© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Lunchtime Webinar Series:

Six Thinking Modes Dr. Liz McArdle, Principal, BMGI liz.mcardle@bmgi.com www.bmgi.com | www.bmgi.org

2

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Key Takeaway

Use parallel thinking to ensure that the experience and intelligence of the whole team is used to create a

multi dimensional map of the situation

3

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Agenda

Parallel thinking for more effective teams

Six thinking modes: • A tool to plan and conduct your meetings • What are the charateristics of each mode? • How can we utilise the modes?

Example of the six thinking modes in solution evaluation

4

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

The Cleverest Player on the Team

• Is there an alternative to playing the Devil’s Advocate?

• What about a positive assessment of the opportunity?

• What about the emotional side of decision making?

5

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Problem Solving and Decision Making

Parallel thinking Developing a map of the problem

Analysis and judgement Confrontational discussion

6

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Whose Description is Correct?

7

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Six Modes of Thinking - White

Neutral and objective

Facts and figures • Believed facts • Checked facts

Timing:

• Usually used towards the beginning of a thinking session

Act like a computer

8

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Six Modes of Thinking - Red

Emotions and feelings

Intuition and hunches

Timing: • Can be used at the

beginning of a session to make feelings visible if strong views are held

• Used towards the end of a session to reach a decision

• Restrict time available to inhibit desire to justify

Legitimise emotions as an important part of thinking

9

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Six Modes of Thinking - Yellow

Sunny and positive

Searching for value and benefits

• Optimism versus foolish hope

• Must be a judgement rather than a feeling

Timing: • Can be applied whenever

you need to look for opportunities

Choose to be positive

10

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Six Modes of Thinking - Black

Sombre and serious

Cautious and careful

Timing: • Used after yellow hat in an

assessment session

“Natural” mode of Western thinking

! Can be abused

and overused

11

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Six Modes of Thinking - Green

Abundant, fertile growth

Creativity, innovation and invention

Timing:

• Used when new ideas are required

New ideas are delicate seedlings

! One of the key

weaknesses in

creativity is

harvesting ideas

12

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Six Modes of Thinking - Blue

Detached and cool

Concerned with the organisation and control of the thinking process

Timing: • Used at the beginning and

end of session • Used when session needs

refocused

Ensure the rules of the game are observed

13

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Thinking modes do not attempt to change personality

Ego is not tied to being correct

Critical judgement is only one aspect of the thinking process

Hidden feelings are revealed

Accepting Human Nature

14

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Each mode can be used as often as necessary

Not every mode will be needed in a specific session

Types of sequence use

• Pre-set • Evolving

Using the Thinking Modes

!

Discipline is

important – only

the chair can

indicate a change

of mode

15

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Case Study Background

Profitability of the MP3 player product group is lower than the company’s expectations

• MP3 players are produced in Hong Kong • They are marketed and sold by local teams • Western Europe is the largest market • There is a potential side impact on the market

shares of the highly profitable accessories product group (head phones, chargers etc.)

• Root causes of the disappointing performance have been identified and potential solutions generated

16

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Set a short time for each mode and extend it if required

• 1 min per person present (except the red mode)

Evaluating Options – MP3 Player

Meeting Kick Off

Assess Data on Options

Reduce Ideas

Evaluate Ideas

Strengthen Ideas

Meeting Wrap Up

Agree objectives &

sequence

Share data to support ideas

Select options for

implementation

Explore benefits of ideas

Address risks and weaknesses

State outcomes & actions

Recap on next steps

Explore risks associated with

ideas

17

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

How might we increase MP3 player’s market share?

Multi-voting – Red Mode

18

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

• A, E, F and G will go! • H will have to be discussed with corporate as it is a global project • Decision on B is pending till we have more details about what is possible

Ease/Impact Matrix – Yellow Mode

Easy Moderate Difficult EASE

IM

PAC

T

Low

Mediu

m H

igh

A

H G

E

D C

B F

19

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Black – potential risks

Green - solutions

FMEA – Black & Green Modes

20

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Using the six thinking modes enables you to: • Utilise the intelligence and experience of the entire

team • Focus on building a map of the situation rather

than promoting conflict

The six thinking modes can be adopted to provide more effective sessions within team workshops

Summary

21

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

For more information on this tool please see the following resources:

• De Bono, Edward, Six Thinking Hats, Little, Brown and Co: New York, 1985; 1999 revised edition

• Silverstein, David, Samuel, Phil, DeCarlo, Neil, The Innovator’s Toolkit; 2nd Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2012

• http://www.edwarddebono.com/index.php/video-lectures-a-interviews

References

22

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Tips and Tricks

Use talking stick to maintain order

• Ensure only one conversation takes place at a time

Formally announce the transition between the modes

• Consider using some object to focus on the colour of the current mode

When teams are in the storming phase of development use the red mode at the end of the meeting to reflect on the process

Accept the process is not linear and that you may have to revisit the modes

• A predefined sequence may need to evolve – use blue mode to get agreement for this route

Let people experience a well-balanced discussion by using the thinking modes covertly

• Don‘t disclose your use of the modes but as facilitator ensure that all modes are appropriately used

• Once the session is complete explain how the result was achieved

Use for any situation where a multi-dimensional map is needed

23

© BMGI. Except as may be expressly authorized by a written license agreement signed by BMGI, no portion may be altered, rewritten, edited, modified or used to create any derivative works.

Questions and answers

For more information • Email us at info.eu@bmgi.com • Call: +44(0)8703 892 221 • Visit www.innovatorstoolkit.com • Visit www.bmgi.org for free

resources or www.bmgi.com for more information on training and support for innovation

Thank You