Every Company Needs a Good Map

With my artist son Brett, I attended a user group meeting for Luxology Software's Modo. It's a software program for 3D modeling and soon, animation. The moderator must have said that they believe in the power of 1000 minds, over the power of 10. In other words, they use their user community as much as possible to help influence the aspects of the product they make. If you have not looked at some of the amazing creations, it is worth a visit. There are some where you cannot tell if it is a photograph or a model.

This was intriguing to me since I had just seen a piece on brainstorming. I can't recall where I saw it but the premise was that group brainstorming is not as effective as individual brainstorming in some cases. A quick search of recent articles pointed to a piece written last year for the Wall Street Journals Cubicle Culture section by Jared Sandberg ( you may need a subscription to see it)  or try this link from the Post-Gazette.com website.

Even if you cannot see the original article, it generated quite a number of blog responses, two that will lead you to more if you need them are listed here:

IFTF's Future Now "Wall Street Journal on brainstorming"

BusinessWeeks Bruce Nussbaum "Is Brainstorming For Real? You Bet."

The point is that a group of disorganized people in a room is not a brainstorming session.

Every time I heard the concept of a 1000 brains I kept thinking of something the Mack Collier ahs been pushing recently (or for all I know as long as he has been blogging) - That companies need to increase the interaction with their customers (user group) if they really want to improve the product and performance of their company. His recent post The (bloggin') times they are a changin'... - The Viral Garden; says a lot about his position.

We should remember that Henry Ford said "If I had asked my customers what they wanted, they would have said 'A faster horse'." That is to say, the customer does not always know what they want. This is particularly true for new products. Risk takers and trend busters often go against convention. They often fail as well.

One of the reasons "group think" can work against you is the "herd mentality" many often feel. It only takes one negative voice at times to kill the best idea. It can take one forceful voice to push a personal agenda or favorite over the best thing. This may be why individual contributions, reviewed by a small group work better. There will always be the exceptions but that is also to be expected.

My take: Organize a group that works together. Get as many ideas out in settings where people will not be intimidated or influenced by others.

1. Gather with optimism
2. Evaluate with reason
3. Execute with determination

How do you improve the value of brainstorming or gather customer input?