Creating Innovation:

Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™

An InnovationLabs White Paper

by Langdon Morris and Bryan Coffman

5/23/01

Contents
Introduction
What InnovationQuest Is
When Should InnovationQuest Be Used
How InnovationQuest Works
Implementing InnovationQuest Workshops
Conclusion

InnovationLabs™ LLC
257 Castle Glen Road
Walnut Creek, CA 94595
(925) 934-1786
 Introduction
What InnovationQuest Is
InnovationQuest is a reliable
method that enables organi-
zations to compress the time
required to create innovations,
formulate strategy, make deci-
sions, and solve complex prob-
lems in all aspects of their
business.
Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
Reducing the time it takes to understand complex issues and to make impor-
tant decisions is a critical priority. Suppose you could gather a team of people
together to solve some of your most complex and difficult problems in a week or
two rather than a few months. You can.
The purpose of this white paper is to explain how InnovationQuest Workshops
from InnovationLabs do just that.
Solving difficult and complex problems requires innovation and creativity. We
know that these qualities often emerge when we combine different ideas, differ-
ent perspectives, or different experiences in the context of an issue or a problem.
This explains why it is so often useful to have “outsiders” participating in cre-
ative design work - they tend to see things differently, and these differences often
enable us to reframe our own point of view, and in the process discover useful
new insights.
This also explains why many innovations in business are made by people work-
ing outside of the field for which they were trained. Professional training and
extensive experience constrain the thinking process because they map out, in
detail, the limits of what is possible. This leads to the phenomenon of “trained
incapacity,” the inability to go beyond what has already been shown. But outsid-
ers are not limited in this way - they can often see what insiders cannot, and their
insights drive innovation.
InnovationQuest is a strategy and a
proven method for overcoming these
constraints, for enabling groups of
people - even large groups - to work
together effectively. In a very short
time, a matter of days, groups discover
unexpected levels of creativity that lead
to breakthrough solutions to difficult
problems. InnovationQuest transforms
the experience of insiders into valuable
expertise and compelling, innovative insights.
Hence, InnovationQuest is a reliable method that enables organizations to com-
press the time required to create innovations, formulate strategy, make decisions,
and solve complex problems in all aspects of their business.
An InnovationQuest session can be defined as:
• A powerful tool for dealing with complex management issues that inevita-
bly arise in the life of every company.
An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 1

With InnovationQuest, a com-
pany can engage groups of
stakeholders to find superior
innovative or improved strate-
gies, products and processes,
and bring them to market faster
and with greater alignment and
cohesion.
When Should
InnovatioQuest™ Be Used?
Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
• A methodology for bringing out the best insights, ideas and expertise from
diverse individuals.
• A way to accelerate the design process, stimulating innovation, and opti-
mize human interaction around business opportunities and problems.
• A way to dramatically shorten the time required for strategic thinking,
concept development, detailed design and implementation.
• A rapid planning tool.
• A concept modeling and testing laboratory.
• A solution and design search algorithm.
• A front line tool for building sustainable competitive advantage.
With InnovationQuest, a company can engage groups of stakeholders to find
superior innovative or improved strategies, products and processes, and bring
them to market faster and with greater alignment and cohesion.
Quest skills and methods can be taught and transferred to anyone, anywhere in
the organization. In addition, they can be adapted to augment existing innovation
processes and practices.
InnovationLabs principals have a twenty-year track record of using Innovation-
Quest and other collaborative tools to help organizations bring forth elegant solu-
tions to complex problems.
1. Complexity
InnovationQuest should be used when the situation has a high degree of
complexity and is not amenable to a simplistic or reductionist approach. It is
important to explore the full scope of that complexity to properly understand
and solve the issues at hand.
• The InnovationQuest approach draws from the knowledge and expertise
of a large number of participants, enabling many diverse points of view
and insights to be integrated into coherent wholes evoking the full scale
and scope of the issues at hand.
2. Creativity
InnovationQuest should be used when understanding and solving the prob-
lem requires high levels of innovation and creativity, and particularly if the
situation or major pieces of it are unique and there is no standard operating
procedure or prescription.
An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 2

InnovationQuest should be
used when there is an advan-
tage to be gained by compress-
ing the time needed to under-
stand and resolve the problem.
Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
• InnovationQuest is based on the natural and inherent human creative
process. It provides a practical approach to accommodate many different
human learning styles, and brings forth consistently high levels of innova-
tion and creativity from large groups. Careful management of the work
process, the work environment, and the content of the work lead partici-
pants on a path towards insights and solutions.
3. Time Compression and the Value of a Faster Result
InnovationQuest should be used when there is an advantage to be gained by
compressing the time needed to understand and resolve the problem. A short
time frame may be required due to a crisis; or because a quick solution may
present an opportunity; or because minimizing the time required is necessary
to obtain the participation of key people.
• InnovationQuest engagements typically accomplish in a couple of weeks
what might otherwise take many months. They do this by carefully
structuring the work process, and by utilizing individual small team,
and large team work to optimize parallel processing for identifying and
focusing on critical issues, fol-
lowed by the rapid formation of
many perspectives and alterna-
tives. Participants rapidly exam-
ine important issues in depth
and detail, and get to conclu-
sions quickly.
4. Many Participants
InnovationQuest should be used
when deep knowledge and the
engaged participation of many people are helpful or required to develop
meaningful solutions, and traditional meetings and committees are unable to
effectively utilize the participation of large numbers of people.
• InnovationQuest engagements can range in size from about 10 people to
hundreds.
5. Synthesis and Analysis Rather than just Analysis
InnovationQuest should be used when structured dialog combines synthe-
sis and analysis to yield far better results than purely analytical or linear
approaches. Roughly speaking, analysis attempts to understand things by
taking them apart and seeing how the pieces work. Synthesis puts pieces
An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 3

InnovationQuest should be
used when achieving wide-
spread support for the out-
comes and accelerating the
implementation process are
critical for the overall success
of the activity.
together to explore the behavior of the whole, which is not necessarily pre-
dicted by the behavior of the individual pieces. Planning is an example of an
analytic process where the attainment of the ultimate objective is divided into
a series of discrete actions to which resources and individual accountability
are assigned. Design is an example of a process of analysis and synthesis
where all of the components are designed and then tested together to see how
they function as a single, whole system.
• The InnovationQuest process enables participants to examine the subtle
and hidden dimensions of the issues as well as the obvious ones, and
to craft comprehensive solutions that integrate diverse viewpoints in
structured iterations of work lasting 1 to 3 hours each. Insights come
from both analytical and synthesis thinking, and enable the best ideas to
emerge. This often leads to innovative results, as well as alignment.

6. Inside and Outside Experts

InnovationQuest should be used when the people inside an organization have
most, if not all, of the information, knowledge, and experience needed to
understand and solve the problem. Utilizing inside resources enhance orga-
nizational competence and improves morale. When inside experience needs
to be complemented by outside expertise, InnovationQuest also facilitates
high quality interactions and value exchange between internal and external
participants.
• InnovationQuest workshops transform people inside the organization into
true experts by enabling them to fuse their discrete, individual experi-
ences into broad and comprehensive solutions, and along the way this
turns an organization’s existing market knowledge into competitive
advantage. In the InnovationQuest process, internally-originated solu-
tions transform internal experience into valuable expertise.
• InnovationQuest workshops also enable people from different organiza-
tions, including people who have never met before, to work together
effectively beginning almost immediately.

7. Decision Making
InnovationQuest should be used when it is important to promote a high
degree of mutual understanding about differing points of view and subtle
nuances to produce the best possible decisions.
• Rather than settling for a lowest-common-denominator solution, people
will see their best ideas complementing and complemented by the best
ideas of others, leading to high levels of confidence and an easy transi-
tion to implementation.

Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™

An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 4
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved

How InnovationQuest
Works
InnovationQuest workshops
are carefully designed to create
breakthrough solutions to the
specific issues, problems, or
opportunities that your organi-
zation faces.
Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
8. Buy-In and Alignment
InnovationQuest should be used when achieving widespread support for the
outcomes and accelerating the implementation process are critical for the
overall success of the activity.
• When the participants are also the implementers, the result is action
plans that can actually be implemented effectively.
9. It’s Not a Meeting
InnovationQuest should be used when it’s clear that a different kind of pro-
cess is necessary to achieve needed or desired breakthroughs, because tradi-
tional processes will probably yield only more of the same old thinking.
§ InnovationQuest enables individuals and groups to think outside of the
box through structured inquiry that reframes the issues and questions
at hand and enables participants to discover useful new points of view.
These events leverage insights from systems theory and cybernetics, and
takes into account the influence of architecture, furniture and decor to
stimulate the creative process of individuals and groups.
InnovationQuest workshops are carefully designed to create breakthrough solu-
tions to the specific issues, problems, or opportunities that your organization
faces.
With the stakeholders and the challenge in mind, InnovationLabs designs a set of
interdependent activities and experiments for the participants that allow them to
view a challenge from many different angles, and create a diverse set of possible
options. The activities and experiments are sequenced in an immersive experi-
ence, virtual and/or face-to-face, lasting from a day to several months, depending
on depth of challenge and breadth of participation. The results from activities and
experiments are connected to one another so that iterative learning and recombi-
nation can occur, leading to progressive refinement and greater commitment. As
a result of this process the stakeholder community becomes aligned and the best
responses emerge.
InnovationQuest events integrate and reinforce these four nonlinear components:
• We identify who ought to participate, and engage them in the creative
process.
• We co-design the activities and the environment with them.
• We immerse the participants in the experience, channeling the creative
process with carefully-prepared questions.
An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 5

Implementing
InnovationQuest
Workshops
InnovationLabs works with
you from the outset to identify
the goals, objectives and
desired outcomes, and to dis-
cuss alternatives to achieving
those outcomes.
Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
• We sequence and connect the activities with one another to generate
insights (new perspectives), variety (useful new options), and selection
(identification of the best options, and decision making).
These four elements are processed simultaneously and in parallel, leading to the
emergence of an aligned community and a portfolio of possible responses.
It is worth noting that at the outset it is not necessary for the participants to have
the same point of view. In fact, sincere and honest differences of opinion can
be useful and important ingredients in the creative process, and so we encour-
age people to express and develop their differing viewpoints, and the context in
which they are meaningful.
Implementation occurs in 3 steps: Preparation; Experience; Follow-up
Step 1: Preparation
InnovationQuest sessions are carefully designed to create breakthrough solu-
tions to the specific issues, problems or opportunities faced by your company.
• InnovationLabs works with you from the outset to identify the goals,
objectives and desired outcomes, and to discuss alternatives to achieving
those outcomes.
• InnovationLabs designs and develops the specific approach to achieve
the identified goals, objectives and desired outcomes, by applying and
integrating knowledge of effective group work processes, the work envi-
ronment, specific information content, and information technology.
• InnovationLabs design the timing of the activities and prepares all the
necessary materials.
• InnovationLabs works collaboratively with you to develop and refine
these designs before and during the worksession.
A website that includes online collaborative tools may also be developed
to help jump start the worksession, by engaging participants and build-
ing knowledge and prior to their arrival. The website may also be used to
accomplish organization-wide data collection with session participants, and
any number of others. This could take the form of an online survey, discus-
sion groups, online feedback to the session goals and objectives, or solicita-
tion for advice on the issues that will be addressed in the worksession.
To give you an idea of the scope of issues and problems that can be
addressed, here are examples from some recent events:
An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 6

The InnovationQuest experi-
ence is designed much like an
expedition, a journey along a
learning pathway that has been
carefully prepared to stimulate
and optimize innovation, cre-
ativity, and full engagement by
the participants.
Step 2: The Experience
Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™
An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 7
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
• Definition of a global consulting company’s internet strategy. Three,
one-day InnovationLabs events of 30 - 40 participants each over a 7
week period, with research and synthesis work between and following.
• Examination of a global chemical company’s approach to breakthrough
R&D. A one-day event with 75 participants.
• Specification of a state-of-the-art executive meeting environment for a
global hotel chain. A two-day event in 4 stages of 12 to 30 participants.
• Reorganization of a young company. An eight week engagement that
included a three-day event for the senior management team of nine
people, a two-day event for the entire management team of 30 people,
and a two-day event of the entire company of 150 people.
• Definition of product strategy for a start-up company. A one-day event
for 15 people.
• The InnovationQuest experi-
ence is designed much like an
expedition, a journey along a
learning pathway that has been
carefully prepared to stimulate
and optimize innovation, cre-
ativity, and full engagement by
the participants.
• The physical environment is uniquely designed to coordinate the devel-
opment, display, and sharing of the ideas generated by individuals and
groups. Numerous white boards, most of them on wheels and over six
feet high, provide shared work surfaces that also allow participants to
reshape the environment to fit their needs, and sculpt the space into areas
for individual or work group as the session progresses.
• Technology will be used to augment the creative process, as digital
images, spreadsheets, web sites, and planning tools can enhance work-
sessions and support effective implementation.
• Visual modeling skills are sometimes taught to participants to help them
create diagrams that bring order to complex issues and systems. Some-
times outside visual modeling experts also participate.
• Throughout the process there’s a buzz of activity. Teams are not iso-
lated into separate, sterile rooms but work next to one another, trading
information, models and stories to create a rich ambience and a convivial
esprit de corps. Meals and snacks are integrated into the work process.

Shortly after the end of the
face to face session, and usu-
ally within 24 hours, the full
documentation of the event is
completed and made accessible
to the participants on a secure
web site.
• During the session, the reports, models, diagrams, sketches, and notes
created on the white boards are captured digitally and distributed rapidly
to other participants as needed. Conversations and reports are captured --
all the stories, words and images are collected to help the participants as
they work through successive iterations of their solutions. When appro-
priate, most of these materials will also be made available to the partici-
pants following the event through a secure and protected a web site.
• Together all these elements enable the participants to work together
effectively to analyze, communicate, create, understand, and to solve
complex issues and problems in remarkably little time. At the end, there
is generally a strong sense of accomplishment, the satisfaction of co-cre-
ation, new friends, shared understanding, decisions, action plans … and
great clarity about what to do on “Monday morning.”

Step 3: Follow-up and Implementation

• Shortly after the end of the face to face session, and usually within 24
hours, the full documentation of the event is completed and made acces-
sible to the participants on a secure web site.
• The session documentation will often include:
- A synthesis of the session.
- A written summary of the large group sessions held during the work-
shop.
- A library of digital images of each team’s work and the general activi-
ties of the
worksession.
- A video of each large group breakout may be provide, as appropriate.
• Frequently the documentation web site becomes a group portal for con-
tinuing the face to face work online. Specific online applications are
provided to support ongoing dialog and discussion, focused task man-
agement for each individual, and project management for monitoring
progress on the overall scope of initiatives.
To support larger projects there may be multiple InnovationQuest events
staged intermittently, with each specific event responding to a natural pro-
gression of issues from the development of a broad conceptual framework
through brainstorming, development of alternatives, decision making, and
implementation. The specific of each session would be different according to
the specific questions and issues relevant at that stage of work.

Sustainable competitive advantage comes about as a result of the awarenesses,

Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™

An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 8
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
 Conclusion
Sustainable competitive advan-
tage comes about as a result
of the awarenesses, processes,
and structures that make the
creation and implementation of
innovation as effective as it can
possibly be.
Creating Innovation: Elegant Solutions to Complex Problems Through InnovationQuest™
Copyright 2001, 2002 © InnovationLabs, LLC • All Rights Reserved
processes, and structures that make the creation and implementation of innova-
tion as effective as it can possibly be. The InnovationQuest workshop process
contributes significantly to the development of innovative thinking and innova-
tive results in large and small organizations, and thus to the creation of sustain-
able competitive advantage.
In pursuit of these goals, we define the role of InnovationLabs as helping you
figure out which innovations will make the greatest difference for your organiza-
tion, and then providing the tools and methods to enable your organization to
achieve them. The principals of InnovationLabs have designed and facilitated
hundreds of engagements during the last twenty years, with a consistent pattern
of unexpected insight, innovation, and creativity. We are passionate about help-
ing our clients create innovation for sustainable competitive advantage!
vvv
In addition to the concepts, tools, and methods described here, Inno-
vationLabs has developed and offers detailed approaches concern-
ing the management of R&D and innovation in both technical and
non-technical settings. Many of these are described in the recent
book, Fourth Generation R&D: Managing Knowledge, Technology,
and Innovation (John Wiley & Sons, 1999) co-authored by Langdon
Morris.
More information on our services and other publications may be
found at our web site, www.innovationlabs.com.
You may contact Langdon Morris at lmorris@innovationlabs.com.
InnovationQuest™ and InnovationLabs™ are trademarks of InnovationLabs LLC
An InnovationLabs White Paper • Page 9