How to run an effective ideation session

Have you ever left a brainstorming session feeling more frustrated than inspired? The reasons that ideation sessions often fall flat comes down to a few predictable challenges but luckily there are proven techniques to overcome these challenges and help your team generate creative, actionable ideas.

Premature convergence
As soon as a person starts sharing an idea it becomes anchored in people's minds and the opportunity for diverse ideas diminishes. But this can be overcome with Brainwriting where everyone writes out their ideas first before sharing.

The blank page problem
Like the fallacy of choice, having a blank page makes it harder to be creative. Implementing some constraints using structured ideation techniques can help people to think of different angles to attack the problem space.

Lack of incubation
Inspiration often comes long after the ideation session - and usually in the shower. This is your brain's default mode network at work. Lean into this superpower by splitting ideation sessions into two to allow people to build connections and new perspectives that can trigger creative ideas.

I go into these, as well as how to group and prioritise ideas effectively in my article this week.

This Week’s Updates

Enabling the Team

Manage Your Life Like You Manage A Product: Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exit—and Reflect by Christina Wodkte
The 4E framework—Explore, Expand, Exploit, and Exit—helps navigating personal and professional transitions. Keep doing continuous reflection, using personal OKRs to stay aligned with your values and goals.

How To Make Your Teams' Work More Visible by Rebecca Knight
Increase transparency within teams by implementing regular check-ins, utilizing collaborative tools, and establishing clear communication channels. These practices help to improve coordination, build trust, and ensure that all team members are aligned.

Product Direction

Deep Vs. Broad Context Traps by John Cutler
The context in decision-making has a great importance. John goes into the challenges of balancing deep, specialized knowledge with broad, general understanding in product development.

Competitive Advantage Comes From Seeing What Nobody Else Can by Helge Tennø
Gaining a competitive advantage comes from uncovering insights others miss and using causal diagrams (AIDA, Journey, System) to map complex customer behaviors.

Continuous Research

Improving Data Quality In Online Studies: What's New? by Dr Maria Panagiotidi
Methods to improve data quality in online surveys, focusing on effective questionnaire design, sampling techniques, and minimizing biases to ensure reliable results.

Defining Your MVP With Mixed Methods User Research by Jack Holmes
Jack shares his mixed-methods approach to user research when defining an MVP, from identifying customer needs and pain points to prioritizing features. [Sponsored Content]

Continuous Design

How To Run An Effective Ideation Session by Rory Madden
Running an effective ideation session doesn’t have to feel like herding cats. Using a structured approach you can overcome the main challenges of ideation, unlock your team’s creative potential and turn abstract ideas into actionable solutions.

Better Software Design: Changing How We Talk About Software by Jacqui Read
A more integrated approach to software design, emphasizing collaboration, communication, and a user-centric focus throughout the development lifecycle.

Continuous Development

How CIOs Can Implement And Execute An Effective AI Coding Strategy by Andrea Malagodi
CIOs should standardize AI usage, evaluate its impact, and invest in tools that automate testing processes. This 'trust and verify' approach when integrating AI coding assistants aims to boost developer productivity and ensures high-quality code. 

So, You Want To Push A Web Platform Feature? by Yoav Weiss
Steps for developers to contribute to web standards and browser features, emphasizing the importance of identifying relevant issues, engaging with the Web Platform Incubator Community Group (WICG), and collaborating with browser teams.

Communities in the Spotlight!
San Francisco & New York

Join us for exciting upcoming UXDX community events in two dynamic cities;
San Francisco and New York!

In San Francisco on February 25th, we’ll be delving into Building Customer Intuition Across the Product Lifecycle. The event promises engaging panel discussions and valuable networking opportunities, with insights from industry leaders like Sarah Khan and Duaa Gettani, all in collaboration with Optimal Workshop.

Meanwhile, in New York, we’re hosting a thought-provoking event on February 26th, centered on Design Led AI. This session will explore how AI can enhance design and business outcomes, focusing on actionable insights for integrating AI into your processes for greater impact.

Don’t miss out on these fantastic free opportunities to connect, learn, and grow with fellow design, product, and UX professionals!

THE UXDX MAJOR EVENTS

FREE COMMUNITY EVENTS 

Check out more upcoming community events 

Video of the Week
Scaling Right: Growing Impactful Product Teams after PMF

Matt Fenby-Taylor (Chief Product Officer at Unobravo), shares his strategies for scaling product teams in high-growth environments. As Unobravo expands globally, Matt discusses the importance of laying down strong foundations, aligning processes with growth goals, and avoiding inefficiencies that can stifle progress.

If you're leading a product team in a high-growth startup or looking to navigate the complexities of scaling your product while maintaining profitability and product-market fit, check out the full video here 👇

The Results of Last Week’s Poll

The question: Do you incorporate structured techniques to help people avoid the blank page problem?

It’s encouraging to see that nearly half of respondents (49%) always incorporate structured techniques to avoid the blank page problem, helping to guide ideation and ensure effective brainstorming sessions. A solid approach to ideation can significantly boost creativity and productivity, preventing the common challenges of starting with a blank page.

However, 33% of respondents leave it up to the attendees to manage this, and 17% don’t engage in ideation at all. While flexibility can work in some cases, having clear, structured techniques in place can help teams stay focused and aligned, especially when dealing with complex challenges.

If you’re looking for ways to structure your ideation processes or improve creativity in your team, consider exploring strategies that can turn those blank pages into actionable ideas. Check out our Continuous Design course for more insights and techniques!