how to manage brainstorm session for requirement gathering for about 25 person ?? Saving Changes...
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Sergio Luis ConteHelping to create solutions for everyone| Worldwide based OrganizationsBuenos Aires, Argentina
I did that when there is not other possibility but my recommendation is to avoid that. My recommendation is you put you stakehodlers by enterprise architecture layer and go for requirements for each group. Then, integrate it. Here comes two articles I wrote in the past and were published by the PMI and the IIBA as best practices. I am putting the references with the hope it could help you:
To create the solution as a whole:
https://www.projectmanagement.com/blog-pos...-right-solution To create all related to stekeholder management:
https://www.projectmanagement.com/blog-pos...th-stakeholders Saving Changes...
Alexandre CostaScrum Master| Integer Consulting - Pictet technologiesLoures, Portugal
Normally the advised for large group of persons is questionnaires and surveys. A large number of stakeholders doesn’t permit to arrange a one-to-one interview. Also, it’s not wise to call all them at one place, if they sit remotely. So, Questionnaire & Surveys give the opportunity to collect requirements of a big group of stakeholders. It also provides flexibility to stakeholders to take part as per their ease. But be aware that could be a challenge to prepare the survey.
If you're determined to brainstorm for so many people, you have several alternatives:
Focus groups - Suppose you need to gather the needs of the top executive and process owners both. You can schedule separate meetings with the two. Try to see if there are groups of people linked by their affinities or features and gather the individual group's requirements through brainstorming. Is like having several brainstorming meetings.
Delphi Technique - you can join all in a meetings and ask everyone to write what he or she thinks what the requirements should be, avoiding the influence of the group opinion, than compile a list of the results and ask to prioritize again by survey.All that they do individually should be anonimous, based in written paper and not discussed, but facilitated by you, after each iteration of questions or surveys.
Interviews - you can make interviews with some key stakeholders reducing the number of the persons needed to perform the brainstorming meeting that you intend with the remaining persons.
I can't tell you exactly which one is ideal, because you as a project manager know better than anyone else the stakeholder group you want to bring together and its characteristics.You can use only a technique or several of them it's up to you to find what fit's best in this situation. Saving Changes...
Luis BrancoCEO| Business Insight, Consultores de Gestão, LdªCarcavelos, Lisboa, Portugal
Dear Dina
For such a large group of people, brainstorming sessions are difficult.
I believe the main problem is the loss of ideas that may be important.
Can split group of 25 people
You can group people into 3 or 4 groups as people being careful not to put people from different hierarchies in the same group.
You can hold multiple sessions by varying the combinations of people who are part of each session.
Another hypothesis is to use the nominal group technique (NGT) Saving Changes...
One option to explore with such a large group is brain-writing. It is a variant of brainstorming but addresses some of the weaknesses of the technique by reducing duplicates at initial identification and by encouraging participants to build on the superficial or surface-level ideas which others have had.
Kiron Saving Changes...
Anton OosthuizenSenior Business Analyst / Project Manager| Self EmployedPretoria, Gauteng, South Africa
Dina I agree that the group is too large to effectively implement best practises during a brainstorming session. I like Kiron's idea of using brainwriting during your session and while it 'automates' some aspects of brainstorming such as uniqueness and collaboration you still sit with timing issues. Having 25 people writing and then evaluating other ideas will still take quite some time. Limit the size first and halving your current group you would still sit on the upper limit of what could be considered manageable. When you reduce your group make sure that you do it in such a way to ensure diversity i.e. do not split along department or role lines but aim for a cross-section. Then in these smaller groups, you can use techniques such as braindumping or brainwriting much more efficiently. Saving Changes...
George FreemanThought Leader | Author | Architect| Florida, United States
Dina,
I’ve seen brainstorming workshops be successful with up to 50 individuals when the following is true:
- C-Suite representatives are present and are viewed as sponsoring.
- Teams are created and each team nominates a spokesperson to share on their behalf.
- A highly structured environment is presented and there are ample break-out areas available.
- The workshop facilitator has done due-diligence and already has preliminary feedback from each functional area head. This reduces the number of surprises the facilitator will have to juggle during the reconciliation/resolving process.
I believe it’s best NOT to have workshops of this size, but the political environment may drive the need. Saving Changes...
