problem Description Problem Structure Strategy to Solve Problem Problem Statement Ideas-Opportunities Potential Concepts

Phase III Determine

Final Concepts Selection Process Implementation Plan for Optimal Solution 20

• The ORANGE card

Phase II Discover

Problem Statement PREPARE TO FIND SOLUTIONS Ideas/Opportunities GENERATE MULTIPLE SOLUTIONS Potential Concepts NOTICE AS REALISTIC CONCEPTS EMERGE 21

Thoughts on problem discovery…

“Creativity is the yeast of innovation; a small part of the recipe, useless on it’s own but see what happens when you miss it out”

William Beck

• Top TIPS  Listen (to yourself AND each other)  Don’t interrupt  Some useful questions when discovering the problem, see p62-84 22

Phase 1 – define

• • • Present a clear explanation Construct a strategy Compose a statement • Prepare to find solutions 23

Lack of parking in the city

• Problem Statement 

‘there is an excess demand for parking in areas of insufficient supply for commuters in cities”

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Phase 2 – discover

• • • Seek analogies Generate non obvious ideas Find as many ideas as possible • Generate multiple solutions 25

Phase 3 – determine

• • • Reflect on nature and diversity of ideas Have all the permutations been explored?

Have enough ideas been produced?

• Notice as realistic concepts begin to emerge 26

city parking – multiple solutions

Under water parking Park in middle of roads Model specific parking Parking on sides of buildings Mobile car parks No lines in car parks Low roofs in car parks Jig saw cars Car becomes a generator Disposable cars Cars become delivery cars floating cars Driverless cars Ebay car park auction for space Collapsible cars Time share car parks No lorries in city No shops in cities Community cars Portable offices 27

Effect ideas discovery…

• Top TIPS  Generate as many solutions as possible (>50)  Use post it notes  Make a lateral, non linear jump to achieve creative insights  ‘Hitchhiking’ is encouraged • Top TIPS  No criticism is allowed  Rank your ideas from 1= incremental innovation and 5 = radically new  You should aim to generate at least 20 radically new ideas  use your knowledge of the latest research in your field 28

• The ORANGE card TASK

Phase II Discover

Problem Statement PREPARE TO FIND SOLUTIONS Ideas/Opportunities GENERATE MULTIPLE SOLUTIONS Potential Concepts NOTICE AS REALISTIC CONCEPTS EMERGE 29

Business Skills for Chemical Scientists

Ingenuity Part 3

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Agenda

• Ingenuity  Revisit key points  Review progress •

This session –

 PHASE THREE GREEN CARD 31

What is ingenuity?

Phase 3…

Phase 3–at last, the SOLUTION Apollo 13

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• The INGENUITY process

Phase I Definition Phase II Discover

Problem Description Problem Structure Strategy to Solve Problem Problem Statement Ideas-Opportunities Potential Concepts

Phase III Determine

Final Concepts Selection Process Implementation Plan for Optimal Solution 33

• The GREEN card

Phase III Determine

Final Concepts SELECT AND ENGINEER POTENTIAL SOLUTION Selection process FIND THE BEST SOLUTION Look to the future CONSIDER IMPLEMENTATION 34

Thoughts on problem determination …

‘‘People who don’t take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year. People who do take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year’’

Peter Drucker

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Phase 1 – define

• • • Sort and sift ideas into categories Construct realistic possibilities Select 3/4 • Select and engineer potential solutions 36

Phase 2 – discover

• • • Recall criteria from problem definition stage Compare the alternatives Choose the optimal solution • Investigate the alternatives and find the best solution 37

Phase 3 – determine

• • • Present chosen solution Examine barriers to acceptance Produce implementation plan • Concentrate on the imagined future 38

city parking – final concepts

• Categorised ideas into three groups  Infrastructure changes  High tech solutions  Social engineering • Produced three super solutions – one from each category • Mobile car park • Yield management of car parks via tom toms, GPS • Ban lorries 39

Effective determination …

• Final concepts  Categorisation  post-it notes  theme the ideas  be flexible – force fit  Synthesis  start with a single idea and build from the rest • • Selection  generate criteria required in a solution  score solution by criteria  advantages/disadvantages matrix Implementation  imagine using a solution in practice  removing negatives:- borrow from other solutions and from phase 2 40

• The GREEN card TASK

Phase III Determine

Final Concepts SELECT AND ENGINEER POTENTIAL SOLUTION Selection process FIND THE BEST SOLUTION Look to the future CONSIDER IMPLEMENTATION 41