The Innovation Weblog pointed me to a great article: Brainstorm or Braindrizzle? It's a great read that discusses ten personas (with key skills for each) that are critical to facilitating a successful brainstorming session.  Author Mitch Ditkoff's provides an excellent intro and then delves into each of  the personas he believes are critical to getting the most out of your brainstorming sessions:

Allow me to make a wild guess here and postulate that you have participated in more  than a few brainstorm sessions in your life. Yes? And allow me to make yet another wild guess and state that many of these sessions left you feeling underwhelmed, over-caffeinated, disappointed, disengaged, and doubtful that much of ANYTHING was ever going to happen as a result of your participation. Yes, again? I thought so.

There's a ton of reasons why most brainstorming sessions under-deliver, but the main reason -- the Mount Olympus of reasons (drum roll, please....) is the brainstorm facilitator.

Armed with a short list of ground rules, a flipchart marker or two, and a muffin, most brainstorm facilitators miss the mark completely. The reason has less to do with their process, tools, and techniques than it does with their inability or lack of willingness to adapt. In an all-too-professional attempt to be one-pointed, they end up being one-dimensional, missing out on a host of in-the-moment opportunities to spark the ever-mutating, collective genius of the group.

Read more here: http://www.ideachampions.com/weblogs/archives/2008/02/einstein_brains_1.shtml

You'll have to read the post to get all the great info. Here are the ten "personas" discussed to further entice:

1.CONDUCTOR
A skilled brainstorm facilitator knows how to orchestrate powerfully creative output from a seemingly dissonant group of people. In the conductor mode, the facilitator includes everyone, evokes even the subtlest contributions from the least experienced participant, and demonstrates their commitment to the whole by offering timely feedback to anyone who "gets lost in their own song."

2.ALCHEMIST
A good brainstorm facilitator is able to transmute lead into gold -- or in modern terms -- knows how to help people "get the lead out." This talent requires an element of wizardry -- the ability to see without looking, feel without touching, and intuitively know that within each brainstormer lives a hidden genius just waiting to get out.

3.DANCER
4. MAD SCIENTIST
5.DIAMOND CUTTER
6. ACTOR
7.ENVIRONMENTALIST
9.SERVANT
10. STAND-UP COMIC

Great stuff and I recommend checking out the rest of the blog for more great info on creative thinking and brainstorming: The Idea Champions Weblog.  

posted by Raven at Raven's Brain under Brainstorming & Creative Thinking
Tags: Brainstorming, Idea Generation, Innovation, Brainstorming Facilitator, Creative Thinking