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Luma Institute is a global education company that

teaches people how to be more innovative by applying


the discipline of human-centered design. Vision Statement
Innovation begins with
the keen observation of
people and their behavior.
The tools in this category
are intended to foster
curiosity, empathy, and
objectivity.
Thoughtful analysis,
critical thinking, and
problem framing are vital
to successful innovation.
These tools help to iden-
tify patterns, determine
priorities, and translate
research into actionable
insights.
To understand an idea
and see its strengths and
weaknesses, you have to
bring it to life. These tools
enable creative visual
expression and constant
improvement through
iteration.
A SAMPLE INNOVATION PATH
LOOKING
OBSERVING HUMAN
EXPERIENCE
UNDERSTANDING
ANALYZING
CHALLENGES &
OPPORTUNITIES
MAKING
ENVISIONING FUTURE
POSSIBILITIES
Luma Institute has distilled 36 of the most eective methodsthe
majority of them in common use. As illustrated here, it organizes
them in three categorieslooking, understanding, and makingand
nine subcategories. This framework can help you choose the best
tool for each step of the innovation process, according to the people
youre designing for and the complexity of the systems in which you
operate.
Bill Lucas, Lumas cofounder and director of curriculum, recom-
mends that at least one method from at least two categories be
applied during each round of innovation activity. If the situation calls
for evolutionary improvement, for example, you might start with the
subcategory evaluative research and then synthesize and sum-
marize your ndings. If youre seeking a disruptive breakthrough,
its good to start with a combination of methods for understanding
people and framing problems and then use observational methods to
inform conceptualization and prototyping.
Lucas urges that over the course of a larger eort, a healthy sam-
pling from all three categories be used frequently. Familiarity with
the attributes of individual methods is the key to learning which
ones work well together. But wherever you start, dont delay making
something to assess and prioritizing improvements.
The diagram below shows how a company might move through
Lumas innovation system to create a new line of products.
HBR Reprint F1401Z
A Taxonomy
of Innovation
Based on the work of Luma Institute
Fast-changing markets demand that new products and
processes be designed rapidly. At least 1,000 tools
and methods are available to help innovators discover
what users want or need and how to deliver on their
expectations. The challenge is to gure out which
ones to use when.
Its important to use methods from each category and to move back
and forth among categories to rene your thinking.
+
30 Harvard Business ReviewJanuaryFebruary 2014
IDEA WATCH
Studying human behavior
in its natural setting to
uncover opportunities for
innovation
Synthesizing and sum-
marizing the understand-
ing of all kinds of people,
places, and things to
create new value
Exploring numerous pos-
sibilities using alterna-
tives to conventional
brainstorming
Learning from people
by giving them ways
to express themselves,
revealing critical and
latent needs
Identifying relationships
to determine what is
related, relevant, and
important
Combating risk aversion
by modeling new ideas
through fast and frequent
iteration
Assessing the useful-
ness and usability of
products and processes
in order to set a course
for improving them
Characterizing the situ-
ation dierently so that
innovative solutions can
emerge
Conveying a concepts
full potential so that
participants will do
whats needed for ideas
to ourish
ETHNOGRAPHIC
RESEARCH
PEOPLE &
SYSTEMS
CONCEPT
IDEATION
EVALUATIVE
RESEARCH
PROBLEM
FRAMING
DESIGN
RATIONALE
PARTICIPATORY
RESEARCH
PATTERNS &
PRIORITIES
MODELING &
PROTOTYPING
3
3
3
1
1
1
4
4
4
2
2
2
INTERVIEWING Gathering information
through direct dialogue
STAKEHOLDER MAPPING Diagram-
ming peoples roles in a system
THUMBNAIL SKETCHING Making
quick drawings to generate new ideas
FLY-ON-THE-WALL OBSERVATION
Doing unobtrusive eld research
PERSONA PROFILE Summarizing
stakeholder views, needs, and goals
CREATIVE MATRIX Sparking new
ideas at the intersection of categories
CONTEXTUAL INQUIRY Interviewing
people in their own environment
EXPERIENCE DIAGRAMMING
Mapping a journey through tasks
ROUND-ROBIN Evolving ideas by
passing them from person to person
WALK-A-MILE IMMERSION Building
empathy through rsthand experience
CONCEPT MAPPING Depicting rela-
tionships within a given domain
ALTERNATIVE WORLDS Using dier-
ent perspectives to generate ideas
3
3
3
1
1
1
4
4
4
2
2
2
WHATS ON YOUR RADAR? Plotting
items according to personal signicance
AFFINITY CLUSTERING Sorting items
by similarity
STORYBOARDING Showing new
processes through a series of images
BUY A FEATURE Using articial money
to express trade-o decisions
BULLS-EYE DIAGRAMMING Ranking
items by importance
SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMMING Outlining a
systems structure and components
BUILD YOUR OWN Expressing ideal
solutions with symbolic elements
IMPORTANCE/DIFFICULTY MATRIX
Plotting items in a 2x2 analysis
ROUGH & READY PROTOTYPING
Modeling an idea quickly
JOURNALING Recording personal expe-
riences in words and pictures
VISUALIZE THE VOTE Polling collabora-
tors to reveal preferences
APPEARANCE MODELING Emphasizing
visual styling with a rened model
3
3
3
1
1
1
4
4
4
2
2
2
THINK-ALOUD TESTING Narrating ones
experience while performing a task
PROBLEM TREE ANALYSIS Exploring
the causes and eects of an issue
CONCEPT POSTER Presenting the main
elements of an idea
HEURISTIC REVIEW Auditing on the
basis of 10 rules of good design
STATEMENT STARTERS Phrasing
problem statements to invite exploration
VIDEO SCENARIO Showing the
attributes of a new concept in use
CRITIQUE Giving and receiving
constructive feedback
ABSTRACTION LADDERING Reconsid-
ering a problem by adjusting its focus
COVER STORY MOCK-UP Describing an
ideas future success in a faux article
SYSTEM USABILITY SCALE Quantifying
feedback from a usability survey
ROSE, THORN, BUD Identifying things
as positive, negative, or having potential
QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE Summarizing
the principles and elements of an idea
HBR.ORG
JanuaryFebruary 2014Harvard Business Review31

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