ABSTRACT
Brainstorming is a powerful yet underutilized Lean Sigma tool. It provides tremendous benefits for self-directed teams. When I am facilitating a team I use brainstorming at least two times during a one-hour meeting. Here are some of the main benefits:
• Generates new ideas • Generates many ideas • If brainstorming rules are maintained, then the usually quiet people
on the team will participate • Prevents getting stuck on the details instead of being creative • Allows team members to consider every possible angle of a problem • Allows team members to build on each other’s creativity
Having the participation of the entire team, including the quiet people, is probably the most beneficial, as every team will have members who are willing to allow the others to provide all of the ideas. I once was facilitating a team in a service company with one team member who rarely commented on anything we were doing. Once we started using brainstorming and adhering to the rule that “you are not allowed to critique any ideas put forward until the rounds are complete,” this very quiet team member commented that “you do not give us enough time to complete the process.” I do not want to bore you with all of the steps taken after this, but the end result was that this simple statement led us to a worldwide yearly savings of $2.25 million, in hard savings, from an improved maintenance and safety program.
