Borrow my creative system to innovate

More than 70% of surveyed companies consider creative and analytical thinking to be the skills expected to grow in importance between 2023 and 2027, according to Statista.

You derive goals and creation from existing problems. Today, I will walk you through my creative system to solve challenges, create, and innovate.

Over 70% of business problem-solving projects fail, according to McKinsey.

Failure happens for many reasons. The main causes are a lack of skills, poor approach, and ineffective management.

Understand that reaching the future will present its own challenges. When the unknown becomes known after delivering the project, you will encounter issues. The size of issues determines how good your approach was.

Stop using old or single Frameworks

Many still use old frameworks or a single framework, which won't solve the challenge as desired. These frameworks worked when business was simpler, with fewer technological complications and less changing consumer needs, and people’s skills.

Frameworks like Design Thinking, Root Cause Analysis, Tree Analysis, or the Business Model Canvas all have their areas of focus, but they overlook other aspects of an interconnected system.

Many of these methods don’t place humans at the center of the solution, missing an understanding of the experiences, feelings, and struggles people face.

They also ignore the process—what activities or tasks are performed—and the tools or systems that support these activities.

There is a lack of consideration for indirect stakeholders and audiences, in addition to a shortage of skills in creative and analytical thinking.

There are many companies that could afford prominent consulting but failed to transform their business, like Kodak, Toys R Us, and Nokia, to name a few.

The new way is non-linear

In evolving trends, you need a creative system to solve, create, build, and innovate.

Business is like an organism or ecosystem with many layers. Within each layer, there are entities that interact with one another. A department has its own team, tools, processes, and purpose, interacting with other departments. All together, they form one large organism under the company.

You can't solve challenges by using a band-aid on a knife cut.

A creative system is a blend of frameworks and tools used together. You determine which tools from each method to apply based on the problem you’re addressing.

It's like a toolbox. When a plumber or mechanic is called to fix a broken car or pipe, they don’t have one tool to fix everything. They assess and check the problem, then decide which tools to use from their toolbox.

So it is with business; you don’t approach every problem with the same hammer.

You may reject the idea because using many tools can feel overwhelming, especially if you don’t know how to use them.

It’s okay; all you have to do is understand the concepts of different methods and their tools.

No one has ever learned everything at once.

You will thank me later; the return on investment is massive. First, life is all about solving problems, and a significant part of our problems, when solved, can yield economic benefits.

Creative problem-solving will be in high demand as automation and robotics continue to advance.

Having the ability to solve a problem inside and out and turn it into a business opportunity is essential. Whether you work somewhere or run a company, you can innovate and shape your industry.

Creative system

There are four methods you can learn about and understand. Below, I will walk you through how to integrate 2 to 3 of these methods: Design Thinking, System Thinking, Business Model Canvas (Business Design), and Strategic Foresight.

Start with the first three methods and leave Strategic Foresight for later. Foresight is about future strategies, where you look for signals and new trends to inform your future strategies.

Discovery Phase

Design Thinking has three phases: understanding and research, ideation and design, and validating and iteration.

The first phase is where you need to understand the problem from the perspective of the impacted audience. Understand the challenge, define and frame it, and capture their pain points, desires, and risks.

Tools you can use include discovery workshops, interviews, or surveys to gather information, along with stakeholder mapping to define and frame the extent of the problem—this is System Thinking. Any problem starts and ends with people. What I mean here is that the challenge can extend to two or three departments.

Then, you use System Thinking to map their process journey, stakeholders, and everything that interacts within the framed challenge, such as tools, technologies, etc.

System Thinking involves mapping every stakeholder's environment. Tools you can use based on the scenario include process maps, journey maps, service blueprints, and user flow diagrams.

Later, you analyze the information captured from different sources using various methods. Synthesize it, make sense of it, and group it using affinity diagramming. Prioritize the needs of the impacted users.

At this point, you should have achieved clarity and know how to move forward.

Design Phase

Based on the type of challenge, you should identify other indirect areas impacted in the business. Use the Business Model Canvas to pinpoint those areas and redesign them where necessary, whether it involves a channel, product, value proposition, activities, customer segments, etc.

Then, use the second phase of Design Thinking to ideate on how to solve the challenge. Design the solution in any form, such as a prototype, diagram, or user flow, to illustrate how the solution works.

Validate it with the impacted audience, gather feedback, and iterate. You will learn how the user experience should be, identify priority functions (must-haves), and recognize barriers and risks. Leave the least important functions or features for future development—this is the human desirability aspect.

Now, Business Design comes into play to deliver business goals. Is the solution workable and viable? Is it something you can build or outsource? What are the costs and potential profits?

The solution must meet the desires of the audience while aligning with the goals of the business.

This is what I call a creative system broken into two parts: discovery and design. It helps determine whether to proceed with the project or not. If the decision is to move forward, it informs the solution, direction, and innovation to prevent future failures.

I advise you to start learning about these methods on YouTube. You won't find anyone integrating them together, and these methods will help you think better, even if you're in a different profession.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me.

Thank you for reading. We’ll talk in the next letter.

Ahmed

P.S two things I can help you with:

1. Discovery & Design (standard and complex projects)

   Facilitating workshops & interviews. defining problem, mapping process, analyzing insights, designing and validating solutions, and identifying priorities, risks, and roadmapping.

2. Guidance & Advisory (High-level projects)

   Big picture approach involves setting a direction, aligning stakeholders, providing strategic recommendations, and offering expert guidance.