Reflections and Comments

Name

Institution

Reflection on Methods Used and Reasons for the Choice

I wish to reflect on Processes, opportunities and/or challenges of developing ethical and sustainable social innovation programs in response to identified needs, by discussing the methods used and their reasons. In work done concerning the stakeholder analysis and the steepled analysis, two methods were used. The methods were brainstorming and the use of questionnaire techniques. In the initial stages, brainstorming was used, and the questionnaires were later used to test the onboarding process.

The idea of brainstorming is essential when group work is involved in solving the group’s goal in figuring out what to do about the issues (Talin, 2020). In this case, brainstorming on who a stakeholder is and picking out an example is crucial in the analysis process. The brainstorming is essential in outlining the ideas and providing the specific actions to be undertaken to find their answers. The participants are offered a wide range of opportunities to be creative in providing ideas about the topic. However, the brainstorming method, in my opinion, has its challenges. The brainstorming can be over-applied because, in the initial stages, the process was superficial. Still, later the writer develops other methods that would have been applied at a different meeting with the group. Furthermore, creativity levels vary from one person to another, and those who are less creative might feel less useful and intimidated.

The method of the questionnaire at a later stage to test the onboarding process is a good idea because it is practical, with a specific target group being the participants of the process (Williamson, 2013). The method is quick regarding obtaining the best results within a shorter period. Furthermore, the fact that the information can be obtained from a larger group of people makes it a better method. However, the method can pose challenges such as missing information in cases where the participants did not provide the information. The entire process is anonymous, and you cannot trace back to the owner of the information for clarifications. More so, people have different interpretations and understanding abilities making it a challenge because the information might vary considerably.

Comments on Reflections

I wish to comment on the refection on the challenges of developing ethical and sustainable social innovation programs in response to identified needs, by commenting on the various issues that arise within the reflection.

The technique, according to the reflection, was modified in a creative way. The idea of brainstorming remotely without physical contact poses challenges as outlined in the reflection (Talin, 2020). However, the circumstances sometimes force the group to be creative and innovative. Despite the unavailability of more productive discussions in the creation of radical ideas, they used a cooperation method creatively to discuss their idea. The participation demonstrated by the group members is commendable. The challenge of Covid-19 did not stop the group from bringing together their ideas and working together. Therefore, the reflection brings out the aspect of creativity.

The reflection brings out the various challenges associated with the brainstorming technique. The participants could lack enough time for preparation because communication could pose challenges (Putman & Paulus, 2009). More so, it does not provide the advantage of explaining an idea exhaustively. The communication tools used could allow time wastage. Therefore, preparedness is a challenge.

The reflection is not exhaustive about the collaboration and cooperation idea. The two terms would be introduced at the beginning, followed by providing examples, and lastly, how the group’s challenges contributed to the differences explained by the author. The process of obtaining the best ides is through the expansion of the main agenda.

The reflection outlines the voting aspect to be important in selecting the best ideas. However, the idea of converging ideas has been shown to be the best criteria in ideation sessions (Talin, 2020). When the point of critical mass ideas is attained, the points are compared, evaluated, clustered, or removed with the attempt to create elaborate points. Therefore, the ideation process would be more constructive if the convergence method is used rather than a single selection.

References

Putman, V. L., & Paulus, P. B. (2009). Brainstorming, brainstorming rules and decision making. The Journal of creative behavior, 43(1), 29-40.

Talin, B. (2020). 6 successful methods for brainstorming & idea creation. More than digital newsletter. https://morethandigital.info/en/6-successful-methods-brainstorming-idea-creation/

Williamson, C. (2013). Questionnaires, individual interviews and focus groups. In Research methods: Information, systems, and contexts (pp. 349-372). Tilde University Press.