Reflection

1.Challenge – to identify and achieve the optimal solution during implementation of a project.

2.Selection – to get the solution, it is essential to have the clear understanding of the problem and the  possible solutions. For this used Visualization tool for Visual thinking. I have used this tool to identify the  problem solution sets and choose according to the environment and resources availability.

3.Application - created a straw man graphic of the available solutions to the problem statement. Also  discuss with the team and client to understand the implications correctly.  Each person will give their  comments to the graphics/shapes that flow in the canvas. After the meeting is over, I will send out the  updated graphic based on the discussion outcome to all the stake holders.

4. Insight & Approach What I have learned from conducting this exercise with several groups is that  while the graphic – especially the revised graphic that incorporates their feedback – is important for  reinforcing their understanding of the problem they are working to solve, the more valuable aspect of  the activity is the shared insights and shared learning that occurs while they are working to define their  problem space. The graphic gives the diverse group of stakeholders a focal point for discussion that  allows them to share their perspectives and develop insights into potential root causes of their  problems. While they could create the graphic from a blank slate in a collaborative manner, starting with  a straw man jump starts the conversation for them. They can quickly identify where they are in the  graphic – or if they are missing – and can more quickly gain new insights about relationships between  key entities instead of taking time to identify them. They can also identify variables in the problem space  – that is, it helps them to identify what they don’t know, in what areas they need to obtain information  or data to provide the values for the variables. Since I discovered that the most valuable aspect is the  shared insights and learning, next time I would use the visualization activity as a starting point for a  series of design thinking activities. Then the revised graphic that incorporates their combined feedback  can serve as a reference tool throughout the remainder of their work.

