Cultivating Elastic Thinking

Interventions for Insight Mindset

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy DSD Capstone Project

May

Presentation

does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?

Allison

Amira

psychology . unpeeling . archive . learning . ideation . excursions . testing . future . nudging . education . experimenting . new . innovation . research . behavior . engagement

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

value proposition value proposition

Every one of our clients is going through transformation, and they come to Gensler to help them innovate. We must think differently to unleash new insights that propel our work and our business.

Innovation Strategy Change Management Workplace Strategy + Design Education Practice Area

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

definition definition

Elastic Thinking proper noun [i-’la-stik ‘thin-kin]

A cognitive process that allows us to solve novel challenges and deal with new situations Embracing ambiguity and relaxing logical thinking to spur new ideas

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

research question

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

How might we... create an environment to generate better insights?

hypothesis

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

We might create an environment to generate better insights... by bringing the outside in.

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic

What are the elements of elastic thinking?

title title

elements of elastic thinking elements of elastic thinking

Novelty search Relaxed attention

Personal purpose

Engaging in elastic thinking is about exploration. It requires having an opportunity to learn about new ideas. Concrete rules of engagement should be avoided to enable a truly exploratory experience.

To acheive elastic thinking, we must relax our minds to strike a balance between linear thinking (executive decision-making) and divergent thinking (all non-linear thinking).

Personal purpose is a key factor of motivation and is drawn out when people are confronted with a challenge they feel equipped to solve, and when they feel supported by external factors.

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic

title title

elements of elastic thinking elements of elastic thinking

User Needs

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic

title title

elements of elastic thinking elements of elastic thinking

User Needs Design Goals

Novelty search

Relaxed attention

+ Direction without destination

Personal purpose

+ Psychological safety

+ Opportunity to explore and observe new things + Separation from tasks

+ Variety of forms & content

+ Participant are drawn to engage

+ Challenge of personal growth / stretch zone

+ Belonging

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic

Objective:

To create an environment to generate better insights by bringing the outside in

What did we design?

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating

title title

design goals design goals

User Needs

Novelty search

+ Direction without destination

Design Goals

Relaxed attention

+ Psychological safety

+ Opportunity to explore and observe new things + Separation from tasks

+ Variety of forms & content

+ Participant are drawn to engage

Personal purpose

+ Challenge of personal growth / stretch zone

+ Belonging

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating

portal portal

An iPad is used to scan QR codes and acts as a portal to an array of content Projector displays content from QR scans to enable an immersive browsing experience

Novelty search

Relaxed attention

Amber lighting has been associated with better performance on creativity tasks

portal portal

Personal Purpose

Physical separation from the rest of the workplace allows for an immersive experience

No rules of engagement + available for use by anyone + use of Portal is elective

Allison Henry

tangent tangent

Speaker chooses how to engage with the audience

Speakers are selected based on their ability to bring in ideas from the outside

tangent tangent

Novelty search

Each Tangent speaker is distinct + has depth of knowledge on their own topics beyond architecture

tangent tangent

Relaxed attention

Time away from participants’ desks

Informal and social setting

Sharing a space and experience with others

tangent tangent

Personal Purpose

Hearing about the creative successes of others induces personal drive

Studio and office leader attendance

What did people think?

Objective:

To prove the design’s effectiveness in generating elastic thinking To prove the design’s usability and desirability

User Needs Design Goals

Novelty search

Relaxed attention

+ Direction without destination

+ Opportunity to explore and observe new things

+ Variety of forms & content

Personal purpose

+ Psychological safety

+ Separation from tasks

+ Participant are drawn to engage

+ Challenge of personal growth / stretch zone

+ Belonging

Effectiveness

Does the intervention induce elastic thinking?

Usability + Desirability

Does the intervention fulfill the design goals?

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating

we wanted to validate...

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating

survey questions

Effectiveness Survey Usability Survey

Objective: Does the intervention induce elastic thinking?

Objective:

Does the intervention fulfill the design goals?

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] sparked a new idea or lead me to an aha moment.

• Nothing I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] taught me anything new.

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me approach something differently.

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me feel empowered to do something new.

Novelty search Relaxed attention

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me feel curious about a topic.

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] lead me to feel satisfied with the status quo.

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me explore a topic in greater depth.

+ Direction without destination

• I felt open to explore without an expected outcome in [intervention].

+ Opportunity to explore and observe new things

• I had an opportunity to interact with new things at [intervention].

+ Variety of forms & content

• I was satisfied by the variety of content at [intervention].

+ Psychological safety

• I felt safe to explore during [intervention].

+ Separation from tasks

• It is important that this experience be conducted in its own space.

+ Challenge of personal growth / stretch zone + Belonging Personal purpose

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] lead me to feel excited about the future.

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] makes me feel like I can make a positive contribution.

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] lead me to feel discouraged about trying new things.

Utility

• Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] had an impact on my project work.

• My experience at [intervention] was an opportunity for personal growth.

• [Intervention] is aligned with Gensler’s culture.

+ Participant are drawn to engage

• My interest was sustained during my time at [intervention].

• My visit to [intervention] was a good use of my time.

+ Utility

• I believe it is valuable to offer an experience like [intervention] at Gensler.

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy

we conducted an analysis we conducted an analysis

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating

how

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating

overall

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy

novelty search novelty search

Interventions convey truly novel information but need some assistance in translating inspiration to insight. The challenge of designing an elastic thinking intervention is balancing hands-on guidance with hands-off exploration.

Effectiveness

“Something I saw/heard/ experienced in the intervention made me approach something differently.”

Usability

“I felt open to explore without an expected outcome during the intervention.”

It gives you an insight on other people’s creative process and how you could change, improve, rethink your process.

The curation [of Portal] might have been more successful if less focused on variety and more focused on what’s the medium of communication.

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating

relaxed attention relaxed attention

While Tangent and Portal were successful in making participants feel safe to engage and inspiring a lsting feeling of curiosity, few went on to personally explore after the interventions.

effectiveness

Effectiveness

“Something I saw/ heard/experienced in the intervention made me feel curious about a topic.”

83% agree (aggregate)

“Something I saw/ heard/experienced in the intervention made me explore a topic in greater depth.” 57% agree (aggregate)

Usability

Portal Tangent 69%

71%

“I felt safe to explore during the intervention.” 86% agree (aggregate)

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating

personal purpose personal purpose

effectiveness usability

“Something I experienced lead me to feel excited about the future.”

“The intervention is aligned with Gensler’s culture.”

“ ” Usability Effectiveness Tangent Tangent

Portal Portal

Tangent Tangent

72% 63%

75% 85%

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating

conclusions

Following the guidelines we developed for inducing elastic thinking lead us to good results for generating an insight mindset, but more should be done to measure the quality of those insights.

There is overwhelming interest in these types of interventions. If Gensler invests in them to demonstrate their value, participants will be more likely to continuously engage in elastic thinking.

In the future, interventions should be designed to help people make the leap from engagement within the experience to insightful action outside of the experience.

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

Objective: To show the lasting effects of designing interventions for elastic thinking

Why does this matter?

bigger picture bigger picture

As a creative firm, Gensler must encourage elastic thinking to sustain its growth.

Motivating people to push the boundaries of their thinking catalyzes both personal purpose and organizational value.

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

bigger picture bigger picture

OUTCOME

stay relevant and competitive

Organizations

Employees

bigger picture bigger picture

OUTCOME stay relevant and competitive ACTION interventions Portal Tangent

Organizations

OUTCOME opportunities to engage in elastic thinking

Employees

bigger picture bigger picture

Organizations

Employees

OUTCOME stay relevant and competitive ACTION interventions ACTION culture-building

OUTCOME self-directed purpose

Portal Tangent

OUTCOME opportunities to engage in elastic thinking

Organizations

Employees

Organizations

Organizations

propelling the research propelling the research

Elastic Thinking Card Deck

A guide to designing interventions that spur an insight mindset

novelty search novelty search

Direction without destination

Opportunity to explore and observe new things

Variety of forms & content

Engaging in elastic thinking is about exploration. It requires having an opportunity to learn about new ideas. Being told to be creative is counter-productive to creativity. It is therefore critical that these conditions be satisfied without imposing concrete rules of engagement to create a truly exploratory experience.

relaxed attention relaxed attention

Offer loose rules of engagement without insinuating participant outcomes

• Set parameters, but there should be no right or wrong approach

Focus on creating a sense of wonder through exposure to novelty

Psychological safety

• Gain an understanding of your audience to gauge what they are likely to be familiar with and what they are less likely to know

Present novel information in a variety of ways

• Provide a variety of sources and formats

Separation from tasks

• E.g., video, conversation, article, abstract visual, sketch, smell, physical interaction,...

Participant are drawn to engage

As humans, we are shaped to exercise our executive function, producing logical and strategic thinking. In excess, this thinking is counter-productive to spurring novel thoughts. We must relax our minds and to achieve a balance between linear thinking (associated with executive function) and divergent thinking (all non-linear thinking) in order to engage in

personal purpose personal purpose

Ensure participants feel comfortable to engage with their guard down

• Ensure the atmosphere is friendly

Challenge of personal growth / stretch zone

• Participant should know they cannot fail

Separate interventions from socio-spatial environments associated with task mode

• Avoid visual access or auditory queues related to work, tasks, responsibilities

Belonging

• Create space and time to disengage from tasks and refocus on novel content

Design interventions such that participants want to engage without feeling forced to

• Do not incentivize attendance by touting participation benefits beyond the those directly offered by intervention itself

Critical to elastic thinking is the instrinsically motivated quality of being open and free to explore and absorb information. This quality of personal purpose is drawn out when people are confronted with a challenge they feel equipped to solve, and when they feel supported by external factors.

Let participants create links between ideas that typically belong to separate lines of thinking

Ensure participants sense that they are permitted and welcomed to engage

Fronts Fronts Backs Backs

• Demonstrate the connections between disparate concepts

• Demonstrate leadership support

• E.g., leaders attend, time and/ or space are dedicated to the engagement

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating Elastic

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy

May

5, 2020 Final

Cultivating Elastic Thinking

APPENDIX

what we learned along the way

• We strove to keep surveys concise to alleaviate survey fatigue, but more having enough questions per topic to ensure the validity of our results proved challenging.

• In order to increase the number of respondents to our Tangent surveys, it would have been helpful to identify participants in advance. This would have also enabled us to conduct a longitudinal study as we did with Portal.

• In order to drive responses to the last Tangent survey deployed 1 week after the talk, we offered a monetary reward to drive participation. This proved effective to soliciting responses, and may have been a helpful technique for driving responses to our other surveys.

• We were luck to have scheduled the first of our anticipated 3 days of testing for Portal on the last day before most of the NY office was working from home. We considered solutions to providing a virtual simulation of Portal to continue to get participants and feedback. We might have benefited from this as there was not a lot of consistency in Day 1 participants’ reported experiences.

• Some participants found the lack of guidance on what to do in Portal unsettling. We might have alleviated this by contriving connections between the QR code material more.

• In Portal, some mentioned that they would have liked to spend more time diving into material, but, especially for videos and podcasts, the length exceed the time limit. Ideally, Portal would not have a time limit and would thus resolve this issue. Nevertheless, it might be best for supporting psychological safety to only include content that can be digested in 15 mins as not to create anxiety about time spent away from one’s desk.

• We decided to omit sharing the results of the brainstorming test because it was difficult to compare the results when the tasks were not the same before and after the interventions. Streamlining the tests and removing the longitudinal component would have facilitated analysis and offered more survey reliability.

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic

INTERVENTION GUIDELINES CARDS

Objective:

How might we equip other with the knowledge to conceive and deploy elastic thinking interventions?

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

novelty search novelty search

Engaging in elastic thinking is about exploration. It requires having an opportunity to learn about new ideas. Being told to be creative is counterproductive to creativity. It is therefore critical that these conditions be satisfied without imposing concrete rules of engagement to create a truly exploratory experience.

Direction without destination

Opportunity to explore and observe new things

Variety of forms & content

Offer loose rules of engagement without insinuating participant outcomes

• Set parameters, but there should be no right or wrong approach

Focus on creating a sense of wonder through exposure to novelty

• Gain an understanding of your audience to gauge what they are likely to be familiar with and what they are less likely to know

Present novel information in a variety of ways

• Provide a variety of sources and formats

• E.g., video, conversation, article, abstract visual, sketch, smell, physical interaction,...

Front Back Front Back

relaxed attention relaxed attention

Psychological safety

Separation from tasks

Participant are drawn to engage

As humans, we are shaped to exercise our executive function, producing logical and strategic thinking. In excess, this thinking is counter-productive to spurring novel thoughts. We must relax our minds and to achieve a balance between linear thinking (associated with executive function) and divergent thinking (all non-linear thinking) in order to engage in elastic thinking.

Ensure participants feel comfortable to engage with their guard down

• Ensure the atmosphere is friendly

• Participant should know they cannot fail

Separate interventions from sociospatial environments associated with task mode

• Avoid visual access or auditory queues related to work, tasks, responsibilities

• Create space and time to disengage from tasks and refocus on novel content

Design interventions such that participants want to engage without feeling forced to

• Do not incentivize attendance by touting participation benefits beyond the those directly offered by intervention itself

Front Back

Front Back

personal purpose personal purpose

Challenge of personal growth / stretch zone

Belonging

Critical to elastic thinking is the intrinsically motivated quality of being open and free to explore and absorb information. This quality of personal purpose is drawn out when people are confronted with a challenge they feel equipped to solve, and when they feel supported by external factors.

Let participants create links between ideas that typically belong to separate lines of thinking

• Demonstrate the connections between disparate concepts

Ensure participants sense that they are permitted and welcomed to engage

• Demonstrate leadership support

• E.g., leaders attend, time and/ or space are dedicated to the engagement

Front Back Front Back

INTERVENTION DESIGN METHODOLOGY

Objective:

How might we actualize our design goals in Portal and Tangent?

aligning intervention design features with design goals

Design Goals

Direction without destination

Opportunity to explore and observe new things

Variety forms/formats/content

Psychological safety

Separation from tasks

Participant remains engaged (pull over push)

Challenge of personal growth

Belonging

Portal design features

Portal Tangent

Tangent design features

No rules of engagement

Endless QR codes with unlimited ability to surf the web

QR and iPad act as a portal to an array of content

Time minimum enables freedom to explore

Variety of sources Array of topics

Inclusive pilot study of Colab 3 Visual privacy

The room feels separate from the workplace

Dedicated and scheduled time in Portal

Use of Portal is elective

No expectations of the participants after Tangent

Speakers have depth of knowledge on their own topics

Each Tangent is distinct Speaker chooses how to engage with the audience

Seeing studio and office leader attendance

Informal setting and format

Located in a social space

Time away from participants’ desks

Elective attendance

Novel information spurs personal interest Hearing about the creative successes of others induces personal drive

The fact that this space exists gives its users permission to use and feel like it is a resource for them

Sparing a space and experience with others

testing methodology

Portal participants were age 24-35, 77% female, and mostly Collab-3 brand designers & strategists (there was one architectural designer and one office services employee represented).

Tangent participants ranged widely in age, gender, and role at Gensler (specifics were not recorded due to data colleciton method).

Effectiveness Survey

Objective: Does the intervention induce elastic thinking?

Novelty search

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] sparked a new idea or lead me to an aha moment.

^reverse coded Nothing I saw/heard/ experienced at [intervention] taught me anything new.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me approach something differently.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me feel empowered to do something new.

Relaxed attention

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me feel curious about a topic.

^reverse coded Something I saw/heard/ experienced at [intervention] lead me to feel satisfied with the status quo.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] made me explore a topic in greater depth.

+ Direction without destination

I felt open to explore without an expected outcome in [intervention].

Usability Survey

Objective: Does the intervention fulfill the design goals?

+ Opportunity to explore and observe new things

I had an opportunity to interact with new things at [intervention].

+ Variety of forms & content

I was satisfied by the variety of content at [intervention].

+ Psychological safety

+ Separation from tasks

I felt safe to explore during [intervention].

It is important that this experience be conducted in its own space.

+ Participant remains engaged

My interest was sustained during my time at [intervention].

+ Belonging Personal purpose

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] lead me to feel excited about the future.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] makes me feel like I can make a positive contribution.

^reverse coded Something I saw/heard/ experienced at [intervention] lead me to feel discouraged about trying new things.

+ Challenge of personal growth / stretch zone

My experience at [intervention] was an opportunity for personal growth.

[Intervention] is aligned with Gensler’s culture.

+ Utility Utility

Something I saw/heard/experienced at [intervention] had an impact on my project work.

My visit to [intervention] was a good use of my time.

I believe it is valuable to offer an experience like [intervention] at Gensler.

QUESTION ASKED: RATE YOUR AGREEMENT WITH THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS AS THEY RELATE TO YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH [ THE INTERVENTION] ON A SCALE OF

0-6 (0=DO NOT AGREE AT ALL; 6=VERY MUCH AGREE).

USABILITY AND DESIRABILITY TESTING

Objective: Does the intervention fulfill the design goals? Testing methodology: Usability survey

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic Thinking

how did we do? how did we do?

Overall, there is little difference between both interventions’ ability to generate better insights. 0-4 4-4.8 4.9-6 average agreement with effectiveness and usability questions on a scale of 0 to 6.

Direction without destination

Opportunity to explore new things + Variety of forms & content

Participant is prompted to act

novelty search novelty search

The feeling that there was a “right way” to engage with Portal worked against its goal of setting a direction without a destination. Tangent was more effective at making participants feel they could try a new approach to something.

score card score card

Nothing I saw/heard/ experienced in the intervention taught me anything new.

Something I saw/heard/ experienced in the intervention made me approach something differently.

Portal 0.5/6 [var 0.2]

Something I saw/heard/ experienced in the intervention sparked a new idea or lead me to an aha moment.

Portal 3.38/6 [var 0.6] 3.88/6 [var 0.8] average responses of 8 survey participants 1 week later

Tangent 1.2/6 [var 4.4]

Tangent 4.53/6 [var 3.7] 4.24/6 [var 3.0] average responses of 17 survey participants 1 week later

RATE YOUR AGREEMENT (0=DO NOT AGREE AT ALL; 6=VERY MUCH AGREE)

Portal Tangent

0 0 0

6 6 6 average response comparison of interventions

Portal Tangent Portal Tangent

Effectiveness Usability + Desirability

average responses

+ Direction without destination + Opportunity to explore new things + Variety of forms & content

5/6 5.1/6 4.9/6

5.5/6

4.9/6 5.1/6

4.24/6 [var 0.0] 3.75/6 [var 0.7] Portal Tangent 58

relaxed attention relaxed attention

personal purpose personal purpose

score card score card

Portal 4.4/6 [var 0.3]

Tangent 4.4/6 [var 1.6]

RATE YOUR AGREEMENT (0=DO NOT AGREE AT ALL; 6=VERY MUCH AGREE)

Something I saw/heard/ experienced in the intervention lead me to feel excited about the future. Portal + Tangent 75% 71%

Tangent Portal 0 6

Something I saw/heard/ experienced in the intervention makes me feel like I can make a positive contribution.

Tangent’s focus on a personal journey of discovery was more successful than Portal in making participants feel that they could make a positive contribution. + Challenge of personal growth + Sense of belonging

2.75/6 [var 0.4] average responses of 8 survey participants 1 week later

4.41/6 [var 3.4] average responses of 17 survey participants 1 week later

0 0

Portal Tangent 6 6 average response comparison of interventions

Effectiveness Usability + Desirability average responses

Portal Tangent 4.2/6 3.3/6 5.2/6

5/6

1.2/6 [var 0.9] 0.4/6 [var 0.5] Portal Tangent 60

Usability survey

Quantitative

findings Key Findings

• Our goal of creating a “psychologically safe” space that sustained participants’ interest was most unanimously met

• Most participants agreed that the experience should be conducted in its own private space

• The largest diversity of responses about related to whether Portal aligns with Gensler’s culture

RATE YOUR AGREEMENT WITH THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS AS THEY RELATE TO YOUR EXPERIENCE AT TANGENT ON A SCALE OF 0-6 (0=DO NOT AGREE AT ALL; 6=VERY MUCH AGREE)

Usability survey

Qualitative findings Key Findings

• Video content was most popular

• Participants enjoyed the variety and choice, but sought more agency over the content medium

• Participants achieved a state of relaxed attention

• Participants were divided on whether Portal should be a individual or social experience

• The time banding somewhat constrained the experience

DO YOU HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS ON YOUR EXPERIENCE IN PORTAL?

I loved the privacy the portal provided. Sometimes searching on the [work computer] screen can feel so confined and open to the people around me. I really liked that I was in an entire room to myself being able to search freely.

“ ”

“ ”

I wrote that this isn’t aligned with Gensler culture, but I think it should be, I think its really calming and inspiring.

“ ”

Adding indications of what type of experience (text-based, audio-based, visual, etc.) each entry point would be leading to would help me refine the type of experience I would have in the space in a limited amount of time.

“ ”

The curation might have been more successful if less focused on variety and more focused on what’s the medium of communication.

The space could offer opportunity for groups to learn/explore together. “ ”

Usability survey

Quantitative and Qualitative findings

Key Findings

• 27% of participants who had been to an in-person Tangent event felt that the event was better conducted virtually.

• All participants agreed that Tangent is aligned with Gensler’s culture

Keep up the incredible work you are doing! Tangent has continuously proven to be an invaluable experience to anyone seeking inspiration or creativity. I am so thankful to work for a firm that understands and appreciates the importance of leveraging diverse perspectives. ”

RATE YOUR AGREEMENT WITH THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS AS THEY RELATE TO YOUR EXPERIENCE AT TANGENT ON A SCALE OF 0-6 (0=DO NOT AGREE AT ALL; 6=VERY MUCH AGREE)

I felt safe to explore during Tangent.

Tangent is aligned with Gensler's culture.

I had an opportunity to interact with new things at Tangent.

My interest was sustained during my time at Tangent.

I believe it is valuable to offer an experience like Tangent at Gensler.

My visit to Tangent was a good use of my time.

I was satisfied by the variety of content at Tangent.

I believe that this event is better conducted virtually than in-person.

I felt open to explore without an expected outcome in Tangent.

My experience at Tangent was an opportunity for personal growth. 0 (Strongly Disagree) 1 2 3 4 5 6 (Strongly Agree)

Tangent #1 & #2 survey responses

Additional qualitative data

Key Findings

• Attendees are more engaged by creative fields outside of architecture

• Extremely strong interest in the proximal learning opportunities found in sharing creative processes

• Attendees are inspired by “uncommon paths” that tell strong narratives of personal purpose (aspiration mode)

• Improvement opportunity: more social impact programming

4.2/5

4.9/5

HOW THOUGHT PROVOKING WAS TANGENT?

TO WHAT EXTENT DO YOU BELIEVE IT IS VALUABLE TO BRING IN VOICES FROM OUTSIDE GENSLER?

“ ”

It’s most valuable and interesting to hear about different types of design challenges other than workplace.

“ ”

I’d like to hear from someone who uses design in a meaningful way so that I can feel more confident and powerful in the work that I do each day to be a changemaker.

“ ”

There is no need to tie it back to architecture or the built environment . Just hearing about someones creative process, no matter what that is, is valuable.

“ ”

It gives you an insight on other people’s creative process and how you could change, improve, rethink your process.

HOW MIGHT ASPECTS OF THE TANGENT TALK INFLUENCE YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS? HOW CAN WE IMPROVE TANGENT IN THE FUTURE?

General inspiration is really important for our culture. Keep it up! 2 for 2 so far!!!

EFFECTIVENESS

Allison Henry + Amira Samiy Cultivating Elastic

Mindset check

Portal’s impact on self-reported mindset

• Immediately after Portal, there is a decrease in linear thinking and increase in elastic thinking, but the share of linear to elastic thinking returned to its equilibrium one week later.

• Many participants report being flexible or open minded before the intervention, which may reflect their openness to the experience they are about to have.

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING BEST DEFINE YOUR CURRENT STATE OF MIND?

LINEAR THINKING

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING BEST DEFINE YOUR CURRENT STATE OF MIND?

(Percentage of respondents)

PLEASE EXPLAIN WHY THIS IS YOUR CURRENT MINDSET (ONE WEEK LATER - C-19 WFH).

“ ”

Drawing lines in revit, very zen (relaxed/ practical)

“ ”

WFH, no pressing deadlines, ability to be in my own space, surrounded by things that keep me calm. (flexible, creative, rational)

“ ”

Trying to get things accomplished and stay productive while working from home (task-oriented)

Pre-Portal Post-Portal 1 Week Post-Portal

LINEAR ELASTIC

ELASTIC THINKING

linear

logical

directed

rational practical

strategic

task-oriented PrePortal PostPortal 1 Week Post-Portal

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

insightful

creative

divergent

relaxed open-minded playful

flexible / adaptable

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

PrePortal PostPortal 1 Week Post-Portal

Mindset check

Tangent’s impact on self-reported mindset

• Participants reported more elastic mindsets immediately after Tangent, and there were still more elastic than linear mindsets reported one week later.

• C-19 has been a primary factor in self-reported mindsets being more elastic beyond the intervention’s impact.

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING BEST DEFINE YOUR CURRENT STATE OF MIND?

task-oriented

linear

LINEAR THINKING

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING BEST DEFINE YOUR CURRENT STATE OF MIND?

(Average percentage of responses by respondent)

50%

45%

40%

35%

30%

25%

20%

15%

10%

directed logical

rational practical

strategic

PLEASE EXPLAIN WHY THIS IS YOUR CURRENT MINDSET (C19 WFH)

“ ”

Focusing on tasks allows me to stop thinking about the pandemic for those brief moments.

(Pre-Tangent: task-oriented)

“ ”

Being that the future unsure, i feel being adaptable is necessary. (Pre-Tangent: flexible)

“ ”

It was interesting to hear how Lakshmi approaches creative problem solving through her work!

(Post-Tangent: playful, creative, insightful)

“ ”

Hearing someone’s personal experience of how they’ve gotten where they are and their motivation encourages me to explore my creative side.

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Pre Tangent Post Tangent 1 Week Post-Tangent

insightful

creative

relaxed open-minded playful divergent

Pre-Tangent Post-Tangent 1 Week Post-Tangent

LINEAR ELASTIC

(1 Week Post-Tangent: creative)

Working from home puts a lot of things/ tasks in perspective.

“ ” 5%

ELASTIC THINKING

flexible / adaptable

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Pre Tangent Post Tangent 1 Week Post-Tangent

Effectiveness survey

Quantitative findings

Key Findings

• Portal was most successful in making participants feel curious about a topic (relaxed attention) and excited about the future (purpose) and exposing them to new topics (novelty search).

• There is room for improvement on translating learning/ exposure to action (application to project work and feeling that you can make a positive contribution), although integrating a project connection within the experience would detract from the concept.

THE

FOLLOWING

If Portal were conducted virtually, I would be as interested in engaging with it as with the physical room.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal made me feel curious about a topic.

Something I saw/heard/experienced lead me to feel discouraged about trying new things.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal made me feel empowered to do something new.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal lead me to feel excited about the future.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal had an impact on my project work.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal lead me to feel satisfied with the status quo.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal makes me feel like I can make a positive contribution.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent made me explore a topic in greater depth.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal sparked a new idea or lead me to an aha moment.

Nothing I saw/heard/experienced in Portal taught me anything new.

Something I saw/heard/experienced in Portal made me approach something differently.

4.1/6 [var 0.1]

4.88/6 [var 1.8]

0.4/6 [var 0.5]

3.75/6 [var 0.7]

4.4/6 [var 0.3]

STATEMENTS AS THEY RELATE TO YOUR EXPERIENCE AT TANGENT ON A SCALE OF 0-6 (0=DO NOT AGREE AT ALL; 6=VERY MUCH AGREE) 1.5/6 [var 0.0] 2.75/6 [var 0.4] 3.25/6 [var 0.8] 3.88/6 [var 0.8] 0.5/6 [var 0.2]

3.38/6 [var 0.6]

2.5/6 [var 0.4] RELAXED ATTENTION PURPOSE

Effectiveness survey

Qualitative findings

Key Findings

• The effects of inspiration are shortlived, so continuous access and cultural integration is important for sustaining its impact.

• Portal’s main value is its novelty exposure, which will require constant content evolution in a real-world installment.

• Although 50% of respondents felt that they would engage with Portal as a virtual experience, many commented that it would be taken for granted and forgotten.

Portal

DO YOU HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS ON YOUR EXPERIENCE IN PORTAL?

Physical space is expensive, would likely work better in campus environments. Someone would be needed to maintain and curate the material in the space. Wish we were on a campus instead of a high rise.

“ ”

“ ”

I feel like the way I responded to the survey really depended on what I was doing and how long ago the experience took place! Speaks to how much we need constant inspiration!

“ ”

Totally wish this space was permanent.

WHICH ASPECTS OF A VIRTUALLY-SIMULATED PORTAL EXPERIENCE WOULD CONCERN YOU MOST?

“ ”

It would feel quite similar to surfing the web on my personal device, like a laptop or phone. The immersive quality would be a big draw. Without it, it doesn’t feel as worthwhile of an engagement beyond my day-to-day.

“ ”

Seems like that already exists on the internet. What was cool about Portal is that it was a physical space and vibe that took all your focus and had the potential to transport you.

“ ”

If the access is always open, people wont appreciate it and or use it. Similar to Lynda / e-Learning tools.

Effectiveness survey

Quantitative findings

Key Findings

• Portal was most successful in making participants feel curious about a topic (relaxed attention), that they can make a positive contribution (purpose), and helping them approach something differently (novelty search).

• Overall, Tangent scores high on imbuing a sense of personal purpose, with all participants either agreeing or neutral in responding to statements relating to purpose.

Tangent

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent made me feel curious about a topic.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent lead me to feel discouraged about trying new things.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent made me feel empowered to do something new.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent lead me to feel excited about the future.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent had an impact on my project work.

RATE YOUR AGREEMENT WITH THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS AS THEY RELATE TO YOUR EXPERIENCE AT TANGENT ON A SCALE OF 0-6 (0=DO NOT AGREE AT ALL; 6=VERY MUCH AGREE) 2.2/6 [var 1.9]

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent lead me to feel satisfied with the status quo.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent makes me feel like I can make a positive contribution.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent made me explore a topic in greater depth.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent sparked a new idea or lead me to an aha moment.

Nothing I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent taught me anything new.

Something I saw/heard/experienced at Tangent made me approach something differently.

I enjoyed the virtual Tangent experience more than the in-person Tangent experience. 0

Effectiveness survey

Qualitative findings

Key Findings

• Tangent is successful in connecting participants to a greater sense of personal purpose - demonstrating the many paths to creativity

• Tangent is successful as a virtual event due to its ability to accommodate other personal commitments of Gensler employees

Tangent

DO YOU HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS ON YOUR EXPERIENCE IN PORTAL?

“ ”

I have loved the diversity of all of the speakers! I think the biggest thing for me has been the realization that so much exists to study and work on in the world :)

“ ”

Because the event was virtual i was able to attend for the first time. Previously i was not able to join due to childcare on Thursday night. i thought it went great but she seemed like she knew her way around technology.

Brainstorm activity

Portal’s impact on insight generation

Key Findings

• Difficult to conclude anything from this data set due to more challenging post-Portal prompt

• About 50% of participants were able to generate more unique words after experiencing Portal

• Uniqueness + total number of the words generated in the brainstorming activity were correlated

PRE-PORTAL ACTIVITY: POST-PORTAL ACTIVITY:

List all the words or phrases that come to mind associated with things that are cold that start with the letter ‘S’

List all the words or phrases that come to mind associated with things that are round that start with the letter ‘B’

NOTE: due to the unsuccessful nature of this experiment, it was not conducted for Tangent

(DELTA PRE-PORTAL AND POST-PORTAL)

PRELIMINARY RESEARCH FINDINGS

Objective:

What do we know about creativity, elastic thinking, innovation, and learning as they related to cognitive sciences and to design?

Interview Findings

Human sociability is a key intrinsic motivator for learning

Whether with a client, peers, or mentor, learning conditions are strongest when there is a social element

Productive inefficiencies enable groups to create opportunities for play and experimentation which are the pre-conditions for learning

- Joel Farris + Alfred Byun

Connected ecological models of learning—you learn as you grow within a cultural framework that supports learning

- Joel Farris + Alfred Byun

Learning is about your connections to your peers and having trust.

- Alexandra Daily-Diamond

Mentoring creates empathy and awareness of other employees.

- Johnathan Sandler

Just being put in a room with clients - Lauren Rondel + Katie Costa

Psychological safety inspires elastic thinking

Enthusiasm for learning is best achieved when there is room for failure, exploration, and beginner’s mindset

Psychological safety

- Alexandra Daily-Diamond

The enthusiastic novice can achieve more than the passive expert - Joel Farris

Learning is about accessing and filtering knowledge, not about having it

- Joel Farris + Alfred Byun

Many are reluctant to consider learning as a discreet task from focusing - Janet Pogue

Extrinsic motivation undermines intrinsic motivation - Justin Chase

Design thinking involves design feeling which in turn involves design believing -Joel Fariss

Learning involves failure -Justin Chase

Innovation ignores what you know - Alexandra Daily-Diamond

It’s not just creating time for learning, it’s also about considering where learning begins, and what the spatial and other environmental conditions need to be

- Joel Fariss + Alfred Byun

Stretch zones exist between comfort zones and stress zones - Darris James

Relaxed attention

- Lauren Rondel

Programmatic Approaches

Results of learning programs should be elevated in the organizational value system

Learning itself should be largely unrestricted, but the learner should know that their work is valued or has impact within the organization

The process of entering learning programs needs to be self-directed - Johnathan Sandler

Scaffolding is a mechanism for supporting learning by incrementally increasing opportunities to learn with a safety net

- Kevin Rosenstein

It is important to develop program that incentivizes learning by yielding a concrete outcome

An innovative culture requires both top-down and bottom-up strategies

- Amanda Ramos

Learning is about value perception

Fostering a learning mindset is about curating learning opportunities

- Joel Fariss + Alfred Byun

- Joel Fariss + Alfred Byun

Create real-life conditions - Katie Costa + Lauren Rondel

Create opportunities for a career lattice, not a career ladder - Cindy Coleman

- Kevin Rosenstein

Ensure awareness and accessibility to the right information champions

- Janet Pogue

Align corporate and personal learning

- Kevin Rosenstein

Secondary Research Findings

The three main drivers of intrinsic motivation are autonomy, relatedness, and competency

Personal Conditions + = Environmental Conditions Elastic Thinking V. Functional Fixedness

Humans are educable animals that have instinctive drives for curiosity, playfulness, sociability - Free to Learn

- Self-determination Theory

Your rewards system motivates you to think, make decisions, and set goals

Freedom, security, belonging, significance, meaning are the five primary needs.

-Brady Wilson

Human needs and motivation

In age mixing, proximal development (similar to the stretch zone), emotional support, and providing opportunities to observe new things all contribute to learning and development.

Inducing a playful mood improves creativity and insightful problemsolving - Free to Learn

Pull vs push strategies: only create supply until demand has emerged - Elastic

Growth mindset (non-fixed mindset) individuals don’t fear failure because they realize their performance can be improved and learning comes from failure

Balance between (executive) top-down and bottom-up operation determines the focus and breadth of thinking

- Elastic

- Free to Learn The form of information affects the substance of that information, and how we act/react upon it.

- Subliminal

Being told to be creative is counterproductive to creativity - Free to Learn

Compasses over Maps: Set a direction, but don’t anticipate an outcome - Whiplash

“Novelty search” yields better results than “Fitness function” (tried and true approach)

-Kenneth Stanley

- Growth Mindset

Productive “inefficiencies” (freedom to follow curiosity and fail) lead to better results

“The Wall”of our research findings

Allison Henry + Amira

Samiy Cultivating Elastic