Both Individual and Group Sessions Can Be Useful
Formal studies of group and individual problem solving suggest that a set of people working alone for a period of time will generate more and better concepts than the same people working together for the same time period (McGrath, 1984). This finding is contrary to the actual practices of the many firms that perform most of their concept generation activities in group sessions. Our observations confirm the formal studies, and we believe that team members should spend at least some of their concept generation time working alone. We also believe that group sessions are critical for building consensus, communicating information, and refining concepts. In an ideal setting, each individual on the team would spend several hours working alone and then the group would get together to discuss and improve the concepts generated by individuals.
However, we also know that there is a practical reason for holding group concept generation sessions: it is one way to guarantee that the individuals in the group will deote a certain amount of time to the task. Especially in very intense and demanding work environments, without scheduling a meeting, few people will allocate several hours for concentrated individual effort on generating new concepts. The phone rings, people interrupt, urgent problems and e-mails demand attention. In certain environments, scheduled group sessions may be the only way to guarantee that enough attention is paid to the concept generation activity.
The nailer team used both individual effort and group sessions for internal search. For
example, during one particular week each member was assigned one or two subproblems and was expected to develop at least 10 solution concepts. This divided the concept generation work among all members. The group then met to discuss and expand on the individually generated concepts. The more promising concepts were investigated further.
Both Individual and Group Sessions Can Be UsefulFormal studies of group and individual problem solving suggest that a set of people working alone for a period of time will generate more and better concepts than the same people working together for the same time period (McGrath, 1984). This finding is contrary to the actual practices of the many firms that perform most of their concept generation activities in group sessions. Our observations confirm the formal studies, and we believe that team members should spend at least some of their concept generation time working alone. We also believe that group sessions are critical for building consensus, communicating information, and refining concepts. In an ideal setting, each individual on the team would spend several hours working alone and then the group would get together to discuss and improve the concepts generated by individuals.However, we also know that there is a practical reason for holding group concept generation sessions: it is one way to guarantee that the individuals in the group will deote a certain amount of time to the task. Especially in very intense and demanding work environments, without scheduling a meeting, few people will allocate several hours for concentrated individual effort on generating new concepts. The phone rings, people interrupt, urgent problems and e-mails demand attention. In certain environments, scheduled group sessions may be the only way to guarantee that enough attention is paid to the concept generation activity.The nailer team used both individual effort and group sessions for internal search. Forexample, during one particular week each member was assigned one or two subproblems and was expected to develop at least 10 solution concepts. This divided the concept generation work among all members. The group then met to discuss and expand on the individually generated concepts. The more promising concepts were investigated further.
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