How to Run an Effective Brainstorm Remotely

By Ximena Vengoechea

August 08, 2020

Originally Published Here

Summary

A brainstorm helps teams to gather wild and inventive ideas to imagine the future of our products.

Whether you're brainstorming something as specific and targeted as what set of features a product you're designing must include, something as strategic as how to build more inclusive working environments, or something as timely as how to adapt your team's workflow to a remote-only setup, brainstorms can help.

With many of us working from home for the foreseeable future, the classic brainstorm structure needs adjusting.

Just as you would for an in-person brainstorm, you'll need to define your scope clearly.

Remote brainstorms are particularly effective for thorny topics that could be difficult to articulate in an email thread, for challenges that require alignment, or for projects that are blocked and need action to move them forward.

If, on the other hand, you are looking for a simple thumbs up or thumbs down or straightforward feedback to move forward, a brainstorm may not be the best fit.

Being clear on your intended output will also help you inform how you design the brainstorm later on.

Stick to essential participants only-a bloated brainstorm can be a nightmare to manage, especially over video call, when the more people who chime in, the more people are inadvertently interrupted, the more repetition of points is involved, and the more time is lost.

Whether you're hosting a brainstorm in person or remotely, you always want to be sure your participants have enough information to be productive in the meeting.

Prepare a screen with brainstorm prompts for everyone to refer to as necessary.

The tools you use for brainstorming sessions don't need to be fancy.

Especially if this was your first remote brainstorm, you may also want to solicit feedback on how it went-there's always room for improvement!

Reference

Vengoechea, X. (2020, July 08). How to Run an Effective Brainstorm When Everyone's Working Remotely. Retrieved August 11, 2020, from https://www.themuse.com/advice/remote-brainstorm-tips