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2020 CHANCELLOR'S FACULTY INNOVATION WORKSHOP
Summer 2020: Online Workshops Series
All sessions will be available via on-demand video as part of Innovate Carolina’s Innovate Now series.
Designing teams and cultivating creativity virtually
Team formation is done all the time, but how intentional are the teams you build or the teams that you are part of? This workshop will discuss how you can think differently about designing teams for specific outcomes, how you can get team members to invest early in the team project and outcome, and how you can facilitate an efficient and meaningful onboarding experience so that your team can gel faster. In addition, how do you assess and describe your current team culture now that we’re remote? How do you set expectations for the team virtually? And how do you acknowledge and embrace tension during meetings on Zoom? Join Liz Chen, assistant professor at the Gillings School of Global Public Health and design thinking lead at Innovate Carolina, for this interactive workshop where you’ll explore the answers to these and other questions.
Understanding users amidst social distancing: How to empathize before problem solving
The first phase of IDEO.org’s human-centered design process is Inspiration. While many of us tend to start problem solving once problems or challenges are already defined, it is important for us to step back and engage with real people first. This direct engagement, now virtual, is important for us to better understand the wants and needs of the individuals we are trying to design for (e.g. patients, community members, end users) so we are confident that we are setting out to solve problems or challenges that align with real people’s lived experiences. Join us for this session to learn more about and experience a variety of inspiration methods that you can employ amidst social distancing. Liz Chen, assistant professor at the Gillings School of Global Public Health and design thinking lead at Innovate Carolina, will lead this interactive workshop.
The art and science of brainstorming: How to foster convergent and divergent thinking
The second phase of IDEO.org’s human-centered design process is Ideation. Many of us have taken part in “brainstorms” in the past. Think: how freely were you able to brainstorm in these past experiences? How often were truly out-of-the-box ideas generated? This session will provide actionable steps for facilitating better brainstorming sessions that will yield a wider range of ideas. In addition, we will also discuss ways teams can strategically choose ideas once they have been brainstormed. Divergent thinking (creating choices) is different from convergent thinking (making choices) and we provide methods to facilitate both sets of activities in your virtual teams.
Testing and prototyping your ideas
The third phase of IDEO.org’s human-centered design process is Implementation. In addition to finding solutions that are desirable, it is equally important that solutions are feasible and viable. That being said, we need to test and prototype different pieces and versions of solutions with real people to gather real-time feedback so we can adjust and strengthen our solutions. In a world where we are social distancing, we need to be a little more creative here. This session will put forth prototyping methods that UNC faculty can use to engage with end users (e.g. patients, community members) virtually. Liz Chen, assistant professor at the Gillings School of Global Public Health and design thinking lead at Innovate Carolina, will lead this interactive workshop.
Fall 2020: Retreat-Style Workshop
The agenda for the fall workshop is under development and will be released early in the fall 2020 semester.
