Instructors

Description

Overview

This introductory course is designed for students curious about how to unleash their creative spirits to solve big problems with innovative solutions. You will learn a variety of skills, including ideation techniques, design thinking and more to help stimulate brainstorming and creativity. You will apply these skills in rapid ideation workshops, where you will repeatedly challenge your brain to come up with out-of-the-box solutions to real world problems in startup, corporate, non-profit and government settings. You will develop creative problem-solving capabilities that can help you succeed in personal and professional settings.

Along the way, you will meet innovators and entrepreneurs, hear their stories, and learn how they apply these mindsets and skillsets to their work.

Enrollment requirements

All students are welcome

Learning outcomes and objectives

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion, students will:

• Have built confidence in their ability to generate and act on their own ideas
• Know how to apply best practices in innovation process for creative problem solving
• Be comfortable with common primary and secondary research techniques
• Know how to visualize and prototype product concepts in 2d and 3d
• Know how to collaborate with a team to innovate beyond their own ideas
• Be comfortable with pitching product and service solutions to a variety of audiences
• Understand how the creative / innovation process works in business
• Know how creativity and innovation can form the core of an entrepreneurial process

Course topics and objectives

• Learn and practice ideation and brainstorming techniques such as divergent/convergent thinking and the “yes, and” framework to generate and refine innovative ideas
• Embrace user centered design principles and practice applying tools such as personas, jobs to be done (JTBD), value proposition canvas and more
• Develop ability to conduct primary and secondary research to uncover user needs and goals
• Practice using drawing, sketching, wireframing and hand modeling to prototype product and service solutions
• Develop team collaboration skills through multiple 3-week-long projects
• Hone your presentation and pitching skills for products and services
• Explore how these tools and techniques apply in real life through guest speakers who are actively practicing product development and venture creation
• Understand how problem definition and solution development fits in new venture creation