New Game-Plan: Brain-Pool Workshops

Services

About Us

Our services and capabilities:

• Providing a specialist facilitated workshop service - often integrated with our other services
• Enabling people to think, learn and act collaboratively using a deliberative process
• Interweaving discussion with knowledge-sharing, using user-friendly technology
• Engaging participants intensively and with complete transparency
• Capturing all contributions electronically - in striking contrast to the 'flip-chart' approach
• Providing instant verbatim output, followed by our distilled synthesis to inform 'next steps'
• Well-structured with a clear process and effective use of relevant Tools from our Toolkit
• Expertly-managed from start to finish - design, facilitation, analysis and reporting

How to make meetings productive?

Despite the accessibility of information today, building relationships, turning information into knowledge, and taking collaborative decisions still demands meetings. Getting real value from a brainstorm, project discussion, seminar, or 'virtual event' depends on defining outcomes, selecting the right design and tools, good knowledge-sharing and analysis, and proper reporting and action-planning. In practice, meetings often fail because organisations simply 'sleep-walk' through these stages. Nor has the recent explosion of online collaboration platforms helped significantly; such initiatives, while welcome, are often poorly-run.

Traditional workshops and meetings often use tired old approaches - too many 'talking heads', too much 'telling rather than listening and sharing', and too many 'flip-charts and Post-It notes'. These formats often fail to engage or excite participants!

How does Brain-Pool help?

Brain-Pool Workshops dramatically improve the productivity of meetings. We use innovative technology to capture information more quickly and completely than is ever possible in traditional meetings. We prepare a distilled synthesis and a crisp set of recommendations based on all the inputs. Our Workshops are 'deliberative', enabling participants to work together to articulate, debate and take forward ideas. In particular, participants can readily review (on screen) the contributions made by others, and add their own further 'builds' or comments. These interchanges create a 'snowball of learning' and enable participants to review their own positions in light of what others say. We deliver better mutual understanding through reasoned, open dialogue.

We provide a complete service covering design, facilitation, analysis and reporting as illustrated in the diagram below. We assemble all the skills required, relieving clients of a substantial burden of expertise and time internally. We run each Workshop as a partnership project. 

The Workshop experience is described below and summarised in our leaflet. Workshops can be 'real' (one place, one time), or 'virtual', using Distance Brain-Pool via the internet to involve dispersed people.

What are the benefits?

Brain-Pool Workshops transform not only the meeting 'experience' but also the outputs and follow-up action. The focus on collaborative working, combined with the structure, tools and innovative technology which we employ, distinguishes our services from those provided by subject-matter experts, individual facilitators, or 'big-name' consulting firms. We deliver a step-change in extracting value from collaborative working. The multiple benefits which Brain-Pool Workshops offer compared with traditional approaches include:

• All talking the same language - shared understanding of key concepts and terms
• All contributions are captured simultaneously - dramatically saving time
• Equal 'air-time' for all - not 'who shouts loudest'
• Everyone can contribute - without having to catch the Chair's eye
• Contributions made anonymously - greater honesty
• Assessment - inputs categorised and rated within the workshop
• Real deliberation - inputs reviewed, built upon, categorised and assessed in the workshop
• Parallel syndicate sessions - but without the need for break-out rooms
• Highly focused and stimulating - through use of structure and tools
• Guided by independent, impartial, expert facilitators and analysts
• Inputs can be labelled - for later analysis by interest or stakeholder area
• Transparency - Verbatim output is available at the end of the session

Applications for Brain-Pool

Brain-Pool Workshops provide a unique and powerful approach to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing organisations today. The intense deliberation, capture of inputs, and provision of a sound basis for action, are key benefits at any stage in a programme of work - just as useful in getting the team together to create a plan for a programme of Workshops as in supporting the Workshops themselves.

Areas in which we have successfully applied Brain-Pool Workshops, often as part of a wider programme of support, include:

• Roadmapping, Horizon-Scanning, Foresight, Future Planning, and Visioning - focusing on trends, impacts, and strategies.

• Decision-Making - transforming the quality of strategic decisions and buy-in to new approaches.

• Managing Projects - ensuring buy-in and effective learning at kick-start, review and closure stages.

• Innovation - going beyond brainstorming to generate, develop and assess creative ideas.

• Supply Chains - enabling collaboration to raise standards, improve productivity and innovate.

• Learning Lessons - sharing and learning from past experience in future operations.

• Identifying and Sharing Good Practice - collaboratively determining and promoting what 'works'.

• Networking - forging Networks among people from diverse functions, locations and cultures.

• Engaging Stakeholders - capturing contributions from up to 100 participants at a time; enabling everyone to deliberate on each other's ideas; providing independent facilitation and analysis; ensuring impartiality and transparency for participants; and delivering valuable outputs for the sponsors.

Case-studies of Brain-Pool Workshops

These case-studies provide real examples of applications for our approach to collaborative working:

• Creating Roadmaps: supporting clients in developing Roadmaps focused on innovation in products and services, for Future Pharmacy, Regenerative Medicine, Aquaculture, Scalable Computing, and Knowledge Transfer Networks, and developing internal company Roadmaps for 'lean manufacturing'.
• Engaging stakeholders on strategic priorities: analysing and reporting stakeholder feedback from nine regional workshops on a proposed new strategy and funding priorities for the Big Lottery Fund.

• Developing Innovation Programmes: developing and validating Innovation Programmes to deliver a Vision for the Agri-Food sector in Northern Ireland to 2020.

• Defining Research Priorities: working with 200 stakeholders from 125 organisations in six Workshops to identify strategic research priorities for UK Farming and Food. We distilled 200 cogent research proposals from the 800 suggestions which we captured, to enable subsequent priority-setting.
• Engaging the public in policy: engaging members of the public, both young and old, in a focused debate over policy priorities for farming, food and the countryside.
• Consulting industry stakeholders: enabling UK Trade & Investment to present proposals for strategic change to trade associations and to gain immediate feedback, all in only one morning.

What is the Workshop experience?

Brain-Pool Workshops are not loose brainstorms, but structured, creative, and focused on delivery. We mix presentations, discussion, individual work and group exercises. A distinctive element is the use of special laptops, linked by a wireless network, to input and read contributions. No special skills are required.

The value of Brain-Pool Workshops comes from focusing not just on the event but also on quality preparation, analysis and reporting. Well in advance of the Workshop, we take time with the sponsor to design the event to achieve its goals, ensuring that objectives are clear and attendees are well-selected and briefed. We often ask participants to undertake some work before the Workshop (e.g. to comment on drivers and outcomes).

A full service	Planning	Analysis	High-quality Materials

The Workshop starts by establishing the objectives, explaining key concepts, the agenda, and the exercises and tools to be used. Everyone is provided with mini-laptops, linked by a wireless network, to collect their contributions in each of several specific exercises. We have used the laptops successfully with technical experts and members of the public alike, including people who have never used computers before.

Workshop participants can work individually, or in pairs or groups. The system allows easy syndication without the need for break-out rooms, thereby minimising disruption.  For example we can split a list of 40 research ideas into four sets and allocate each set to one table for discussion and then comment via the mini-laptops.  Then we can switch the allocation, so that each table considers another set of ideas.

During any specific exercise, participants enter their own contributions (e.g. 'My research priorities'). Others then read and review these. Comments, builds or questions are used to refine contributions (e.g. from a list of 100 one-line priorities, to develop 30 substantial proposals). Participants can respond through the laptops to points made by others - the interactive discussions can be very productive! All this is done anonymously.

Our analysts distill and comment on contributions, working alongside members of the sponsoring organisation and our subject-matter specialists.  They provide real-time feedback to participants and prompt the facilitators.

The refined inputs are then categorised and assessed. While a simple 'satisfaction' score is often enough, we also have sophisticated systems for assessing ideas (e.g. against multiple criteria such as 'distinctiveness', 'importance', 'sustainable benefits', and 'feasibility'). Assessments are conducted via the mini-laptops, and we present the outputs in graphical form. This provides immediate feedback, stimulates further discussion about promising ideas, and ensures everyone shares in shaping the outcome. All the initial contributions, refined proposals and comments are retained for subsequent reflection and analysis.

Special mini-laptops	Participating	Reviewing contributions	Sharing & discussing ideas

All Brain-Pool Workshops are supported by carefully selected, high-quality materials:

• Pre-Workshop briefings and exercises as necessary
• Presentations, Workbooks and templates for brain-storming and refining contributions on the day
• Verbatim outputs can be provided immediately. We usually provide a spell-checked, properly collated and indexed report, for distribution to the participants, within a few days.
• Our Synthesis report is normally available within 1-3 weeks. This faithfully extracts and distils the essence of the verbatim contributions, and adds further insights and independent recommendations.  It provides a sound basis for the sponsors to determine their 'next steps'.

How do we analyse Workshop outputs?

Our analysis is systematic and meticulous. It is based on our research on the Workshop context, subject-matter and objectives. It is done impartially and independently. Through an iterative process we:

• Review all the raw contributions, carefully identifying connections between different contributions.
• Sort the contributions into suitable themes. We reflect and take account of the pattern of themes and questions used in the Workshop but avoid being bound rigidly by these. If our analysis of the outputs suggests alternative or different themes, we will reflect this in the structure of our report.
• Formulate synthesised statements (e.g. issues, solutions, strategies) from numerous individual contributions. This reduces the sheer volume of material. We do not crudely merge and dilute ideas to produce bland statements, but instead retain the essence of discrete ideas. We look actively for novel or creative ideas which challenge or disrupt current thinking.
• Identify and interpret patterns of contributions (e.g. any material differences in views between different categories of participant or between Workshops run in different regions).

Our Synthesis Report usually produces a five-fold reduction in the substantive content of the Verbatim Report. This distillation of the outputs provides a powerful 'evidence base'. The Synthesis Report also includes a concise introduction, describing the Workshop's objectives and process. This makes it accessible and useful for people who did not attend. We normally include independent recommendations, drawing on our wider experience. The Report is a powerful tool for decision-making and securing lasting value from the Workhshop.

Our clients normally formally adopt our Synthesis Report and immediately communicate it to a pre-determined target audience of Workshop participants and selected decision-makers and stakeholders. They accompany this with an internal cover note that endorses the report, affirms its importance and specifies action steps. References to other relevant programmes and initiatives position the Workshop in its wider context.

The Synthesis Report is provided in Adobe PDF format. Key elements can also be made available as a PowerPoint presentation to facilitate punchy delivery and integrate the outputs with other slides as necessary. This expands the options to support communication and decision-making after the Workshop.

What do participants like about Brain-Pool Workshops?

Typical comments recorded by participants when asked 'what did you like?' about our Workshops include: 

• ‘The use of the technology versus old flip-charts approach’
• ‘On-line commenting and communication - much more efficient than open dialogue’
• ‘Good progress on getting buy-in - technology cut out a lot of wasted time’
• ‘The technology definitely energised the opinion-gathering stages, speeded them up and ensured contributions from everyone. I particularly like the fact that you can see all other contributions live as they come in and also that you can add comments - even a chain of comments and responses.’
• ‘We captured all the responses and this data can be worked on and used to build up a good picture to use after the Workshop.
• ‘Technology gathers data very efficiently and actually offers opportunities for priority setting in groups and complex choice manipulation.’
• ‘A good way of getting a diverse range of opinions’
• ‘Encouraged individual contributions without individuals and their views dominating'
• ‘Allowed efficient use of time to capture all inputs and allow participants to bounce ideas’
• ‘The opportunity to contribute comments collectively, quickly, non-attributably’
• ‘The technology brought a new life to the workshop concept. Capturing people’s views anonymously undoubtedly releases creativity.’
• ‘It avoided everyone getting bogged down in a few small areas by allowing people to discuss and then all put in their own views’
  ‘Took me away from the trees to see the forest…great experience...will remember’
• ‘New experience in collaborative thinking and interchange, the technology innovation mirrors the overall innovation theme’
• ‘Clear and concise - with feedback available on the day - well done!’

Distance Brain-Pool

Our Workshops can be ‘real’, in one place at one time, or ‘virtual’, using Distance Brain-Pool to bring people together over the internet from different places and at different times. These Workshops can complement face-to-face meetings or even replace them. There are two models: small groups meet at one of several convenient locations (e.g. across countries or continents), or individuals participate directly from their own desks. 

Please contact us for brief videos on Brain-Pool Concepts and Brain-Pool in Action. Our leaflet gives further information on Brain-Pool.

Conventional Workshops

While Brain-Pool Workshops offer significant benefits over 'traditional' Workshops (especially through the use of special technology), our successful 'design, facilitate, analyse and report' model applies equally to conventional Workshops based around presentations, discussions, group working, and paper exercises. These are particularly effective with smaller groups. We have used such workshops recently with senior managers in determining 'next steps' for an ongoing programme for 'Mastering Risk', and with a Board of Directors in scoping the initial stages of a strategic change programme. Several of our larger programmes have mixed both formats.

Facilitation and chairmanship

Expert facilitation is a key component of all our Workshops - whether 'Brain-Pool' or 'conventional'. Our team also offers expert chairmanship skills, gathered from experience in business, stakeholder groups, statutory advisory committees, and professional forums. Our ability to take an independent, unbiased, objective approach to any area of subject-matter is especially valuable when organisations need to bring people together to deliberate in areas of uncertainty or dispute - where views are often both diverse and strongly-held

It has been calculated

that if the average

£30,000-a-year

manager spends one

hour a week in

meetings where they

don't pay attention,

the total cost to

British industry is

£7.8bn a year.

Source: Henley Management College 2004