Workshop Examples:
Decision Making

Go / No Go - Validate options

In general, Go / No Go testing refers to a pass/fail test (or check) principle.

Each proposition is tested according to several criteria in order to agree whether the project advance to the next phase or not.

The Go / No Go meeting is a critical milestone in a project plan and the criteria must be well defined and be less subject to interpretation as possible.

Evaluations involving numerical scores convert raw scores to Go / No Go based on cutoffs defined before the workshop.

Usually, an item must score Go on all criteria of evaluation in order to advance to the next phase.

History of the Future

Inspired by the movie Back to the Future, The History of the Future workshop enables you to get a clear understanding of your organization's prospects while helping you figure out the way to get there. This visioning workshop relies on a strong and detailed narrative.

In this collaborative session, we will:

1. Discover our most brilliant achievements in the future

2. Examine key levers and obstacles to get there

3. Choose the measures to take right now

2x2 Matrix - Categorize your ideas

The power of the 2x2 Matrix, Lowy, and Hood show that the 2x2 matrix lets you exploit the tension between 2 opposing forces as the prime source of problem-solving energy and direction. The 2x2 matrix helps you compare items by two independent attributes and to categorize them in four distinct quadrants.

The 2x2 matrix is used by many famous frameworks such as :

The SWOT: Origin & Effect
The BCG Matrix: Growth Rate & Market Share
The ANSOFF Matrix: Product & Market
The Gartner Magic Quadrant: Execution & Vision

And it's an easy way to create a dynamic framework with your own attributes.

$100 - Select the best options

A smart and fun decision-making workshop. Add your own options and ask people to spend a virtual $100 budget on the options they like the most. Using money, even if virtual, gives a very interesting dynamic.

COCD Box - Select wild ideas

Selecting ideas after an ideation session can be really dangerous because of the risk of losing the most creative ideas and get back to "safe" ideas is really high.

To avoid that trap, the COCD Box methodology, a methodology developed by the Center for Development of Creative Thinking enables to select 3 kinds of ideas:

Blue ideas: ideas that common and feasible --> NOW
Red ideas: ideas that are original and feasible --> WOW
Yellow ideas: ideas that are original and not (yet) feasible --> HOW

Like/Dislike - Show your opinion

A simple vote session. Add your own options and ask people if they're positive, neutral or negative about a statement.

These three fundamental positions are also useful for a Go / No Go session.

New, Useful, Feasible - Evaluate ideas, prototypes or strategies

The NUF evaluation is a decision making technique used to evaluate a set of options (ideas, prototypes, new products, market segments) along with three criteria:

New: is it new? Is it innovative?
Useful: does it solve an important problem or fulfill a real need?
Feasible: is it feasible? Do we have the opportunity, the skills, money or time to do it?

Then, based on the evaluation results, the team will try to find ways to improve the different options.

Retrospective - Learn from the past

A retrospective is a technique for assessing a project, an agile sprint or any other kind of event. It helps teams formalizing lessons learned and crafting recommendations for the future.

Score Voting - Weigh your support

A simple vote session. Add your own options and ask people to give each option a score. The scores are added and the option with the highest total is chosen.

It has been described by various other names including the point system, rating summation, 0-99 voting, average voting, and utility voting. It is a type of cardinal voting system.

The Top 3 - Elect the best options

A simple vote session.

Add your own options and ask people to give their Top 3.

The scores are added and the option with the highest total is chosen.

It can be used to elect ideas, people and options.

SWOT - Analyse your business

When making a business decision, all considerations can come down to four categories: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

What is this product or company really good at?

Where do we truly excel as an organization?

What are some of our weaknesses?

Are there any areas where our competitors are clearly outperforming us?

What challenges are facing your company?