REFLECTION  Mind Mapping

By Muhammad Leonardo

Challenge  A large corporation’s internal Leadership Development Organization (LDO) planned an  overhaul of its curriculum. LDO leaders engaged its internal agency, Creative Services,  to help them execute on their stated objective:    Clearly communicate that courses have been updated and are aligned with the  company’s mission and goals while enticing leaders to enroll in the new program.    The curriculum revamp included significant changes in the following:   Content   Audiences (ranging from new, emerging leaders to executives)    Tailored training   Delivery – offering online training (similar to these Coursera classes) for the first  time      Selection / Application  After reviewing the LDO’s new curriculum and conducting interviews with stakeholders  within the organization, Creative Services recommended a design thinking workshop.    Attendees:   Members of the target audiences   LDO teachers, facilitators and leadership.     The session began with a 360° Empathy Map exercise focusing on each end user group.  Workshop participants were asked to consider what end users experience within the  “current state” of the LDO.     The following questions were explored:    SEEING  What are leaders at the company seeing when they attend the classes?

-  Networking opportunities  -  No visibility of opportunity/resources  -  Positive viewpoint (pie in the sky)

HEARING  What do they hear when they are there, or from co-workers who attend courses?

-  Classes are just a physical space (school), not an experience  -  It’s a privilege to attend  -  More interaction is needed

DOING  What do they do while in the leadership development courses, or afterwards?

-  Back to business as usual  -  Developing  -  Networking

SAYING  What feedback are they providing or disseminating to peers and their leadership?  -  Great experience, too bad it’s over…  -  It makes sense to go  -  Wish I could have gone sooner

FEELING   How does a leader feel when going, while they are there, and after they leave?  -  Why isn't my boss doing this? (Behaving this way)  -  Exclusive/special  -  Overwhelmed/frustrated, but hopeful

LATENT NEED?  What does a developing leader need most before/during/after? Compile a short list of  unmet needs they may encounter.  -  Support A-Z  -  A development path beyond the end of the class  -  Leave armed with tools to change culture

Participants wrote down their ideas and workshop facilitators grouped them under each  question on a white board. Facilitators led a process whereby responses were narrowed  down to the three that best captured the feedback into simple statements. This allowed for  consensus building, easy viewing and shared understanding moving forward.     Next, a shorter Attribute Brainstorming exercise was conducted with data collected  from the 360° Empathy Map. With new understanding and agreement on end-users’  perspectives, participants were asked to identify ideal, one-word attributes to define the  LDO’s future state. Participants wrote attributes on post-it notes, which were gathered  and displayed in groups. Patterns began to emerge. Workshop participants saw where  attributes were reinforced by other attendees. Eye-opening attributes were generated by  outside-the-box thinking. Having attendees record their thoughts silently during this  exercise resulted in more attributes being generated, since nobody was inhibited by  commentary. Everyone contributed equally and no one “owned” an idea.    Attendees then “voted” for the 3 attributes they most agreed with by applying sticker dots  to them. They were also given a red “veto” sticker to apply if they felt an attribute was  missing the mark.     Next the participants discussed the results in an open and engaging dialogue that resulted  in this final set of attributes: Experiential, Relevant, Inspiring, Real

Insight  Once the facilitators/participants had insight into what the end-user experience had been  like in the past, they were able to better understand how to communicate about the new  curriculum.     Insights from the 360 Empathy Map led to several course corrections - most significantly,  developing an action plan to follow up with course attendees.    A detailed communication plan was created after the design thinking workshop was  conducted. Using the data gathered in the session, on top of a well-tested and identified  set of attributes for the LDO curriculum of the future, Creative Services writers  developed “sticky” campaign messaging and branding that resonated with the audiences  and generated interest and anticipation in the new courses. The program is now seen as a  great growth opportunity within the corporation and an opportunity to align leadership  styles with company goals and objectives in a cohesive, unified manner.       Reflection on Approach  Given the opportunity to do this design thinking workshop again, I would engage more  end users in the dialogue prior to the workshop. Performing preliminary interviews with  past attendees would have provided valuable insight and would have allowed for a deeper  dive into conversations during the workshop. Having some ready-baked responses for  workshop attendees to use as a springboard for ideas may have resulted in an even more  productive workshop.

