Ideation Sprint

The Ideation Sprint workshop is a fast-paced creative process designed to generate validated strategies or ideas that will shape your product decisions and directions. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to use the template:

Introduce Brainstorming Rules

Before starting the ideation session, introduce brainstorming rules to the team. The rules are:

• Go for quantity

• Build on other ideas

• Stay on topic

• Don't judge others

• Welcome wild ideas

• Enter Problem Statement

Enter the problem statement in the designated area before the session starts. Read it to the team before starting the first ideation method.

Add Ideation Topic

Identify a design and/or business challenge in need of fresh ideas and review the categories with your product team.

Silent Brain Dump

Take an "idea tray" and write your name on it. Write as many ideas in your tray as possible to solve the given problem statement. There are no constraints. Just get all the ideas you can out of your head.

Do a Reverse Brainstorm

Select an "idea tray" and write your name. Follow the steps below:

Step 1 (5 min): Generate as many ideas as possible to make the problem worse, not solve it. Write these ideas on the grey sticky notes.

Step 2 (5 min): Take your bad ideas and flip them around so that they become solutions to the problem. Write these ideas on the black sticky notes.

Creative Matrix

Designate columns to identify categories related to people, and then ask participants to ideate at the intersections of the grid. Add each idea on a separate sticky note. Instruct the group to work in silence and limit the time to approximately 10 minutes.

Start "Role Storming"

Select an "idea tray" and take the perspective of the person or character indicated in the tray. How would you solve the challenge if you were that person? Write as many ideas as possible. Alternatively, you can replace the characters with companies (ex: How would Apple solve the challenge?)

Consider the "What If...?"

Select an "idea tray" and write as many ideas as possible with the given constraint. Think about how you would solve the challenge if the constraint was true. Change the constraint every two minutes and use the sticky note color indicated by the constraints.

Share and Fill out the Clustering Board

Select an "idea tray" and write as many ideas as possible with the given constraint. After each brainstorming method, place your "idea tray" in the square in the center and briefly explain your ideas to the team. Each participant has two minutes.

Drag your idea sticky notes to the adjacent area clusters as you present them. There is no right or wrong cluster. Try to find patterns between ideas and group-related ideas in one cluster.

Delete your "idea tray" from the center once it is empty. Once all brainstorming exercises have been completed, check the groups and give names to the clusters (20 minutes).

Finally, vote for the ideas in the clusters. The cluster with the highest amount of votes will be selected for further refinement and research (10 minutes).