Description: The session would be broken down into 4 areas or steps for creating new ideas:
Step 1 – types of innovation (product, process, services) defined and examples provided (difference between radical, transformation and incremental) 
Step 2 – Challenge statement development (ladder of abstraction) for learning how to solve the real problem or embrace the right opportunity challenge 
Step 3 – Creating the environment for innovation (creative thinking) – Osborn’s work on how to create the right atmosphere for structured brainstorming (heterogeneous teams suspending judgement) 
Step 4 – Idea Provocation Cards – walk them through how to use the cards to create new ideas – talk about how to determine what’s workable to move forward (SCORE worksheet)    The participants can bring a problem and then solve it during the session.

Target Audience: Members of management, individual contributors, suppliers and customers who want to benefit from approaching Innovation and creative thinking as a skill.

Organizational Issues: Modern organizations continue to say, in 2016, that “Innovation” is their path forward to success. They base this on the fact that unless they can create new ideas they will fall behind their competitors. Turning business as usual “inside out” will enable organizations to see differently. Unfortunately when they use the word “Innovation” it is not constructed with any systems perspective on how or where it fits. Too often when people start to work on a problem or need to create unique new ideas they don't understand what simple tools to use or where to start:    - What is "Innovation"  - The "Type" of  Innovation required     - The “Focus” of the thinking required  - How to create the "Environment" for Innovation  - The simple "Ideation Tools" to create new ideas    Bring you problem or challenge to the workshop and leave with a great new idea or solution.

Objectives: learn and practice 4 Simple Steps to Inspirational Innovation:   
Step 1 – An introduction to what innovation is and 6 different types of innovation available to participants. A clear understanding of the differences with examples for product, process and service innovations.  
Step 2 – A learning model and exploration of the Ladder of Abstraction. Use it to create a challenge statement based on “How To” and “What’s Stopping You”. Clearly understand the 5-Why’s of problem definition formation 
Step 3 – Understand how to create an “Innovation and Creative Thinking Community of Practice” that is heterogeneous and explores Diversity of Thinking. 
Step 4 – Bring you  own problem or challenge and use the 20 Provocation Idea Cards to create immediate solutions to go home with.

Cost: None

Pre-work: There will be a quick survey provided that asks the participants to fill out information of a problem or a challenge they want to work on during the workshop session.

Materials Needed: None

Handouts: Available for download after the Forum 

Biography: Dale S. Deardorff, DM, is a dynamic, energized leader known for his ability to change the way organizations think and act. A self-proclaimed leadership futurist and acknowledged authority on process and systemic innovation methods; he is a mentor and a catalyst of renewal to many forward thinking profit and non-profit organizations. Dale has a passion for imparting the values of goals of sustainability while balancing the social contradictions of ethics and personal choice.   

Dale continues as an instructor for the Business and Management bachelor's program at DeVry and Keller Management schools. For over 10 years he has facilitated classes on Project Management and Human Resources & Communication in Project Management classes.   

For over 15 years, he has run a consulting company that focuses on training and teaching "Thinking" tools for Innovation and Organizational performance. He is a prolific extroverted speaker, prominent facilitator, and pioneer in the development & integration between individual thinking preferences and team based performance outcomes. With over 30 years of previous professional experience as a project/program manager, a training consultant, a research and development director, an innovation and a change agent, Dale has often been called a renaissance man.   

Dale has a master's degrees in 2-dimensional design and engineering and a doctoral degree in organizational leadership. Dr. Deardorff completed 2 years in an Executive Jurist Doctorate program specializing in Intellectual Property, Trademark and Patent law. Dale is currently writing a manuscript on Think-tion® describing the process of integrating specific thinking steps into prescribed action statements.    His current efforts as the Executive Leadership & Innovation Consultant for the Rocky Peak Leadership Center will be to establish an integrated Innovation International research program using the © Innovation Cube and HBDI™ toolsets.

Additionally, Dale is focused on creating "Thinking" development programs for young adults.  He is finalizing a Leadership Almanac and accompanying unique sets of Leadership Cards used for modeling, understanding and creating positive Leadership actions, behaviors and communication ideas. 

Dale is also responsible for promoting and overseeing strategic relationships with external entities including business, government and partner organizations. He develops and implements regional strategic and operation plans for the leadership team addressing: the mission, development issues, access, quality improvement, financial performance, market assessment/analysis, human resources and information management. He is currently working to bring industry thought leaders together with experts to seed innovation thinking and enable collaboration in design, technology, products, services and business models.

Contact: Dale can be reached by e-mail at dale@rockypeaklc.com for additional information about this session

Website: www.rockypeaklc.com

Blog: www.rockypeaklc.com/blog/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Rocky-Peak-Leadership-Center/168008973212032?sk=wall

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/dalesdeardorff

Twitter: twitter.com/#!/dsdeardorff

YouTube:www.youtube.com/user/rockypeaklc#p/u/3/tD6k1y5xQxw