mtic notes

7/28/2019 Mtic Notes

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Technology Intelligence (TI) is an activity that enables companies to identify the technological

opportunities and threats that could affect the future growth and survival of their business. It aims to

capture and disseminate the technological information needed forstrategic planning and decision making.

As technology life cycles shorten and business become more globalized having effective TI capabilities is

becoming increasingly important. The Centre for Technology Management has defined 'technology

intelligence' as "the capture and delivery of technological information as part of the process whereby an

organisation develops an awareness of technological threats and opportunities.

1. Technology Intelligence is the ability to look at developments in technology and use them asenablers. You can map a new technology development to something you do in your organization.

This may be a new product design, a new extension to an existing product, a service design, a

new way of marketing, a better way to obtain sales leads, a simpler method of manufacturing etc.

There are no bounds.2. Technology Intelligence is needed for almost every organization. Organizations in certain

industries may need it more than others. If you have it, you will certainly have some competitive

advantage over others, who dont.

3. Each new development in technology creates at least one marketplace which may over timeblossom into multiple markets and an entire industry.

4. When it appears, a new technology may not appear earth shattering. So people tend to ignore it.There will be a series of minor shifts, a few scattered applications and all of a sudden, there will

be some company getting millions of customers. Dont look to journalists to cover it (unless theyare some one like Jon Udell).

5. Some times a simple technology may go viral with great impact. Twitter is a good example. Itstarted as an innocuous micro-blog. It was ignored by most in the beginning.

6. The real winners will be the ones who can find new applications for a technology and successfullyimplement it and educate others. Leveraging technology is a special skill. It can be acquired.

7. Detect trends early. These are also known as weak signals. First, start with an open mind. Thesmart ones have the ability to spot an early trend.

BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING

BPR is the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic

improvements in critical contemporary measures of performance, such as cost, quality, service, and
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speed. Instead of starting with an activity flowchart, corporations are advised to start with a clean slate.

They are then told to look into why they perform the tasks the way they do. A Process Engineer will look

at the activities to be performed and how they can be engineered to invest minimum resources and get

maximum returns. Business Process Reengineering involves the radical redesign of core business

processes to achieve dramatic improvements in productivity, cycle times and quality. In Business Process

Reengineering, companies start with a blank sheet of paper and rethink existing processes to deliver more

value to the customer. They typically adopt a new value system that places increased emphasis on

customer needs. Companies reduce organizational layers and eliminate unproductive activities in two key

areas. First, they redesign functional organizations into cross-functional teams. Second, they use

technology to improve data dissemination and decision making.

Business process re-engineering is also known as business process redesign, business transformation, or

business process change management

To illustrate the point, let us consider the example of Apple iPod. Apple rethought the way music ought to

be made available to the consumers. The changes it brought were:-

Radical: While all other music labels were selling music via brick and mortar stores, Appledeveloped its iTunes software to sell music digitally. (Napster had made digital music available

through a P2P platform earlier, but was sued by music labels for copyright violation)

Fundamental: Apple sold single tracks as opposed to whole albums being sold at brick andmortar shops.

Information Sharing: A BPR project is usually facilitated by a cross functional team. Most of the times,

teams are spread across different geographic locations. Information needs to be successfully shared

amongst various people to ensure the reengineering goes as planned and without hiccups.

Technology as the Solution: The new processes that are developed as a result of BPR initiatives deploy

the latest technology to achieve the desired end results. Usually it is e-Commerce, automation or another

technology driven solution that is implemented.

Business Process Re-engineering has become a very important buzzword in the BPM lexicon. Many

corporations who were late in realizing the power and importance of BPM have to undergo re-engineering

initiatives to ensure that they are still relevant to the marketplace. Re-engineering initiatives are however

expensive and may require certain downtime. This is the reason they are resented by many corporations.


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Business process re-engineering (BPR) began as a private sector technique to help organizations

fundamentally rethink how they do their work in order to dramatically improve customer service, cut

operational costs, and become world-class competitors.

Some of the common benefits of BPR are:

Increase Effectiveness.

As all employees are aware of the processes to which they belong , they have a greater sense of

responsibility. All processes are completely monitored under the strict control of the management. The

net result of this is that employees deliver high quality products to their customers. Helps to improve

efficiency.

Proper management and control of all business processes reduces the time lag between different

processes, which otherwise is quite high causing delays. This in turn reduces the time to market the

product to the target customers and givesquicker response to buyers.

Reduces cost.

With the proper management of processes, improved efficiency and quick delivery of products to the

buyers ,the overall product costs are reduced resulting in cost saving for the organization in the long run.

Meaningful job for employees.

As the time lag of product processing between different departments gets reduced due to the application

of business process reengineering, there are more meaningful tasks to be performed by employees. This

leads to increase their levels of motivation and the desire to perform well.
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Improvement in organizational approach.

According to the traditional approach of managing an organization there is no flexibility or adaptability to

change. The management formulated strict rules for employees of the organization. Whereas now, when

most organizations have implemented business process reengineering there is an increase in flexibility

and adaptability for change. This has created better environment for people to work, thus leading to

employee satisfaction.

Growth of business

Implementation of BPR results in the growth of the present business thus enabling the emergence of new

businesses within the same organization.

Although BPR is very effective in controlling cost and improving efficiency, its implementation is a hard

nut to crack. Employees are very resistant to this kind of change thus, it is important to have extensive

support from the top management.

Limitations of BPR

1. Negatively influence customer reaction and customer service.2. May not suited for all industry for a radical redesign3. May negatively influence core competence of the business4. May ignore the staffs reactions and emotions5. May high costly.6. May lead to lack of focusing the customer needs

INNOVATION MANAGEMNT

Innovation management is the discipline ofmanagingprocesses in innovation. It can be used to develop

both product and organizational innovation. Without proper processes, it is not possible for R&D to be

efficient; innovation management includes a set of tools that allow managers and engineers to cooperate

with a common understanding of goals and processes. The focus of innovation management is to allow

the organization to respond to an external or internal opportunity, and use its creative efforts to introduce

new ideas, processes or products.[1] Importantly, innovation management is not relegated to R&D; it

involves workers at every level in contributing creatively to a company's development, manufacturing,

and marketing. By utilizing appropriate innovation management tools, management can trigger and

deploy the creative juices of the whole work force towards the continuous development of a company.[2]
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The process can be viewed as an evolutionary integration of organization, technology and market by

iterating series of activities: search, select, implement and capture.[3]

The 8 Phases of an Innovation Management Process

Setting the goals for the process: Innovation always begins with a goal in mind. It is many times based

on finding the solution to a problem. Once you have this goal, it should be discussed among everyone in

the problem solving team. This team may consist of you and another person, a group of people, or may

even be all of your organizations employees. It may involve others such as your customers (who can

provide suggestions and feedback based on their own experience with your product or service) or other

stakeholders in the business. When you establish the team for this process, make sure that you have

someone representing all the parts of the process from start to the end.

Cooperation: The innovation team should work together so that instead of trying to come up with an

idea separately, they can bounce ideas off one another and create a collaborative solution. This can

include the use of online tools, attendance of events such as trade shows that can be inspiring and

informative, or simply consist of brainstorming sessions. You might consider having a trained business

coach facilitating the discussions. There are many online tools available for real-time document sharing

that might help teams that are geographically separated to still have intense cooperation.

Combination of ideas: Once the ideas are in, choose the best ones and then consider whether they can be

combined to create an even greater idea. Often, strong ideas will be complementary to one another and

will join well to create an even better result. As you know, the whole result can be bigger than its

individual parts. And for this combination to work well, you need representatives of all parties involved

in the process, because they for sure have ideas that people from other departments could not come up

with. Business coaches may be useful here for making sure that all the angles of innovative aspect are

covered.

Evaluation of innovation: This is an important and yet all too frequently overlooked aspect of the

innovation management process. When the best ideas have been combined, fine-tuned, and polished, it is

time to subject them to evaluation based on peer reviews. This helps to ensure that any ideas that have a

promising veneer but that are poorly thought out will be identified before resources, funding and time

have been poured into them. It also helps to select the ideas with the greatest potential from among
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several that appear equally capable of being successful. It is cheap to change your innovation at this stage

compared to later stages. Each step you take forward will cost you more

Testing the ideas: Once the ideas with the greatest potential have been identified, they can be tested so

that they can be better developed. One of the most common means of testing a product or service idea isto create a prototype or test group. This allows the team, as well as customers and investors to have a

better look at how the product will function and what changes can be made to it so that it will be even

further improved. Make sure that the product or service not only raises interest but is able to generate

orders also. If people say that they are interested in it, then ask them if they give you the order right away.

Execution of innovation implementation: The ideas that survive the testing process can be further

developed and altered until they are ready to be executed as a part of the business offerings. The

execution of implementation is a step that is unique to your business and, unless your new product causes

you to have to drastically alter the typical way that your go-to-market strategy functions, then this part of

the innovation management process should be relatively commonplace in your organization. It should be

easier for you to move from testing to execution if you were able to generate orders already in testing

phase.

Assessment of innovation life-cycle: After the execution of an idea, its implementation needs to be

carefully monitored and assessed in terms of a number of milestones that should be set. Should a

milestone not be reached, then changes will need to be made or the idea will need to be shut down.

Remember to keep always customer in your mind also in execution phase and design your measuring

systems so that they measure added value for the customer (you get what you measure and customers

weight you based on that!).

Tools for managing innovation

Brainstorming is a group or individual creativity technique by which efforts are made to find a

conclusion for a specific problem by gathering a list of ideas spontaneously contributed by its member(s).

The term was popularized by Alex Faickney Osborn in the 1953 book Applied Imagination. Osborn

claimed that brainstorming was more effective than individuals working alone in generating ideas,

although more recent research has questioned this conclusion.[1]Today, the term is used as a catch all for

all group ideation sessions.

Digital Prototyping gives conceptual design, engineering, manufacturing, and sales and marketing

departments the ability to virtually explore a complete product before its built. Industrial designers,
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manufacturers, and engineers use Digital Prototyping to design, iterate, optimize, validate, and visualize

their products digitally throughout the product development process. Innovative digital prototypes can be

created via CAutoD through intelligent and near-optimal iterations, meeting multiple design objectives

(such as maximised output, energy efficiency, highest speed and cost-effectiveness), identifying multiple

figures of merit, and reducing development gearing and time-to-market. Marketers also use Digital

Prototyping to create photorealistic renderings and animations of products prior to manufacturing.

Companies often adopt Digital Prototyping with the goal of improving communication between product

development stakeholders, getting products to market faster, and facilitating product innovation.

product lifecycle management (PLM) is the process of managing the entire lifecycle of a product from

its conception, through design and manufacture, to service and disposal.[1]PLM integrates people, data,

processes and business systems and provides a product information backbone for companies and their

extended enterprise. PLM systems help organizations in coping with the increasing complexity andengineering challenges of developing new products for the global competitive markets. Product lifecycle

management (PLM) should be distinguished from 'product life cycle management (marketing)' (PLCM).

PLM describes the engineering aspect of a product, from managing descriptions and properties of a

product through its development and useful life; whereas, PLCM refers to the commercial management of

life of a product in the business market with respect to costs and sales measures.

Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, motivating, and controlling resources to

achieve specific goals. A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end (usually time-

constrained, and often constrained by funding or deliverables),[1] undertaken to meet unique goals and

objectives,[2]

typically to bring about beneficial change or added value. The temporary nature of projects

stands in contrast with business as usual (or operations),[3] which are repetitive, permanent, or semi-

permanent functional activities to produce products or services. In practice, the management of these two

systems is often quite different, and as such requires the development of distinct technical skills and

management strategies. The primary challenge of project management is to achieve all of the project

goals[4]and objectives while honoring the preconceived constraints.[5]The primary constraints are scope,

time, quality and budget.[6]The secondaryand more ambitiouschallenge is to optimize the allocation

of necessary inputs and integrate them to meet pre-defined objectives.

Types of Innovation Strategy

Proactive -Companies with proactive innovation strategies tend to have strong research orientation; they

will often have first mover advantage and be a technology market leader. These companies access
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knowledge from a broad range of sources and take big bets/high risks. Companies like Dupont, Apple

and Singapore Airlines have proactive innovation strategies. The types of technological innovation used

in a proactive innovation strategy are radical and incremental. Radical innovations (as described in Why

Innovate) are breakthroughs that change the nature of products and services. Incremental innovation is the

constant technological or process changes that lead to improved performance of products and services.

Active -An active innovation strategy involves defending existing technologies and markets but with the

preparedness to respond quickly once markets and technologies are proven. These companies have mainly

incremental innovation with in-house applied R & D. Companies with active innovation strategies also

have broad sources of knowledge and have medium to low risk exposure. They tend to hedge their bets

and include companies such as Microsoft, Dell and British Airways.

Reactive -The reactive innovation strategy is used by companies that are followers and have a focus on

operations, have a wait and see approach and look for low risk opportunities. They will copy proven

innovation. Companies with reactive innovation strategies use entirely incremental innovators and include

budget airlines such as Ryanair which has successfully copied the no frills service model of Southwest

Airlines.

Passive -Companies with passive innovation strategies wait until their customers demand a change in

their products or services. Many of the companies that supply to automotive companies have passive

innovation strategies as they wait for the automotive companies to demand changes to specification

before implementing these changes.

5 Key Points to Consider when Developing an Innovation Strategy

First, an innovation strategy needs to be truly inspiring and should describe a desirable future state

for the company.: Opportunities and possibilities formulated in an innovation strategy should actually

provide input and shape the overall corporate strategy.This is a high bar as it rules out a single-minded

focus on incremental add-ons to the business. Rather, it requires the organization to aim higher. You have

probably often read in literature that the innovation strategy should be derived from the corporate strategy

to clearly define how the organization sees opportunities for growth and makes explicit choices about the

role of innovation, which is absolutely not wrong. Still, we think that to some extent it should be the other

way around. Opportunities and possibilities formulated in an innovation strategy should actually provide

input and shape the overall corporate strategy. Invention is done everywhere. In fact, the value that is
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derived for many large companies by scouting inventions, connecting the dots between many singular

ideas and inventions into one big platform innovation and fully scaling it to maximize potential benefits.

Second, the innovation strategy needs to be ambitious in terms of providing the basis to break away

from the competition, beat the competition, and create new spaces. Too many innovation strategiesthat we have seen tend to be me too (and mostly incremental). Even if executed according to plan, they

fail to deliver the truly sustainable competitive advantages that can only be derived by performing above

the overall market growth level and exceeding average profit margins. Again, the innovation strategy

should aim higher and help the company outpace anybody else in a contested space. If the so-called

strategy does not seek to push those boundaries, the strategy in all practicality is probably just a product

roadmap of business extensions, not an innovation strategy.

Third, the process of developing the strategy needs to be open. Open means bringing the outside in

and working under the assumption that the other seven billion people on our planet may have insights that

do not exist within a particular companys boundaries. Even today this is something that many people

find hard to accept. One client once joked: We actually invented the not-invented-here-syndrome in our

company. Companies are settled into the way they innovate.

Fourth, an innovation strategy must also be specific to the time in which it is developed, as it is

grounded in the reality of a companys environment, and it reflects the available capabilities, technologies

and gaps that may need to be filled. What do we mean by this? It is important to describe with great

precision which specific innovation initiatives should be pursued, and where to invest and compete. The

innovation strategy also needs to explore possible market developments and scenarios while defining the

most attractive market opportunities. The innovation strategy also needs to explore possible market

developments and scenarios while defining the most attractive market opportunities.

Finally, an innovation strategy needs to be adaptive and to evolve over time, i.e. incorporate learning,

allow adjustments to the desired course and maybe even allow an organization to cut its losses if required.

This typically does not fit with the classic annual corporate planning cycle. An innovation strategy and

the respective execution should be capable of adapting the moment there are new insights, even if thatrequires moving in multiple directions to raise the aspiration you had at the beginning. After all, Rome

was not built in a day. Likewise, innovation sometimes requires more time than originally estimated.


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Process innovation is defined as

A process innovation is the implementation of a new or significantly improved production or delivery

method. This includes significant changes in techniques, equipment and/or software.

The implementation of a new or significantly improved production method involves thedevelopment of a new way to produce a product using a newly developed machine, a new method such as

the Pilkington Floating Glass method or the blast furnace, or the use of new software like 3D modelling

software as part of the process or for developing new products. The delivery methods are associated with

the physical movement of the product from the factory floor to the end user, i.e. the logistics of the

company. This includes any system that is implemented in improving the delivery of the product to the

customer such as computer systems, tracking systems and any associated equipment.

Examples of process innovation

There are many examples of process innovation since industry started to develop and the purchase and

use of products became a way of life. Examples of process innovations include Fords first use of the

production line by bringing product to the person during fabrication. The lithography method used to

fabricate microchips was a process innovation that has touched the lives of most people on the planet. The

Pilkington glass method is yet another process innovation as are the methods used to manufacture small

disk drives currently used in some of the popular MP3 players. Process innovations involving the logistics

include the factory to customer delivery of custom-built computers by Dell Corporation; the use of

barcodes, scanners and the Internet that allows customers to track parcels in real time as couriers are

transporting them; and the innovation process used by organisations to arrive at the best ideas for

commercialisation.

Innovation is the successful exploitation of new ideas to increase customer value or create wealth for a

company. Innovation is therefore outcome-oriented, with the outcomes being aligned with a companys

overall strategy. However, within this broad definition, it is possible to define three levels of innovation

based on the degree of newness and the degree of value add. The diagram below describes the

relative relationships between incremental, substantial and radical innovation with some indicative

examples taken from the automotive industry


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InnovationStrategies

An innovation strategy helps firms decide in a, cumulative and sustainable manner, about the type of

innovation that best match corporate objectives . An innovation strategy guides decisions on how

resources are to be used to meet a firms objectives for innovation and thereby deliver value and build

competitive advantage. Innovation is an essential component of business activity. This requirement can

be generated from an offensive need to create competitive advantage and enter new markets. Or, from a

defensive perspective, its all about protecting market share and ensuring long -term competitiveness in

relation to industry players. Merle C Crawfords (1980) described four innovation strategies ,

1. Inventive: be the first one to market2. Adaptive: be the second one but be the best 3. Economic: be the low cost producer4. Innovative Applications: be the creative user of existing technologies

Each innovation strategy requires innovation, that may be in different areas. Thus, business strategy will

determine the requirement and appetite for innovation development activities and drive an effective

portfolio of the three levels of innovation. Three generic innovation strategies can be defined as:

Pioneer: Focused on bring new and industry leading or transforming technologies to market.

Fast Follower: Adept at improving existing technologies through incremental innovation in both product

and process technologies. Often focused on cost-downs.

Opportunistic: Makes some investment in substantial innovation but also sources innovation from third

parties and invests in adapting these for its identified market opportunities.


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Companies such as Sony, 3M, Toyota are widely recognised as Pioneers while the Korean car companies

and Chinese computer manufacturers can be regarded as Fast Followers. A good recent example of an

Opportunistic innovation strategy is the incorporation of digital camera and MP3 technology into mobile

phones.

Innovation strategy is vital for developing & operating the innovation process. Thus, a company should

develop an innovation strategy appropriate to the industry life-cycle, the competitive environment and its

resources. For companies with a portfolio of businesses in different industry sectors, each of these

businesses is likely to have different innovation needs and tailored strategies will be required. In addition,

each main technology area employed by a business should be assessed separately. Having done this, an

appropriate mix of innovation related activities can be developed based on realising the strategy(s)

Sources of innovation: There are several sources of innovation. In the linear model the traditionally

recognized source is manufacturer innovation. This is where an agent (person or business) innovates in

order to sell the innovation. Another source of innovation, only now becoming widely recognized, is end-

user innovation. This is where an agent (person or company) develops an innovation for their own

(personal or in-house) use because existing products do not meet their needs. Eric von Hippel has

identified end-user innovation as, by far, the most important and critical in his classic book on the subject,

Sources of Innovation. Innovation by businesses is achieved in many ways, with much attention now

given to formal research and development for "breakthrough innovations." But innovations may be

developed by less formal on-the-job modifications of practice, through exchange and combination of

professional experience and by many other routes. The more radical and revolutionary innovations tend to

emerge from R&D, while more incremental innovations may emerge from practice but there are many

exceptions to each of these trends. Regarding user innovation, rarely user innovators may become

entrepreneurs, selling their product, or more often they may choose to trade their innovation in exchange

for other innovations. Nowadays, they may also choose to freely reveal their innovations, using methods

likeopen source. In suchnetworks of innovationthe creativity of the users or communities of users can

further develop technologies and their use. Whether innovation is mainlysupply-pushed(based on new

technological possibilities) or demand-led (based on social needs and market requirements) has been a

hotly debated topic. Similarly, what exactly drives innovation in organizations and economies remains an

open question. More recent theoretical work moves beyond this simple dualistic problem, and through

empirical work shows that innovation does not just happen within the industrial supply-side, or as a result

of the articulation of user demand, but through a complex set of processes that links many different

players togethernot only developers and users, but a wide variety of intermediary organisations such as

consultancies, standards bodies etc. Work on social networks suggests that much of the most successful
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innovation occurs at the boundaries of organisations and industries where the problems and needs of

users, and the potential of technologies can be linked together in a creative process that challenges both

Failure of innovation

Poor Leadership Poor Organisation Poor Communication Poor Empowerment Poor Knowledge Management

Poor goal definition

Poor alignment of actions to goals Poor participation in teams Poor monitoring of results Poor communication and access to information

Innovation Models

Table 1: Progress in conceptualizing innovation:Rothwells five generations of innovation models

Generation : Key features

First and second : The linear modelsneed pull and technology push

Third : Interaction between different elements and feedback loops between themthe coupling model

Fourth : The parallel lines model, integration within the firm, upstream with key suppliers and

downstream with demanding and active customers, emphasis on linkages and alliances

Fifth: Systems integration and extensive networking, flexible and customized response, continuous

innovation

One of the first (theoretical) frameworks developed for historically understanding science and technology

and its relation to the economy has been the linear model of innovation. The Linear Model of


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Innovation is an early model of innovation that suggests technical change happens in a linear fashion

from Invention to Innovation to Diffusion. The model postulates that innovation starts with basic

research, then adds applied research and development, and ends with production and diffusion:

Basic research Applied research Development (Production and) Diffusion

The Stage-Gate model describes how a firm should structure its product development process using a

sophisticated system of project phases and milestones. The model is based on 60 case studies on efficient

product innovation processes. The product development process is seen as one of the key factors that

determine the success of new products. Also known as Traditional Phase Gate Model, under this model,

product or services concept is frozen at early stage so as to minimize risk. Also innovation process in

enterprise involves series of sequential phases/steps arranged in such a manner that the preceding phase

must be cleared before moving to next phase. Thus a project must pass through a gate with the permission

of gatekeeper before moving to the next succeeding phase.

Concurrent Engineering is a systematic approach to the integrated, concurrent design of products and

their related processes, including, manufacturing and support. This approach is intended to cause the

developers from the very outset to consider all elements of the product life cycle, from conception to

disposal, including cost, schedule, quality and user requirements.

Concurrent engineering is a work methodology based on the parallelization of tasks (i.e. performing

tasks concurrently). It refers to an approach used in product development in which functions of design

engineering, manufacturing engineering and other functions are integrated to reduce the elapsed time

required to bring a new product to the market.

The basic premise for concurrent engineering revolves around two concepts. The first is the idea that all

elements of a products life-cycle, from functionality, producibility, assembly, testability, maintenance

issues, environmental impact and finally disposal and recycling, should be taken into careful

consideration in the early design phases.[

The second concept is that the preceding design activities should all be occurring at the same time, or

concurrently. The overall goal being that the concurrent nature of these processes significantly increases

productivity and product quality, aspects that are obviously important in today's fast-paced market.

This philosophy is key to the success of concurrent engineering because it allows for errors and redesigns

to be discovered early in the design process when the project is still in a more abstract and possibly digital
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realm. By locating and fixing these issues early, the design team can avoid what often become costly

errors as the project moves to more complicated computational models and eventually into the physical

realm.[4]

Concurrent engineering elements

1. Cross-functional teams

Include members from various disciplines involved in the process, including manufacturing, hardware

and software design, marketing, and so forth

2. Concurrent product realization

Process activities are at the heart of concurrent engineering. Doing several things at once, such as

designing various subsystems simultaneously, is critical to reducing design time.

3. Incremental information sharing

It helps minimize the chance that concurrent product realization will lead to surprises. As soon as new

information becomes available, it is shared and integrated into the design. Cross functional teams are

important to the effective sharing of information in a timely fashion.===

4. Integrated project management

It ensures that someone is responsible for the entire project, and that responsibility is not abdicated onceone aspect of the work is done.

Potential Advantage of Using Concurrent Engineering

Faster time to market which results in increased market share. Lower manufacturing and production costs. Improved quality of resulting end products. Increased positioning in a highly competitive world market. Increased accuracy in predicting and meeting project plans, schedules, timelines, and budgets. Increased efficiency and performance. Higher reliability in the product development process. Reduced defect rates. Increased effectiveness in transferring technology. Increased customer satisfaction.


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should be to spur higherproductivity through greater innovation, and that markets relying on input

resources and price signals alone will not always be as effective in spurring higherproductivity, and

thereby economic growth. Joseph Schumpeterdefined economic innovation in The Theory of Economic

Development, 1934, Harvard University Press, Boston. The introduction of a new good that is one

with which consumers are not yet familiaror of a new quality of a good.

Main Goals of Innovation Management

Effective innovation management requires the implementation of a number of processes and the employ

of a number of tools. At the outset it is important that the culture of the organization empowers employees

and encourages them to submit their ideas. Most importantly management should adopt the appropriate

innovation strategy to lead the innovation process and manage the innovation portfolio. The following

summarizes the various objectives that management should aim for under the innovation management

stage

. Effect a shift in the way the organization sees itself where innovation is recognized as the way of doing

business

2. Deciding upon the innovation strategy that best fits the organizations situation, and enable it attain its

vision.

3. Creating a portfolio of innovation projects to translate competitive strategies and to manage risk across

the whole organization.

4. Define a criteria for the selection and prioritization of projects within the portfolio to weed out less

probable projects as soon as possible

5. Effect the necessary structural changes to arrange skills throughout the organization in competence

centers, to enable the formation of the right team for the purposes of the innovation project.

6. Arrange current and potential future alliances in a portfolio that can be tapped when needed, and define

when and how such alliances are to be made (governing conditions).

7. Foster an organizational culture that promotes innovation by allowing employees time to innovate and

the implementation of their own ideas for improving job performance.

8. Develop and implement methods that enable tapping into the organizations intellectual capital
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Technology diffusion involves the dissemination of technical information and know-how and the

subsequent adoption of new technologies and techniques by users.[1] In this context, technology includes

"hard" technologies (such as computer-controlled machine tools) and "soft" technologies (for example,

improved manufacturing, quality, or training methods). Diffused technologies can be embodied in

products and processes. Although classic models of technological development suggest a straightforward

linear path from basic research and development to technology commercialization and adoption, in

practice technology diffusion is more often a complex and iterative process.[2] Technology can diffuse in

multiple ways and with significant variations, depending on the particular technology, across time, over

space, and between different industries and enterprise types. Moreover, the effective use of diffused

technologies by firms frequently requires organizational, workforce, and follow-on technical changes.

Technology diffusion can be contrasted with technological innovation, which emphasizes the

development of new knowledge, products, or processes, and government-oriented technology transfer,

which frequently seeks to shift advanced technology out of laboratories into commercial use.[3] In many

cases, diffused technologies are neither new nor necessarily advanced (although they are often new to the

user), and they may be acquired from a variety of sources, including private vendors, customers,

consultants, and peer firms, as well as public technology centers, government laboratories, and

universities. Technology also diffuses through the internal "catch-up" efforts of firms, the transfer and

mobility of skilled labor, the activities of professional societies and the trade and scientific press, varied

forms of informal knowledge trading [4], and such practices as reverse engineering.

While there are different classifications schemes, the technology diffusion measures which form thesubject matter of these definitional efforts broadly include the following:

Awareness-building and technology demonstration. These measures seek to make potential usersmore knowledgeable about available technologies, their possible applications, and their benefits and

costs. Demonstration services are offered by the Center for Manufacturing Information Technology, a

program sponsored by the Georgia Institute of Technology and Georgia Power (USA), where

computers, manufacturing control systems, and software are available for potential users to see and

try. [10] Similarly, Japan's prefectural and municipal technology centers (Kohsetsushi) demonstrate

new technologies to firms, often extending to hands-on training and pilot production. A method of

awareness-building attracting increasing interest is benchmarking. In the United States, the Industrial

Technology Institute (Michigan) offers a Performance Benchmarking Service which allows

companies to compare their use of technology with that of comparable and best practice firms.[11]

The TOPS programs now found in the United Kingdom, Germany, and Spain identify "good practice"

firms and structure opportunities for other companies to visit these models and learn how they


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operate. Media and new communications technologies can assist in awareness-building. For example,

the National Technological University and other organizations offer remote users throughout the

United States video and satellite broadcasts on new technology and manufacturing topics. The

European Union Community Research and Development Information Service (CORDIS) provides

electronically accessible information about technology development program opportunities to service

providers as well as potential users. [12]

Information search and referral services. These efforts aim to reduce the information search costsassociated with technology diffusion. Information services often add further value by qualifying

information requests and matching user needs with appropriate resources. Examples of programs in

this category include the Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (USA), operated by the

Pennsylvania State University, with partial funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Commerce,

to businesses access technical information;[13] and Denmark's Technological Information Centers,

which are established in all counties of the country and offer information and other technical services

to firms. For-profit companies, such as TelTech, Inc., of Minnesota, also offer specialized technology

information services, in this case (for a subscription fee) matching corporate technology needs with

appropriate sources of expertise. In several countries, new initiatives are underway to use the internet

as a medium to service technical information needs.

Technical assistance and consultancy. This encompasses a wide band of measures which supportexperts to assess business problems, identify opportunities to upgrade technologies and industrial

practices, and assist in implementation. These measures seek to address limitations of expertise

among both users and suppliers of technology and to stimulate and assist firms to take action (or, in

some cases, not to act on an undesirable investment). Technical assistance services are located in

many applied technology centers, for example, in the Valencia Institute of Small and Medium

Enterprise (Spain), a network of trained staff offers technological advice, conducts assessments, and

offers recommendations to firms in local industries. [14] In some cases, private consultants are

engaged, through cost-sharing schemes, to assist particular firms - a number of U.S. Manufacturing

Extension Partnership centers employ this approach, including centers in Oklahoma, Kansas, and

Ohio.

Training. The effective deployment of technology and improved operational techniques invariablyinvolves changes in human capital requirements. A very common technology diffusion measure is

thus training, conducted in many different forms, including on-the job training, classroom training,

management seminars, team-building workshops, and distance learning. These measures address the

tendency of technology users to under-invest in human capital development, which often not only

hinders the initial decision to deploy a technology but can also lead to subsequent inefficiencies once


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in use. Additionally, special measures to promote training for technology diffusion may also address

deficiencies among existing institutions and vendors (who may be unable to effectively mount

courses in new technologies without additional support). For example, training programs focused on

industry needs in specific technological areas are offered by Australia's more than 60 Cooperative

Research Centers. In the U.K., local Training and Enterprise Councils (known as Local Enterprise

Councils in Scotland) aim to identify industry training needs, including those in areas of new

technology, and support appropriate training initiatives, drawing on public and private resources.

Collaborative research and technology projects. To address the gaps between technologydevelopment and deployment, a range of collaborative public-private research mechanisms have been

established. These measures also seek to shorten the time taken to commercialize new technological

innovations and, through industry involvement, focus research on key needs and opportunities. Often,

collaborative research efforts are embodied in the numerous applied technology centers now found

throughout the OECD (and other) economies. In Baden-Wurttemburg, Germany, the quasi-public

Steinbeis Foundation sponsors a system of about 130 technology transfer centers, often associated

with polytechnic institutes, each of which conducts collaborative industry-focused research. Japan's

prefectural public technology institutes and new third-sector projects conduct applied research and

technology projects with individual firms and groups of firms. [15]

Personnel exchange and the support of R&D personnel . Potential users of technology, especiallyif small or mid-sized enterprises, may lack the internal expertise to absorb new technologies or they

may lack resources to apply their existing personnel to new research and technology projects.

Measures have been developed to support the secondment of personnel to technical centers or other

firms where new technologies are developed or in use. In Japan, local public technology centers

accept staff from smaller firms for periods of time to receive training in new technologies and

participate in cooperative research. Increasingly, international exchanges are encouraged: in the

United States, the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Commerce sponsor

schemes to place engineers in Japanese companies and research institutions. In Germany, ministries

have sponsored programs to subside research personnel in small and mid-size firms to help them

absorb and develop new technologies.

Standardization. Uncertainty about the compatibility of a technology can present barriers todiffusion investments by users. The diffusion of technology can be accelerated by common agreement

between technology developers and users about standards and technological compatibility. The area

of electronic commerce is currently one of those areas where efforts to forge standards is underway.

In the United States, the National Information Initiative, although federally-sponsored, has promoted

an industry-driven process of standards development. In a different context, the development of


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standard measures to document quality, through IS0 9000 and subsequent reference marks, has also

facilitated the diffusion of quality measurement techniques and the avoidance of duplicative marks.

Financial support. These measures are indented to reduce financial constraints among usersassociated with the initial or ongoing costs of adopting new technologies. Measures can include direct

financial support or subsidies to enterprises, through grants, loans, or interest write-downs. Other

mechanisms are loan guaranties (often associated with third-party lending institutions), equity or

near-equity investments, and various kinds of royalty agreements. In many cases, public financial

policies to promote technology diffusion operate through intermediary institutions, including banks

and quasi-governmental corporations. Requirements may be set as to the user's own cost-share or

match. Examples of policies range from the preliminary cost-sharing of private consultant assistance

sponsored by the Minnesota Manufacturing Technology Center (USA) to grants through Italy's Act

696 to assist small companies in purchasing high technology equipment. The diffusion of product and

process technology through the promotion of new start-up and existing small technology-based firms

often involves a financial element. The Small Business Innovation Research program in the United

States allocates a share of federal R&D budgets to support the development of technology-based

small firms. In Britain, the Support for Products Under Research and the Small Firms Merit Award

for Research and Technology programs also support technology development in smaller firms.

Procurement. Purchasing and specification policies by public institutions and large private firms canhave a role in promoting (or constraining) the diffusion of technologies. In the United States, defense

procurement policies have favored small technology firms (through small business offsets) and the

diffusion of new process technologies. In some cases, the public support of large firm investments is

associated with conditions for local procurement, which then may require supplier upgrading

programs. A variation - the joint-production or offset agreements typically found in military,

aerospace, or large transportation projects. Procurement policies may generate concerns related to

free trade.

Inter-firm cooperation. A series of new programs have sponsored different forms of inter-firmcollaboration to promote technology diffusion. The efforts seek to resolve common problems and

share information and learning, achieve scale economies in service provision and technology

deployment, and strengthen ongoing business and technology development relationships.

Collaborative efforts may be "horizontal" (for example, groups of small firms), "vertical" (suppliers

and customers), "sectoral" (firms in the same industry) or "lateral" (firms in different industries but

with shared interests in a technology). In Finland, applied technology and implementation programs

have sponsored the formation of more than 200 collaborative groups, involving both large and small

firms. In Germany, the Aachen Gesellschaft fur Innovation und Technologietransfer helps groups of


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Macro-policy measures. The overall economic and social environment has important impacts ontechnology diffusion. This includes factors such as business cycle stability, the cost of capital,

intellectual property protection, environmental regulation, labor market policy, and tax policy. A

typical technology promotion measure is the offering of tax incentives or favorable depreciation

schedules to enterprises that invest in new technology, new facilities, or in research and development.

Measures to ease regulatory burdens are also common, although in some cases tighter regulation (for

example, in the environmental sphere) can promote introduction of new environmental technologies.

SEVEN STEPS TO PROBLEM SOLVING:

1. Define and Identify the Problem

This first step is critical. It is essential for each group member to clearly understand the problem so that

all energy will be focused in the same direction. A good way to define the problem is to write down a

concise statement which summarizes the problem, and then write down where you want to be after the

problem has been resolved. The objective is to get as much information about the problem as possible. It

may be helpful to divide the symptoms of the problem into hard andsoft data.Hard Data

Includes: Facts, statistics, goals, time factors, history. Soft Data Includes: Feelings, opinions, human

factors, attitudes, frustrations, personality conflicts, behaviors, hearsay, intuition These steps may not

always be pleasant, but after "venting" group participants may feel that the air has finally cleared and

members can be more rational and cooperative. Sometimes information needs to be gathered via various

devices to define the problem. These devices may include: Interviews, statistics, questionnaires,

technical experiments, check sheets, brainstorming and focus groups.

2. Develop a Problem Statement

It is essential to develop an objective statement which clearly describes the current condition your group

wishes to change. Make sure the problem is limited in scope so that it is small enough to realistically

tackle and solve. Writing the statement will ensure that everyone can understand exactly what the

problem is. It is important to avoid including any "implied cause" or "implied solution" in the problem

statement. Remember, a problem well stated is a problem half solved.

3. State the Goal : Once the problem is defined, it is relatively easy to decide what the goal will be.

Stating the goal provides a focus and direction for the group. A measurable goal will allow the tracking

of progress as the problem is solved.

4.Considerations : When defining the problem, ask the following:

Is the problem stated objectively using only the facts?


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Is the scope of the problem limited enough for the group to handle? Will all who read it understand the same meaning of the problem? Does the statement include "implied causes" or "implied solutions?" Has the "desired state" been described in measurable terms? Do you have a target date identified5. Analyze the Problem: In this stage of problem solving, questions should be asked and information

gathered and sifted. Do not make the mistake of assuming you know what is causing the problem without

an effort to fully investigate the problem you have defined. Try to view the problem from a variety of

viewpoints, not just how it affects you. Think about how the issue affects others. It is essential to spend

some time researching the problem. Go to the library or develop a survey to gather the necessary

information.

3. IDENTIFYING POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS: Identifying possible solutions to the problem is

sometimes referred to as finding "Optional Solutions" because the goal is to complete a list of all

conceivable alternatives to the problem. Using a variety of creative techniques, group participants create

an extensive list of possible solutions. Asking each group member for input ensures that all viewpoints

will be considered. When the group agrees that every course of action on the list will be considered, they

will feel some direct ownership in the decision making process. This may help put the group in the mood

of generating consensus later in the decision making process. You may already be familiar with some of

these topics, but take the time to look through them anyway. The information you will find is valuable to

your group's success.

Techniques Used in Solving Problems: These idea generation techniques are broken down into easy-to-

follow steps that will help keep your group organized and on the topic at hand. We are basically giving

you step-by-step instructions on how to accomplish each technique with ease and success.

Brainstorming : Brainstorming is a problem solving approach designed to help a group generate several

creative solutions to a problem. It was first developed by Alex Osborn, an advertising executive who felt

the need for a problem solving technique that, instead of evaluating and criticizing ideas, would focus on

developing imaginative and innovative solutions.

Delphi Methods

Characteristics

Not a group decision technique.
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4. SELECTING THE BEST SOLUTIONS

Six Steps to Decision Making

Define and Identify The Problem ;

State The Case Briefly

What Decisions Have to Be Made?

Specify Feasible Alternatives

Identify Morally Significant Factors in Each Alternative

Develop an Action Plan An action plan is a chart that lists the tasks that need to be done and identifies

who will be responsible for each, when and what action is necessary, where to start, and how.

Divide the Solution Into Sequential Tasks

Looking at your solution as one task may seem too great an undertaking. It is much more productive to

divide it into sequential tasks which act as measurable steps toward the solution. When dividing the

solution into tasks, be sure to include a timeline, what is to be done, and who will do it.

Develop Contingency Plans

The best laid plans of mice and men.Even the best of plans get stalled, sidetracked, or must be changed

midstream because of something unforeseen. Most times these circumstances cannot be prevented, but

you can and should prepare for potential kinks by having a contingency plan. Having such a plan will

keep the momentum going instead of having to stop and figure out what to do when an unplanned event

occurs.

7. Implement the Solution

Sometimes the groups who choose the solution are not the ones who will implement it. If this is the case,

members who select the solution should clearly explain why they selected it to the ones who will

implement it. Showing that the problem solving process was an organized and orderly process will

convince others that the solution is valid.

Monitoring

A designated member of the group should monitor whether or not specific tasks are being performed or

short-term targets are being achieved as planned. This monitoring should take place regularly until all

tasks are completed. Some suggested monitoring techniques are:

Group meetings Customer/user interviews Surveys and written questionnaires Quality control spot checks


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Audit Checkpoints on action plan Personal inspection of all work Budget controlsthe Role of Leadership in Change Management

When change is imposed (as in downsizing scenarios), clearly the most important

determinant of "getting through the swamp", is the ability of leadership to...well, l e a d .

T h e l i t e r a t u r e o n t h e s u b j e c t i n d i c a t e s t h a t t h e n a t u r e o f t h e c h a n g e i s

secondary to the perceptions that employees have regarding the ability, competence, a n d c r e d i b i l i t y

of senior and middle management . I f you a re to manage change e ffec t ive ly , you

need to be aware that there are three distinct times zones where leadership isimpor tant . We can ca l l t hese prep ar in g fo r t he J ourne y, S l oggi ng through the

Swamp, and After Arrival. We will look more carefully at each of these.

The Role of Leadership

In an organization where there is faith in the abilities of formal leaders, employees will

look towards the leaders for a number of things. During drastic change times, employees

wi l l e xpe c t e f fe c t i ve a nd se ns ib l e p l a nn ing , c onf ide n t a nd e f fe c t i ve de c i s ion -

making, and regular, complete communication that are timely. Also during these times ofchange, employees will perceive leadership as supportive, concerned and c o mmi t t e d t o t he i r

we lf ar e, wh il e at th e sa me ti me re co gn iz in g th at to ug h decisions need to be made.

The best way to summarize is that there is a climate of trust between leader and the rest of the

team. The existence of this trust, bring shape for better times in the future, and that makes coping

with drastic change much easier. In o r g an i za t io n s c ha r ac t er i ze d b y p o o r le a de r sh i p,

e mpl oye e s e xp e c t n o t hin g p o s i t i v e . I n a c l i m a t e o f d i s t r u s t ,

e m p l o y e e s l e a r n t h a t l e a d e r s w i l l a c t indecipherable ways and in ways that do

not seem to be in anyone's best interests.

Poor leadership means an absence of hope, which, if allowed to go on for too long, results

in an organization becoming completely nonfunctioning. The organization must deal with

the practical impact of unpleasant change, but more importantly, must labor under the

weight of employees who have given up, have no fai th in the system or in the ability of leaders

to turn the organization around. Leadership before, dur ing and after cha nge implementation is the


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key to getting through the swamp. Unfortunately, if haven't established a track record of

ef fect ive leadership , by the time you have to deal with difficult changes, it may be too late.

Prepare For the Journey

It would be a mistake to assume that preparing for the journey takes place only after the destination

has been defined or chosen. When we talk about preparing for the change journey, we are

talking about leading in a way that lays the foundation or ground work for ANY

changes tha t may occur in the fu ture . Prepar ing i s about bui ld ing resources , by

bu ildi ng heal thy or gani zati ons in the fir st pl ace.

Much like healthy people, who are better able to cope with infection or disease than unhealthy people,

organization that are healthy in the first place are better able to deal with change. As a

leader you need to establish credibility and a track record of effective decision making, so

that there is trust in your ability to figure out what is necessary to bring the organization through.

Slogging Thr ough the Swamp

L e a d e r s p l a y a c r i t i c a l r o l e d u r i n g c h a n g e i m p l e m e n t a t i o n , t h e p e r i o d f r o m t h e

announcement of change through the installation of the change. During this middle period the

organization is the most unstable, characterized by confusion, fear, loss of di rect ion, reduced

pr oduc tivi ty , and lack of cl ar it y about di re ct ion and mandat e. It c a n be a pe r i o d o f

emotionalism, with employees grieving for what is lost and initially unable to look to

the future. During this period , effec tive leaders nee d to focus on two thi ngs.

First, the feelings and confusion of employees must be acknowledged and validated. Second, the

leader must work with employees to begin creating a new vision of the altered workplace,

and helping employees to understand the direction of the future. Focusing only on feelings,

may result in wallowing. That is why it is necessary to begin the movement into the new ways or

situations.

Focusing only on the new vision may result in the perception that the leader is out of touch, cold

and uncaring. A key part of leadership in this phase knows when to focus on the pain, and when

to focus on building and moving into the future.

After Arr ival

In a sense you never completely arrive, but here we are talking about the period where

the i n i t i a l i n s t a b i l i t y o f ma ss ive c ha nge ha s be e n re duc e d . Pe op le ha ve bec ome


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less emotional, and more stable, and with effective leadership during the previous phases,

are now more open to locking in to the new directions, mandate and ways of doing things.

T h i s i s a n i d e a l t i m e f o r l e a d e r s t o i n t r o d u c e p o s i t i v e n e w c h a n g e ,

s u c h a s examination of unwieldy procedures or Total Quality Management.

Conclusion

Playing a leadership role in the three phases is not easy. Not only do you have a

responsibility to lead, but as an employee yourself, you have to deal with your own reactions to the

change, and your role in it.

Thinking and Lateral Thinking- Defined

Introduction: Thinking is the highest mental activity present in man. All human achievements andprogress are simply the products of thought. The evolution of culture, art, literature, science and

technology are all the results of thinking.

Thought and action are inseparable - they are actually the two sides of the same coin. All our deliberate

action starts from our deliberate thinking. For a man to do something, he should first see it in his mind's

eye -- he should imagine it, think about it first, before he can do it. All creations-- whether artistic, literal

or scientific --first occur in the creator's mind before it is actually given life in the real world.

The Purpose of Thinking: The purpose of thinking, paradoxically, is to arrive at a state where thinking is

no more necessary at all. In other words, thinking starts with a problem and ends in a solution. Thus,

thinking is a tool for adapting ourselves to the physical and social environment in which we are in.

Can We Improve Our Thinking Ability?

Dr. Edward de Bonosays that thinking CAN be improved just like any skill because thinking according

to him is a skill. He has developed many useful techniques for training thinking skills.

Why Should We Improve Our Thinking Skills: The benefits of developing thinking ability are

manifold. By developing one's thinking skills one can make achievements; can become successful; can

shine in social life; can attain emotional, social and economic maturity and so on. By developing one's

thinking abilities it is possible to transform one's aggressive tendencies, bad temper and other negative

tendencies creatively and constructively. It has been found by Dr.Edward de Bono that when school

students were taught to think effectively, their ill-temper and aggressive tendencies reduced significantly.
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Clinical Psychologists have also found that those who have neuroses are poor thinkers compared to

normals. Neurotics scored significantly lower scores in decision making, problem solving and creative

thinking. Interestingly, when neurotics were taught to think effectively, they showed a remarkable

reduction in their neurosis.

Misconceptions Regarding Thinking

M isconception No.1:The present education system develops and enhances thinking and so the more

educated you are the better thinker you are.

Fact:Actually, education suppresses free thinking. Creative thinking has almost no place in current

education. Moreover, education even destroys creative thinking abilities by its over emphasis on logical

thnking and critical thinking which are relatively lower types of human thinking. Since reasoning,

argument, problem solving are given over importance a need to become correct and successful all the

time is developed in the student. Again, our present education system is so information oriented that it

gives ready-made answers. This kills the student's natural tendency to explore, experiment and to

experience. Thus, the highly educated person ends up having lesser ability to think creatively although

he/she may have a lot of information at his/her disposal and also have admirable abilities in logical and

critical thinking.

M isconception No.2:Less Educated or Uneducated can never become good thinkers.

Fact:Actually, less educated display higher abilities in creative thinking. This is because they do not

have an inflated ego that demands cent percent correct answers or success in all endeavors. Again, they

do not have ready-made-answers (i.e., book-answers) and so are forced to explore, experiment and

experience things themselves. This empowers them to go through less explored answers and even find

original answers.

M isconception No.3: IQ and thinking ability are the same. The more IQ one has, the better thinking

ability one has. On the contrary, those who have lower IQ have only low thinking abilities.

Fact:It is true that those who have greater thinking ability, as a rule, have high IQ. But this does not

mean that all those who have high IQ are good thinkers. Usually high IQ people use their thinking skills

for logical thinking, arguments, critical thinking. They very rarely use creative thinking. Thus high IQ is

actually a blockage to creative thinking. It has also been found that those who have average IQ can

become better thinkers.
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M isconception No.4:Thinking ability, decision making ability and problem solving ability are inherent

and there is very little we can do to develop these.

Fact:

This is the most terrible misconception regarding thinking. In fact, Dr.Edward de Bono (and also many

others) have proved that thinking is a skill that can be enhanced by training and practice. Thus decision

making, problem solving and creative thinking can be developed and improved.

Errors in Thinking

1. PartialismThis error occurs when the thinker observes the problem through one perspective only. That is,

the thinker examines only one or two factors of the problem and arrives at a premature solution.

2. Adversary ThinkingThis is a "you are wrong. So, I should be right." type of reasoning. Politicians are the masters in

this type of thinking and they use it to their advantage.

3. Time Scale ErrorThis is a kind of partialism in thinking in which the thinker sees the problem from a limited time-

frame. It can be likened to short-sightedness.

4. Initial JudgementHere, the thinker becomes very subjective. Instead of considering the issue or problem

objectively, the thinker approaches it with prejudice or bias.

5. Arrogance and ConceitThis error is sometimes called the "Village Venus Effect" because like the villagers who think

that the most beautiful girl in the world is the most beautiful girl in their village, the thinker

believes that there is no better solution other than that he has already found. This blocks

creativity. Not only individuals but societies and even the whole mankind sometimes fall prey to

this error. For example, before Einstein, the whole scientific community (and thus the whole

mankind) believed that time was absolute.

Lateral Thinking: Dr. de Bono speaks about two types of thinking -- Vertical thinking and Lateral

thinking. Vertical thinking is high probability thinking, whereas lateral thinking is low probability

thinking. In the former type, the thinker selects the most logical solution possible. This will be the one

that is the most used and the most tested one. For example, suppose you want to cut a cake or hard boiled


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egg into two. Using a knife or a sharp blade to cut it is the most probable and most logical solution. But

there are other less probable ways: for example, you can use a twine. The former is an example of a

solution arrived at Vertical thinking while the later is an example of a solution arrived at using Lateral

thinking. Dr. de Bono argues that creativity comes from Lateral thinking. He also says that it is possible

to improve lateral thinking ( and thus creativity) by deliberate application and practice of the techniques

he has devised. He gives two main techniques for improving our problem solving by lateral thinking:

1. Divide the Problem into Small Sub-ProblemsThis allows the thinker to perceive the problem in detail because he is able to approach each sub-

problem individually and thus he is able to consider more parameters.

2. Move Attention from One Part of the Problem to Another PartWhen we move our attention from one part of the problem to another, it is possible to view the

problem from a new perspective. This would in turn help you solve the problem easily.

Basic Nature of Lateral Thinking

Concerned with changing patterns In a self-maximizing system with a memory the arrangement of information must always be less

than the best possible arrangement

Both an attitude and a method of using information Never a judgment

Benefits of Lateral Thinking

Constructively challenge the status quo to enable new ideas to surface Find and build on the concept behind an idea to create more ideas Solve problems in ways that dont initially come to mind Use alternatives to liberate and harness your creative energy Turn problems into opportunities Select the best alternate ideas and implement them


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What is Creativity? An Ability. A simple definition is that creativity is the ability to imagine or invent

something new. As we will see below, creativity is not the ability to create out of nothing (only God can

do that), but the ability to generate new ideas by combining, changing, or reapplying existing ideas. Some

creative ideas are astonishing and brilliant, while others are just simple, good, practical ideas that no one

seems to have thought of yet. Believe it or not, everyone has substantial creative ability. Just look at how

creative children are. In adults, creativity has too often been suppressed through education, but it is still

there and can be reawakened. Often all that's needed to be creative is to make a commitment to creativity

and to take the time for it.

An Attitude. Creativity is also an attitude: the ability to accept change and newness, a willingness to play

with ideas and possibilities, a flexibility of outlook, the habit of enjoying the good, while looking for

ways to improve it. We are socialized into accepting only a small number of permitted or normal things,

like chocolate-covered strawberries, for example. The creative person realizes that there are otherpossibilities, like peanut butter and banana sandwiches, or chocolate-covered prunes.

A Process. Creative people work hard and continually to improve ideas and solutions, by making gradual

alterations and refinements to their works. Contrary to the mythology surrounding creativity, very, very

few works of creative excellence are produced with a single stroke of brilliance or in a frenzy of rapid

activity. Much closer to the real truth are the stories of companies who had to take the invention away

from the inventor in order to market it because the inventor would have kept on tweaking it and fiddling

with it, always trying to make it a little better. The creative person knows that there is always room for

improvement.

Creative Methods

Evolution. This is the method of incremental improvement. New ideas stem from other ideas, new

solutions from previous ones, the new ones slightly improved over the old ones. Many of the very

sophisticated things we enjoy today developed through a long period of constant incrementation. Making

something a little better here, a little better there gradually makes it something a lot better--even entirely

different from the original.

For example, look at the history of the automobile or any product of technological progress. With each

new model, improvements are made. Each new model builds upon the collective creativity of previous

models, so that over time, improvements in economy, comfort, and durability take place. Here the

creativity lies in the refinement, the step-by-step improvement, rather than in something completely new.


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Another example would be the improvement of the common wood screw by what are now commonly

called drywall screws. They have sharper threads which are angled more steeply for faster penetration

and better holding. The points are self tapping. The shanks are now threaded all the way up on lengths up

to two inches. The screws are so much better that they can often be driven in without pilot holes, using a

power drill.

Synthesis. With this method, two or more existing ideas are combined into a third, new idea. Combining

the ideas of a magazine and an audio tape gives the idea of a magazine you can listen to, one useful for

blind people or freeway commuters.

For example, someone noticed that

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