Idea Generation and Master's Thesis Project Selection in the EDIAE MBA
Last January 19, 2024, we had one of the most anticipated sessions of the year by all the members that are part of the EDIAE MBA: the selection of projects for the Master’s Thesis (TFM).
It was the first time I was involved in this particular and important class and I was lucky enough to have the great Alberto Sánchez accompany me. In fact, he was practically the master of ceremonies. And I am very grateful because it was very fun and enriching.
Alberto has extensive experience as an entrepreneur and trainer. He has worked with greats like TeamLabs or Google Activate.
365 Method for Idea Generation
For the generation of ideas, we used a very interesting Design Thinking technique, known as the 365 method. This technique is based on the contribution of each member with post-its on problems, trends, and passions.
A problem could be “traffic jams”, a trend “AI assistants” and a passion “heavy music”. Then, each student contributes three solution ideas for a problem, a trend, and, optionally, a passion for the problems. Afterward, they pass their ideas to a classmate, who has to add another three. This is usually repeated 2 or 3 times, depending on the number of participants. With this, the number of ideas generated is huge.
Convergence of Ideas
Now it’s time to converge the ideas and have them mutate into more attractive ideas. To do this, each member selects 4 ideas and together with another classmate and their respective 4 ideas, they must decide on only 4 ideas. They can be the ideas as they were or by making a Frankenstein of them.
This is applied again with two other classmates until we have a total of about 10-15. Finally, it is put to a vote. But this vote is particular. Each of the members has to vote with one of the following options: I would love to work on that idea, It would be nice to work on that idea or I would not like to work on that idea.
With this, besides having a ranking of the best ideas, we can see which members want to be part of one team or another. In the session the other day, 4 very interesting ideas came out that will start to be worked on immediately to turn them into business models.
Challenges and Acknowledgments
An important challenge we have to resolve is how to carry out these types of dynamics with students who are remote. It’s on my to-do list.
I am looking forward to seeing how these ideas will transform until their presentation in July. I’ll keep you posted!
To conclude, I want to thank Alberto Sánchez again for his invaluable help and participation in this class. His experience and knowledge were fundamental to its success. Thank you, Alberto!