Section 1
Section 2
Section 1
Section 2
Earlier in the semester we highlighted some of the habits that comprise an innovative character. The main ones involved child’s eye/hyper observation, embracing ambiguity, failing forward, and creative confidence. We have experienced a lot since that time with respect to our class and the overall situation. Take some time to reflect on which of the habits resonated with you and address some of the following questions:
Post your reflection and categorize as ‘Habits Reflection’.
Check-in on modules 3 & 4
Section 1 – 1:00-2:30pm
Section 2 – 2:30-4:00pm
Section 1 – 1:00-2:30pm
Section 2 – 2:30-4:00pm
It was good to see and talk with you today. If you were not able to make it to the discussion below are some links to the video chats. Please reach out with any questions or concerns.
Section One – 1:00-2:30pm
Section Two – 2:30-4:00pm
Due 3/24 – Post ‘Constraint Map’ to site with a reflection on the activities in module 1.
Due 3/26 – Post ‘Concept Board’ and ‘Brainstorm’ to the site with a reflection on module 2, including a description of why the ideas you selected seem interesting. (video chat check-in on modules 1 & 2)
Due 3/31 – Post ‘3 Concepts’ to the site including sketches, evaluation, and refinement using the designers hierarchy of needs.
Due 4/2 – Post ‘Prototype’ and continue to implement your solution into next week. (video chat check-in on modules 3 & 4)
Due 4/9 – Post ‘Test & Iterate’ documentation and reflection. (video chat wrap up)
Hello MiDE 300 folks. It is time to get things rolling again, as class officially starts back up tomorrow! We realize that many of you are still in transition, so we are going to ease back into this and work together to make the rest of the semester as successful as possible for each of you.
We first want to say that we know these are unique times. We are feeling it too. First priority goes to your health and well being. We are both available to jump on a phone call to chat. Please just reach out if you need anything or just have some questions / concerns.
Let’s start class back up with a with a video chat tomorrow during our normal class time. We can discuss how everyone is doing and modifications to the course to accommodate for remote learning. A calendar invite will go out shortly. The link to the video chat is embedded in the calendar event.
If you have not yet filled out the Technology Survey please do so as soon as possible. If you have technology limitations on any front, don’t worry–we will adjust. Please communicate them to us so we can make a plan with you.
We hope everyone is doing okay. Stay safe. Talk soon.
Profs Smith and Allen
Dear MiDE 300 Students,
We wanted to touch base initially to update you on our course now that Bucknell has decided to shift to a remote model of education for the remainder of the semester. Little did we know when discussing ambiguity a few weeks ago that we would be thrown into such an ambiguous national and global set of circumstances. Hopefully we can all draw on what we learned during these sessions in this situation. In particular, recall that ambiguity and anxiety go hand-in-hand, so think about some of the things you can do to reduce anxiety you may be experiencing.
We are taking a MiDE mindset while contemplating how to adjust the course for the remainder of the semester. Over spring break, we have been reassessing and going back to the design stage of identification, which you will be reading about in preparation for our next lesson. The two paramount factors that will constrain the solutions we consider are: 1. all of your personal well being over the coming weeks; 2. having the most meaningful learning experience that we can. We will be iterating solutions over the next half-week in light of changing circumstances and be in touch with our final thoughts as they coalesce.
In closing, when reading about uncertainty and ambiguity, we did encounter the question of why we presume we can anticipate the future with any degree of certainty. At the same time, science has been the primary, though imperfect, tool we use to adapt to anticipated changing conditions. Right now, the scientific consensus is that social distancing is an important technique that we all need to deploy now to mitigate the magnitude of the eventual effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Our one request to you is that you all do your very best to hunker down, not travel, and avoid crowding as much as possible. For example, if you return to campus to move out, don’t plan to socialize, party, etc. We know it is tempting, but hopefully this article provides a compelling rationale for you to resist such urges, no matter what your friends are saying or doing.
We will be back in touch next week with more details. In the meantime, view this coming period of social distancing as an opportunity to be with close friends or loved ones, and be thankful we have such effective technology to stay in touch without having to interact face-to-face.
Be smart,
Profs. Allen and Smith
***BRING LAPTOP FROM NOW ON***
TASK: read The Design Process – Stage 2 Identification and revisit the two chapters we have read before: Introduction and Inspiration.
TASK: enjoy Spring Break!
TASK: Create a tea-light holder using just white printer paper, scissors, and tape or glue. Read the full ‘Tea Light Assignment‘ assignment before starting.
TASK: Incorporate the feedback provided in class on your Market Strategy Analysis. Then share your presentation with your client to get their feedback and seek alignment. This should be a ‘live’ meeting (face-to-face or video chat). Due before class on Thursday 3/5.
TASK: post about your inspiration activity by Thursday (post it to Individual Assignments -> Unstructured Inspiration).
TASK: read Failing Forward by Maxwell (2000)
TASK: compose a one-page “failure resume” that lists the biggest failures you’ve had so far in your life. Use the format of the typical resume including dates, headings and categories, and short descriptions. (PS. Don’t save over your existing real resume, if you use that as a template!)
TASK: select one of your failures and write a 1-2 page reflection note incorporating the following questions: How did you respond to your failure? How did others respond? What did you learn from your failure? How did it impact your life subsequently, if at all? Observing from a distance, can this failure be seen as part of a larger trajectory in your life? If you had the chance to go back in time, would you erase your failure? You will turn in your failure resume and discuss your reflection, so be sure to bring printed copies to class.
TASK: plan your next inspiration practice
There are a few students in our class that are not Management students… This could be a great option for you:
Info session about the Bucknell Summer Management Institute on Thursday, Feb. 27 at 4pm in ELC 256 (Center Room)
The Bucknell Summer Management Institute gives non-Management students the opportunity to earn 2.5 management credits this summer (June 1 – July 31), while also giving them eligibility for a Management minor.
For more information and to apply, please see www.bucknell.edu/management/smi.
TASK: Read…
1) Sfumato (Smoke) from “How to Think Like Leonardo Davinci”
2) Relax – Its Only Uncertainty by Hodgson and White (pages 30 – 66)
TASK: make something out of stuff you have at home. (It should be nice enough that if you left it in a public space for an hour no one would throw it in the trash.) Please take a picture and post it to our website (Individual Assignments -> Creation). Bring it to class and be prepared to present it.
TASK: Incorporate the feedback provided in class on your Market Strategy Analysis. Then share your presentation with your client to get their feedback and seek alignment. This should be a ‘live’ meeting (face-to-face or video chat). Due before class on Thursday 3/5.
TASK: Your next inspiration post is due by class on Thursday.
TASK: based on the interviews with your clients, create a 10 minute presentation that discusses their marketing strategy (for a list of issues that have to be discussed see the template we used in class before). Please upload the PDF of your slides to our course website (Team Assignments -> Marketing Strategy Analysis–Client) before the class.
TASK: plan your next inspiration practice, your next post is due by Thursday.
TASK: read Art of Innovation – Child’s eye
TASK: read Off the Beat and into a Museum
TASK: pick a place where you are familiar with the surroundings and exercise your child’s eye. After generally observing, take time to isolate each of your senses (sight, smell, hearing, taste, touch). Take notes as it is happening and be prepared to discuss your insights in class.
TASK: write your next inspiration post.
NOTE: next week, on Tuesday 2/25, each team will report out on the marketing analysis of their client organization.
TASK: please reflect on connections (themes) among marketing, innovation & design that you have developed through readings, class discussions, and mind maps. Identify three themes that are personally relevant and write a three-page reflection paper (single-, or double-spaced) that conveys their significance and how they are connected. Remember to tie your connections back to the readings and add your personal reflection highlighting their significance. When deciding which three themes to include, you may wish to consider questions such as: What was surprising? What is exciting or inspiring? What is troubling?
TASK: in addition, please write a one-page note in which you reflect on your engagement in this class. Consider the following issues: How thoroughly have you read and comprehended the readings prior to coming to class? How frequent are your classroom contributions and do they move the discussion forward? How much effort and time have you dedicated to completing your homework assignments (e.g., mind maps, presentations, inspirations, group projects)? In the end, please rate your overall performance as above average, average, or below average. Then, pick one area where you think you could improve and propose a way in which you could address it. Attach this note to your three-page reflection paper, print two copies and bring them to class.
TASK: make your Inspiration post by Thursday (post it to Individual Assignments -> Unstructured Inspiration; add a subject line: Inspiration week 2).
TASK: check that all your individual mind maps and presentations have been uploaded to the website and are readable; the completeness of your posts will have an impact on your final grade.
NOTE: on Tuesday, 2/25 each team will have to give a 10-minute marketing analysis presentation of their client organization. If you are meeting your client at their business location, consider taking some photos of the business and its offering (preferably each member takes 8-10 photos).
TASK: review past notes, readings, and mind maps and compose a DRAFT (not “half-assed” version) of a mind map that integrates the key aspects of Markets, Innovation, and Design. Please bring the draft to our next class and upload a picture to Individual Assignments -> Draft Mind Map: M+I+D
TASK: remember that you’ll do an inspiration practice post once per week so plan your inspiration for this week; your posts will always be due on Thursdays.
NOTE: on Tuesday, 2/25 each team will have to report out on marketing analysis of their client.
TASK: brainstorm the connections and similarities between Markets, Innovation, and Design. Come to class with a list of 25 key ideas and insights that are central to our discussion about marketing, innovation, and design thus far.
TASK: practice inspiration and post a brief, but substantive reflection of your inspiration practice to the course website (Individual Assignments -> Unstructured Inspiration). Your post should address three questions: 1) What did you do?; 2) What was the outcome?; 3) How is this related to inspiration? Going forward you will do this — practice inspiration and write a reflective post — once per week. In the subject line put ‘Inspiration – Week 1.’
TASK: plan a meeting with your client. Each team will have to give a 10-minute report out on marketing strategy analysis of their organization on Feb 25th.
TASK: watch stand-alone presentation of an Iconic Design, using the 6 Ws.
TASK: individually find a design that you like and create stand-alone (automatic) presentation incorporating the 6 Ws (who, what, where, when, how, and why). It should be no longer than 1 minute. Incorporating related background music is highly recommended. Upload your video to YouTube and post the link to it in Individual Assignments -> Presentation – Design.
TASK: read from “The Design Process” book by Aspelund two chapters: Introduction and Inspiration.
TASK: plan a meeting with your client. Each team will have to give a 10-minute report out on marketing strategy analysis of their organization on Feb 25th.
READ:
1) Design: More than a cool chair;
2) Design Matters;
3) Kolko Innovation vs. Design;
4) 10 Principles For Good Design-Rams
TASK: mind map the key concepts and relationships related to the concept of design. Bring a hard copy to class and upload your image to our website.
TASK: be prepared to individually give a 120-second presentation on an important innovation from history using the 6 W’s to order your ideas. (Here’s the example presented in class; you don’t need to put ideas from the Johnson reading on the slides, but they might help you think through the 6 W’s). Upload a PDF of your slides to ‘Individual Assignments -> Presentation-Innovation.’
TASK: Read short reflection by famous designer, Dieter Rams: If I Could Do It again…
TASK: review the following website that explains Kolko’s idea of Wicked Problems: Kolko’s Wicked Problems. Follow each of the links in red font, watching each short video and reading the accompanying text.
TASK: come to class prepared to discuss how you personally reacted to the content above. Be sure to identify a Wicked Problem most meaningful to you.
TASK: each team needs to select a client and then announce it with a post to ‘News’. 1st come 1st serve!
TASK: Learn about Johnson’s innovation philosophy…
TASK: create mind map of Johnson’s philosophy, bring it to class and upload a picture of it to Individual Assignments ->Mind Map-Innovation.
TASK: select 3 of Johnson’s 7 preconditions and get ready for a discussion on how they apply to your current situation.
TASK: each team will deliver a 5-minute presentation of an impactful marketing campaign using the format introduced last class–“Where are we now?” etc. (Presentation from class) Prepare your presentation in PowerPoint and save it as a PDF. Then post this file to the course website. Be sure to select the ‘Team Assignments’ category and then ‘Marketing Strategy Analysis.’
READ: Levitt 1975 (Marketing Myopia), Martin 1995 (Ignore Your Customer), and Phillips et al. 1990 (King Customer). Consider these questions as you are reading: 1. How are the articles and ideas they offer similar and different? 2. Is Martin (1995) really suggesting that we should ignore customers? 3. What is Marketing Myopia and what causes it? 4. As you read, note ideas or themes that strike you as interesting or counterintuitive.
TASK: mind map the core concepts and ideas related to marketing from the readings; you can also draw on knowledge of marketing from other life experiences, if possible. Please use a large sheet of paper and color markers, pens or pencils.
TASK: take a picture of your mind map and post it on the course website. Select ‘Individual Assignments’ and then ‘Mind Map-Marketing’ category. Please bring a hard copy of your map to class to be handed in.
WATCH: the rest of the Dan Pink’s talk.
WATCH: the Tim Brown video called “Tales of Creativity and Play”
WATCH: the Art21 video about David Altmejd
READ: “How to Think Like Leonardo DaVinci” – Dimostrazione, p. 76-93.
READ: read through the syllabus in detail and be prepared to ask any questions. This can be found under the Course Materials tab.
WRITE: a post about one thing you want to do in this class to try breaking personal norms in the classroom environment. Categorize post ‘Individual Assignment, Breaking Norms’.
TASK: If you are not familiar with mind mapping, please surf around the web a bit and acquaint yourself with this technique. Then, come to our first class with a mind map that shows us who you are as a person. We will use this as a way for you to introduce yourselves, so make sure you don’t put anything on the mind map you wouldn’t want everyone to know.
MIDE 300 is an introductory survey of the program of study in Markets, Innovation, and Design. A primary aim of the course is to give students a thorough understanding of the nature and relationship among these three areas.
The course will also serve as an environment for students to cultivate a spirit of innovation, practice creative and analytical problem solving, and develop an interdisciplinary and collaborative orientation conducive to succeeding in today’s organizations.
The course will blend theoretical understanding with hands-on, contextualized, experiential learning exercises and projects.
This course is divided into three main sections, although there is plenty of overlap between sections.
Weeks 1-5: We will take an isolated and integrated look into the topics of markets, innovation, and design.
Weeks 7-8: We will explore 10 MIDE habits that help bolster creative leadership.
Weeks 9-15: We will put principles of marketing, innovation, and design into practice by working on a real project benefiting an organization in the local community.
We look forward to playing together!