Architects at work

First this small group engaged in conversation, then they filled the walls with their thoughts and questions. Finally, they shipped a product using the box to tell their story of "what mattered" to them. ... The pattern of iteration, including shipping a product.

Hands on Experience

As the hands created, the minds played... the box and story came to life. Our creative process pulls forth the many ways of knowing within any group.

Working Big

It is 2020 and the group is re-remembering how they succeeded in reaching very challenging goals in education.  Notice the full boards. Without tables, participants are more likely to all work at the walls, working over each other, adding, commenting, iterating.  Sitting often constrains throught.

The Art of Scribing

Here Robin plays with the ideas that she is hearing from the participants.  She puts expression and meaning to the words of the speakers. The participants are from many different cultures, but with art, a coherent meaning comes forth.

Seeing Differently

Ideas build on each other. Reports become an ongoing unfolding of what matters rather than a debate about the best idea. New questions emerge; new ways of seeing what is possible.

Circle Up

During a typical prep-day, event knowledge workers (the KreW), walk-through the design of an event several times. In between these "circle ups," the KreW works individually and in small teams to craft specific aspects - graphics, writing, technical systems, environment, knowledge base, production - that will create the best possible experience for participants.

Everything Speaks

Environment matters. Everything speaks. Creating a space rich with imagery and information helps designers to scan beyond their existing assumptions and models of reality while creating a container that reminds them what has brought them into design together.

Knowledge Walls

"Knowledge Walls" display ideas and information in a tactile way, inviting interaction, sparking conversations, triggering new connections.

Creating A New Experience

"Everything that someone tells you is true - they are reporting their experience of reality. To argue with someone else's experience is a waste of time. To add someone's  experience to your experience -- to create a new experience -- is possibly valuable." - Taylor Design Axioms

Knowledge Sharing

Skip the participant introductions. Forget the job titles. Instead, engage people in meaningful conversation and co-design from the beginning, and they will come to know each other through the sharing the stories and experiences  that relate to the challenge at hand.

Hunting and Gathering

We sent the participants out to explore content and to have conversations with each other about the ideas on the walls. In informal collaborations like this, they round up and each discovers an enlarged self... this module creates a good opening for further, more versatile creativity. 

Inviting Engagement

Note the informality of the participant. Environment matters. Here, he finds both informality and preciseness. He senses the openess to new ideas and has the tools at his disposal to capture them. 

Scanning

SCAN, FOCUS, ACT Each of our events always engages participants in a broad SCAN before asking them to FOCUS their ideas. First we want to help participants see many, many sides of the picture. 

Take-a-Panel

Our design events include personal time, mixed with small group breakouts and full group conversations and story telling.  Here, each participant finds their own board and does backcasting. They are looking back remembering how they achieved such remarkable successes. 

The KreW

Krew members keep journals for their own thoughts and learning.  Some journals are highly graphics, others word filled.  Journals are often shared. This is one way we maintain memory. 

Cubic Thoughts

Through iterative cycles, the information and ways of expressing it grows stronger, bolder, more personal. Ownership begins to emerge.  Ideas from earlier report outs -- the ones that matter -- to a group show up again and again in the stories and report outs.  Ideas not right fall away naturally without voting and false prioritizing.

Illustrating Your Words

Not all participants are word oriented. Here Alicia and Christoff illustrate what they are hearing. A new story emerges. Both of these artists are superb at chunking information, taking linear, individual thoughts and working them together into a whole story. 

Diversity of Mind

We have found that collaboration, individual and group creativity, and an eagerness to engage and co-design are prolific characteristics all over the world, and in all types of organizations. Group Genius knows no boundaries.

Walking About

Research shows that moving about increases the ability to learn. Here participants are moving about the space finding new and interesting information and engaging others in their find.