Six Thinking

7/29/2019 Six Thinking

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Edward dedward de BonoonosSIX THINKING HATSIX THINKING HATS

KS MathewProfessor, Department of CSE

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http://www.fuzz2buzz.com/en/node/1568


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Agenda

Dr.EdwarddeBono

TraditionalThinking

WhatisParallelThinking? TraditionalThinkingvs.ParallelThinking

WhatisLateralThinking?

IntroductiontoSixThinkingHatsmethod

HowtoapplySixThinkingHatsmethod

BenefitsofSixThinkingHatsmethod

SixThinkingHatsmethod CaseStudies

SixThinkingHatsmethod AMockSession Questions&Answers

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Dr.EdwarddeBono

BorninMaltain1933

M.D.,Ph.D.,(medicine&psychology)

FacultyattheuniversitiesofOxford,London,CambridgeandHarvard

World-renownedconsultanttobusiness,governments,schoolsandindustry

Authorof62booksin47languages Originatorofthefollowing:

Directteachingofthinkingasaskill(CoRT CognitiveResearchTrust- Thinking

Programme)

LateralThinking(1967)

ParallelThinking(1985)

SixThinkingHats(1985)

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TraditionalThinking Traditionalthinkingis2400yearsold,basedonthephilosophiesofSocrates,PlatoandAristotle Socratesusedtopointoutwhatwaswrong toclarifytheconcepts

Platobelievedthatwecanseeonlyshadowsoftruthaswegothroughlife

Aristotlebelievedthatpeoplewouldputtogetherdifferentboxes intheirmindbasedontheirexperience&judgethingsintooneofthoseboxes

So,traditionalthinkingisconcernedwithwhatis whichisdeterminedbyanalysis,judgment&argument.Itisnotconstructive

orcreativeanddoesntinvolvedesign. Itisalsocalledargument,adversarial,orwesternthinking

Partialexplorationofsubject/problem

Involvesanalysis,judgmentandargument Thereisnofocusandthinksabouttoomanyaspects/thingsatatime

Traditionalthinkingisnotcollaborativeorcooperative4


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WhatisParallelThinking?

Allmemberslookinthesamedirectionatany

moment Directionchangesoneafterother

Allviewsareputdowninparallel

FocusFocus(subject or

problem being

discussed)Team Members

Team Members Team Members

Team Members

Team Members

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Traditionalvs ParallelThinkingTraditional Thinking Parallel Thinking

Alsocalledargument,adversarial,orwesternthinking

2400yearsold basedonphilosophiesofSocrates,PlatoandAristotle

Partialexplorationofsubject/problem

Concernedwithwhatis

Involvesanalysis,judgmentandargument

Thinksabouttoomanyaspects/thingsatatime

FirstpublishedbyEdwarddeBonoin1985

Fullexplorationofsubject/problem

Concernedwithwhatcanbe

Involvesconstructivethinking,creativethinking

anddesigningawayforward.

Dealswithonlyoneaspect/thingatatime

A

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LateralThinkingmeansthinkingdifferentlyorthinking

outofthebox.

WhatisLateralThinking?

Puzzle 1: Threeswitchesoutsideawindowlessroomareconnectedtothree lightbulbsinsidetheroom.Howcanyoudeterminewhichswitchisconnectedtowhich

bulbifyoumayentertheroomonlyonce?

Seethepopularlateralthinkingpuzzlesbelow:

Answer: Switchonelightonforaminute;turnitoffandturnanotheron.Gointotheroomandfeeltheoffbulbs.Thewarmbulbisconnectedtothefirstswitch,theon-

bulbisconnectedtothesecondandthecoldbulbisconnectedtothethirdswitch.

Puzzle 2: Amanisreplacingawheelonhiscar,whenheaccidentallydropsthefournutsusedtoholdthewheelonthecar,andtheyfallintoadeepdrain,

irretrievablylost.Apassinggirloffershimasolutionwhichenableshimtodrive

home.Whatisit?Answer: Useonenutfromeachoftheotherthreewheels. Puzzle 3: Atruckisstuckataroadunderabridge.It'sjustacoupleofinchestoo

hightopassunder.Anyotherroute,avoidingthebridgewouldaddacoupleof

hourstothejourney.Ayoungboycomesalongandagainsavestheday.How?Answer: Letairoutofthetirestillthetruckislowenough.7


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WhatisLateralThinking?(contd..) Puzzle 4: Amanlivesonthetenthfloorofabuilding.Everydayhetakesthe

elevatortogodowntothegroundfloortogotowork.Whenhereturnshetakestheelevatortothe7thfloorandwalksupthestairstoreachhisapartmentonthe10th

floor.Hehateswalkingsowhydoeshedoit?Clue:onrainydayshegoesupinthe

elevatortothetenthfloor.

Answer: Themanisdwarfandcanonlyreachthebuttonforthe7th floor.Onrainydaysheuseshisumbrella!

Puzzle 5: Alandlordisthreateningtoevictafatherandhisbeautifulyoungdaughter,unlesssheagreestomarryhim.Inafalsegestureofsincerity,heoffers

heranopportunityforherandherfathertoremaininthehouse,withoutmarrying

him.Hehasasilkbaginwhichhesayshehasplacedawhiteandablackstone

fromthefootpathonwhichthey'restanding.Ifshepicksthewhitestonefromthe

bag,withoutlooking,shewins;ifshepickstheblack,sheloses.However,the

younggirlsawhimplacetwoblackstonesinthebag.Shecan'texposehiminfront

ofthewitnesseswithoutangeringhimandmakingthingsworse.Howdoesthe

clevergirlwin?

Answer: Shewithdrawsastoneandinstantlydropsitintothoseonthegroundandislost.Toknowwhatcolor itwas,theymustlookatthestonesremaininginthe

bag.

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Amethodforeffectiveteammeetings,problemsolving,decisionmakingandproposal/designevaluation

Amethodbasedontheconceptofparallelthinking

Canbeusedinbusinesses,schoolsandfamiliesforresolvingissuesandmakingdecisions

MajororganizationsusingSixThinkingHatsare:NASA,IBM,ABB,Siemens,Microsoft,BritishAirways,BP,Statoil,NTT,FederalExpress,Polaroid,Pepsico,DuPont,PrudentialInsuranceetc.

IntroductiontoSixThinkingHats


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SixThinkingHats

Hat Color Represents Function of HatNeutral,Objective ObjectiveFacts&Figures

Emotional,Angry Emotions&Feelings

Serious,Sombre Cautious&Careful

Sunny,Positive Optimistic,Hope&PositiveThinking

Growth,Fertility Creativity,Ideas&LateralThinking

Cool,SkyAbove Control&OrganizationofThinking


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WhiteHatThinking

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Neutral,objectiveinformation

Facts&figures

Twotiersoffacts- BelievedFacts&CheckedFacts Excludesonesownopinions,hunches,judgments

Removesfeelings&impressions

ReportofopinionofsomeoneelseQuestions to be asked & answered under White hat: Whatinformation/factsdoweknow?

Whatinformationismissing? Whatinformation/factswouldweliketohave?

Howarewegoingtogettheinformation?

Whatisrelevant? Whatismostimportant?

Howvalidisthis?


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RedHatThinking

Emotions&feelingsinfluencethinking&redhatacknowledges

thisfact

Emotionscomeinthreeways:

Backgroundemotionssuchasfear,anger,hatred,loveetc.

Initialperceptions(eg.havinginsultedbysomeoneetc.)

Emotionsafteramapofsituationshasbeenputtogether

Hunches,intuitions,impressions Doesnthavetobelogicalorconsistent

Nojustifications,reasonsorbasis

Questions to be asked & answered under Red hat: HowdoIfeelaboutthisrightnow?

HowcoldorwarmdoIfeelaboutthis?

HowamIreactingtothis?

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BlackHatThinking

Cautiousandcareful

Logicalnegative whyitwontwork?

Criticaljudgment,pessimisticview

Separateslogicalnegativefromemotional

Focusonerrors,evidence,conclusions

Worst-casescenarios

Questions to be asked & answered under Black hat: Isthistrue?

Willitwork?Whyitwontwork?

Whataretheweaknesses?

Whatiswrongwithit?

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YellowHatThinking

Positive&speculative

Positivethinking,optimism,opportunity

Benefits Best-casescenarios

Questions to be asked & answered under Yellow hat:

Whatarethegoodpoints? Whatarethebenefits?

Whywillthisideawork?

Whyisthisworthdoing? Howwillithelpus?

Whycanitbedone?

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GreenHatThinking

Newideas,concepts,perceptions

Deliberatecreationofnewideas

Alternativesandmorealternatives Newapproachestoproblems

Creative&lateralthinking

Questions to be asked & answered under Green hat: Whataresomepossiblewaystoworkthisout?

Whataresomeotherwaystosolvetheproblem?

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TheBlueHat

Bluehatisuniqueasitthinksaboutthinking

Controlororganizationofthinkingprocess

Thinkingsessionsusuallybegin&endwithbluehat

Normally,sessionleaderusesbluehat

Instructionsforthinking

Controlsthesequenceoruseofotherhats

Bringsindisciplineandfocus

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Openwiththebluehat

Whyarewehere?

Whatarewethinkingabout? Definitionofthesituationorproblem

Thebackgroundtothethinking

Whatwewanttoachieve? Wherewewanttoendup?

Aplanforthesequenceofhats

Timeforeachhatsessionandtimeallowedforeachindividual

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andclosewiththebluehat

Whathaveweachieved?

Whatdecisionhavewereached?

Whatdowedonext?

Summarizesthefollowing: Outcome

Conclusion

Design

Solution Nextsteps

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HatsSummary

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Usebluehatatthebeginningandend Bluehatisusuallywornbythefacilitator

Useanyhat,asoftenasneeded

Hatscanbeusedsinglyatanypointorasasequence

oftwo,three,fourormorehats

Sequencecanbepresetorevolving

Notnecessarytouseeveryhat

Timeundereachhat:generally,short

Requiresdisciplinefromeachpersontostayfocused Addsanelementofplay

Canbeusedbyindividualsandgroups

UsingtheHats

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HatSequence- Evaluation

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Todiscoverthepositiveaspectsandnegativeaspectsofanidea:

Openwiththeblue hat. Usetheyellow hat beforetheblack hat. Then,followupwiththegreen hat (newideas)andred hat (feelings)thinking. Closewiththeblue hat.Examples: Considerpositiveandnegativeaspectsofhavingaweeklytechnicalseminar.

Evaluatedifferentalternativetechnologiesfordevelopingasoftwaresystem


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HatSequence- Caution

Tolookatsituationscritically:

Openwiththeblue hat. Firstconsiderfactsusingthewhite hat. Then,usetheblack hat todiscoverdifficulties. Followupwithsomered hat (feelings)thinking. Closewiththeblue hat.Example:Considertheconsequencesofprojectleadersresignationinthemiddleoftheproject.

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HatSequence- Design

Tocreatenewideas,productsorimprovementstoexistingdesign:

Openwiththeblue hat. Then,usethegreen hat togeneratenewideas&designs.

Followupwithsomered hat (feelings)thinking. Closewiththeblue hat.Example:Brainstormtogeneratenewideasformarketingourproductsandincreasesales.

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Hat Sequence Others


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Comparingfactandopinion-Blue+White+Red+Blue Comparingandsynthesising(comingupwithnewideasfromtheknown)

-Blue+White+Yellow+Black+Green+Blue ChoosingbetweenalternativesBlue+White+Yellow +Black+ (Green) +

Red+Blue IdentifyingSolutionsBlue+White+Black+Green+Blue QuickFeedbackBlue+Yellow+Black+Green+Blue StrategicPlanningBlue+Yellow+Black+White+Blue+Green+Blue ProcessImprovementBlue+White+White (Other peoples views)+

Yellow+Black+Green+Red+Blue PerformanceReviewBlue+Red+White+Yellow+Black+Green+Red+Blue

HatSequence Others

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FacilitatorsRole

Definethefocusofyourthinking

Planthesequenceandtimingofthethinking

Askforchangesinthethinkingifneeded Handlerequestsfromthegroupforchangesinthe

thinking

Formperiodicorfinalsummariesofthethinking

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ParticipantsRole

FollowtheleadofSixThinkingHatsfacilitator

Sticktothehat(typeofthinking)thatisincurrentuse

Trytoworkwithinthetimelimits

Contributehonestly&fullyundereachofthehats

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B fit f Si Thi ki H t M th d


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BenefitsofSixThinkingHatsMethod

Decisionsseemtomakethemselves

Focusedthinking

Improvedexploration Improvedcreativity&innovation

Fostercollaborativethinking

Providesacommonlanguage Helpspeopleworkagainsttype,preference

Removalofegofromdecisions(reduceconfrontation)

Allowsaswitchinthinkingwithoutthreateningego.

Savestime

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S C S


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Scenario: TheTechnopark managementislookingatwhethertheyshouldconstructanewbuilding.Theamountofavailablevacantofficespaceiscomingdownandeconomyisdoingwell.

Aspartoftheirdecisionmakingprocess,theydecidedtousetheSixThinkingHatsduringthemeeting.

Givenbelowisjustanexampleofwhathascomeoutofthemeeting:

White Hats: Analysisofdataonthetrendofun-rentedofficespaceversusthegrowthindemand,showsthatbythetimethebuildingiscompletedtherewouldbesevereshortageofun-rentedoffice

spacewiththeincreasingdemandforofficespace. Currentgovernmentprojectionsindicatesolidandsteadyeconomicgrowthforsometime.

Buildersestimateshowsthatthesquarefeetratewouldbemore

thantwotimestheprevailingrateinotherbuildings.

SixThinkingHats CaseStudyI

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Si Thi ki H C S d I C d


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Red Hats: Feelthatthedesignofthenewbuildingwouldbeveryattractive

andmodern.Hence,thepotentialtenantsmaylikeit,thoughitmay

notbecosteffective.

Thereisafeelingthatsomeofthecompaniesintheoldbuildings&companiesinincubationcentermightbeattractedtothenew

buildingbecauseofbetterfacilities.

Prospectsofbusinessexpansion&moreemployment

opportunitiesmayseemattractivetothegovernment&

managementandtheylookforwardtotheproject.

Black Hats: Worrythatthegovernmentprojectionsmaybewrong,andoverestimatingthestrengthoftheeconomy.

Sincethecostpersquarefeetwouldbedoublethecurrentcost, it

maybedifficulttorentoutandthereforethecompanymustbe

preparedforthispossibility.

SixThinkingHats CaseStudyIContd..

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Six Thinking Hats Case Study I Contd


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Yellow Hats: Ifeconomyholdsupandgovernmentprojectionsarecorrect,wemayevenachievethe100%occupancyrateofthenewbuilding,andthecompanystandstomakeahigherprofit.

Ifcompaniesinoldbuilding&incubationcenteralsomovetothenew

buildingasRedHatsfeel,thecompanymayevensuccessfullysellthenewbuildingbeforethenexteconomicdownturnandmakeasubstantialcapitalgain.

Green Hats:

Oldbuildingspacesvacatedbythecompaniesmovingtothenewbuildingcouldberenovatedtolookmoretrendywithsomecreativealterationstothebasicdesignandsomeadditionalfacilities.Thiswouldagainattractcompaniestotheseoldbuildingswithmorerevenuesbecauseofrenovation/additionalfacilities.

Specialdiscountedratesinnewbuildingcouldbeofferedtothecompaniesinoldbuildings&incubationcentertomotivatethemtomovetothenewbuilding.

Consideringtheincreasingfitnessawareness,proposetoconvert

somespacesvacatedintheoldbuildingintoaHealthClub,whichwouldbringadditionalrevenue.


Six Thinking Hats Case Study I Contd


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Blue Hats: Needstokeepthemeetingfocusedontheagenda.Atthesame

time,thereshouldbeabalancebetweenthecompanysoriginal

objectivesinproposingthenewbuildingandthepossibilityof

enhancingtheplanbyconsideringthenewbusinessopportunitiesthatmaybeidentified.

Mustensurethatallmembersareabletocontributetothe

discussionsmeaningfullywithoutlettinganyonedominatethe

meeting.


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Si Thi ki H t A M k S i


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SixThinkingHats AMockSession

Scenario: Consider the acquisition of a state government owned R&D

organization by the Department of Electronics, Government of

India.Assumeyourselfintheroleofa top-levelexecutiveofR&D

organizationinvolvedandgiveyouryellowandblackhatthinking(firstyellowhatandthenblackhat)ontheacquisitionmove.


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Q&AQ&A

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THANK YOUPlease feel free to contact me for further details/clarifications:

K.S.Mathew

Professor, Department of Computer Science & EngineeringRajagiri School of Engineering & Technology, Kakkanad, Kochi

Tel: 0484-2427835 (O); 0477-2241203 (R); 9847117818 (M)

Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

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mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

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