Unlocking Creativity: 3 Proven Brainstorming Techniques from a Tech Giant

Innovation is at the heart of every successful tech company, and there's a formula behind it. Contrary to popular belief, great ideas don't just appear magically; they thrive when openly discussed and refined collaboratively. Veronique Lafargue, head of Google Apps for Work, shares three essential steps to effective brainstorming that any organization can apply to spark creativity and drive innovation.

Mastering the Art of Brainstorming

Brainstorming is more than just an idea-generating session; it's an opportunity for team members to learn, connect, and build stronger relationships. Experience has shown that adhering to three key principles makes brainstorming sessions truly productive. These guidelines are adaptable and effective regardless of company size or industry.

Often, brainstorming is mistaken for chaotic, noisy meetings filled with random ideas. However, without structure and logical flow, even the most brilliant concepts fail to materialize into actionable outcomes. That’s why a clear plan is essential to turning fresh ideas into tangible innovations.

1. Understand Your Audience Deeply

Solving a problem starts with understanding the user facing it. Everything else follows this fundamental rule. Engage directly with people to gather their stories, emotions, and insights. Observe, listen attentively, and empathize to truly grasp their needs.

Understanding your users requires building a genuine connection — it cannot be assumed or guessed.

For example, when interacting with customers in Canada, Brazil, and India, I noticed that the concept of mobility varies widely. In Canada, mobility means instant communication from anywhere—be it a desk, cafe, or kitchen. In Brazil, where commuting is common, mobility centers around user-friendly interfaces and voice commands. In parts of India with unreliable internet, mobility means the ability to work offline.

Gathering such nuanced insights demands effort and direct engagement. This is why many brainstorming sessions fail—they jump straight to idea generation without first understanding the users.

2. Aim to Improve Ideas Tenfold

Once you have gathered user insights, it’s time to think bigger. You've likely heard the rule:

When you have an idea, challenge yourself to make it ten times better.

Take the example of Project Loon—a Google initiative to provide internet access via high-altitude balloons. Instead of simply laying fiber-optic cables to remote areas, the team envisioned a network of balloons drifting in the stratosphere, delivering wireless internet with speeds comparable to 4G and LTE, reaching even the most inaccessible regions.

Next, everyone should document their ideas before regrouping to evaluate which ones hold the most promise. When reconvening, follow these six guidelines:

1. Build on each other’s ideas. Avoid dismissing concepts early; instead, say “Yes, and…” to encourage development.
2. Generate as many ideas as possible. Quantity breeds quality, so embrace freedom and gather lots of ideas using notes, sticky notes, or apps.
3. Create concise headlines. Summarize ideas in under six words to facilitate quick understanding and refinement.
4. Use visuals. Drawings communicate concepts more clearly and reduce misinterpretation.
5. Think big. Welcome bold, fearless, and unconventional ideas.
6. Delay judgment. Avoid evaluating ideas prematurely to allow them to evolve.

3. Build a Prototype Quickly

The final step is action. Many brainstorming sessions falter because teams plan to meet again rather than act immediately. The key is to strike while the iron is hot.

At Google, creating a simple prototype swiftly is standard practice. It doesn’t need to be perfect—just a tangible representation to validate or refute the idea’s potential.

Often, the first prototype is discarded, and that’s expected. However, having a physical model allows for objective evaluation, testing, and informed decision-making.

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