08. Driving Innovation Projects 1: Identify & Ideate

Name: 08. Driving Innovation Projects 1: Identify & Ideate
Rating: 4.8 (21 reviews)

Know some systematic ways to drive innovation projects right from identifying areas to generating solution ideas for it.

Created byShreyas Bakshi

Last updated 1/2026

English

What you'll learn

Know how to systematically drive innovation projects from identifying areas to generating ideas
Know how to frame innovation areas into clear innovation project statements and briefs
Know how to uncover current domain and people dynamics shaping the innovation context
Know how to generate ideas and organise these into an idea bank for use across projects
Know ways to prioritise available options at each stage of the innovation journey

Course content

5 sections • 24 lectures • 1h 21m total length

Overview of Identifying Areas | What Do We Mean by Innovation Areas2:27
Know what innovation areas represent in the MijS approach and why clarity here shapes everything that follows.
How-to identify areas to innovate – Known & Unknown, Problems & Opportunities4:57
a. Know some systematic ways to identify innovation areas – whether problems (reactive) or opportunities (proactive). These could be known (visible gaps) or unknown (latent needs).
Examples of Identifying Areas – Notice the Patterns Across Contexts12:01
Through examples, know the recurring patterns, principles and triggers that point to meaningful innovation areas.
Prioritising Areas to Pursue – Choosing to Focus2:40
When multiple areas are identified, focus matters. Know some of the key principles and a simple framework to prioritise innovation areas. Remember to contextualise these.

Overview of a Project Statement - Why Articulation Matters3:45
With the help of few examples, know the role of a project statement in giving shape to an innovation area and what should it contain.
Differentiators of a Statement for Innovation vs Business-As-Usual Projects3:45
Know how statements for Innovation Projects differ from Business-As-Usual (BAU) Projects.
Success Indicators – Making the Intent Explicit2:33
Know how to express success indicators for innovation areas. Even aspirational indicators support comparison and prioritisation.
Prioritising Innovation Projects – Focusing the resources2:49
Know principles and frameworks to compare and prioritise innovation projects emerging high number of innovation areas so that the available resources can be allocated to the areas that matter the most.
Making Innovation Sub-Projects | Easing the management while maintaining focus1:52
When innovation areas are broad or complex, structuring them into sub-projects eases the management of tasks without compromising on the focus or outcomes.

Overview of a Project Brief - Purpose and Contents2:28
Know the role of a Project Brief and the key elements that help frame and guide an innovation project.
Non-Negotiables for an Innovation Project – Setting the Boundaries3:09
Know how non-negotiables define boundaries for an innovation project and provide clarity on what is not open for challenge.
Supporting Information for an Innovation Project – Adding the Context6:56
Know how relevant supporting information in the brief clarifies context, intent and constraints for the Project. It also triggers the directions to be explored.
Innovation Project Team – Primary Roles and Representation5:00
Know one of the ways to capture names of project team members and clarify their primary roles for this Innovation Project.
Innovation Project Team Charter – Ways of Working Within The Team3:01
Know some points that can shape a Project Team Charter to guide collaboration, expectations, and ways of working between the team members.
Putting the Innovation Project Brief Together – Making it Coherent1:57
Know how bringing all elements together in a Project Brief strengthens clarity on the work to be taken up.

Objective of Uncovering the Dynamics of Current Context1:51
Know why uncovering contextual dynamics is important, what types of dynamics may exist, and how to surface those relevant.
Domain-related Dynamics – Forces Shaping the Space1:27
Know about domain-related dynamics and some ways to uncover forces influencing the space being worked upon.
People-related Dynamics – How they Individually & Collectively form the context1:04
Know about people-related dynamics that are shaping the context.
Segmenting the Context – Making Sense of Complexity0:56
Know why segmenting the context is useful and some ways to break down complexity for deeper exploration.
Revisit the Project Structure – Refine Based on any New Discoveries1:49
Revisit the project structure to reflect on whether revisions are needed based on insights uncovered so far.

Overview of Idea Generation Process for Project Outcomes1:04
Know what this ideation stage focuses on and how it connects with what is covered in other parts of the program.
Managing the Ideation Flow During a Session6:24
Know principles and techniques that help maintain momentum, diversity, and depth during an ideation session.
Managing the Ideation Flow Across Sessions6:14
Know how to manage continuity, progression, and freshness of ideas across multiple ideation sessions.
Typical Structure of Idea Bank – Capturing Ideas for Use and Reuse1:33
Know one basic structure for capturing ideas so they can be processed within the project and reused elsewhere. More could be evolved as per the need of the context.

Requirements

Understanding of English language
Willingness to work on innovation projects with a systematic approach
Completed the course on Introduction to MijS Approach to Innovation
Completed the course on The Fundamentals of Innovative Thinking
Completed the course on The Essentials of People Engagement for Innovation
Optional: Completed the course on Leveraging Databases
Optional: Completed the course on Deepening People Engagement for Empathy, Insight, and Collaboration
Optional: Completed the course on Techniques to Explore for Innovation
Optional: Completed the course on Fundamentals of Ecosystems for Innovation

Description

In the earlier courses of this program, the focus has been on building the capability to generate innovative thoughts and to engage meaningfully with people. Those capabilities form the foundation for innovation work.

This course builds on that foundation by shifting attention from how to think to where to innovate and how to make it happen. It is split in two parts. This course, Driving Innovation Projects (Part 1 of 2), covers the first two stages of the innovation project journey i.e. Identify (identification of the areas to innovate) and Ideate (generation of innovative ideas for those areas).

As per the approach of MyInnovationJourneyS (MijS), innovation areas are treated as broad spaces. These may be reactive or proactive, stated or latent. The course explores structured yet flexible ways to identify such areas and articulate them clearly through project statements and success indicators – without jumping prematurely to implement first few ideas.

Once an innovation area is selected, the course moves into drafting a clear Innovation Project Brief. This brings together non-negotiables, supporting information, team considerations, and ways of working to establish shared clarity.

With this foundation in place, attention turns to uncovering the current dynamics of the context—including domain-related and people-related dynamics—and segmenting complexity so it can be engaged with meaningfully.

The course then focuses on generating innovative ideas as a response to a well-framed project and a well-understood context. You will explore ways to manage ideation flow within sessions and across multiple sessions, and how to capture ideas systematically for further exploration.

At key stages of the innovation project journey, the MijS approach encourages you to prioritise and focus on few high impact aspects of the project that have the potential to delivery disproportionate results. Frameworks for prioritising are suggested at each of these stage and you are encouraged to contextualise these all the time.

Note that the subsequent stages of the innovation project journey i.e. Incubate and Implement will be covered in the course on Driving Innovation Projects (Part 2 of 2).

Who this course is for:

Professionals involved in innovation projects across teams, functions or even organisations
Practitioners from strategy, transformation, excellence, optimisation, or reengineering roles.
Leaders and facilitators responsible for shaping and guiding innovation projects
Enthusiasts who wish to explore how innovation projects can be driven systematically

08. Driving Innovation Projects 1: Identify & Ideate

What you'll learn

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Course content

Identifying Innovation Areas - Where Innovation Can Emerge4 lectures • 22min

Crafting Innovation Project Statements - Bringing Sharpness to Areas5 lectures • 15min

Drafting the Innovation Project Brief - Creating Shared Clarity6 lectures • 23min

Uncovering the Current Dynamics – Understanding the Context5 lectures • 7min

Generating Ideas for an Innovation Project – From Clarity to Possibilities4 lectures • 15min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: