Reflection : Mind mapping 

 Challenge 

 I am a communications specialist working for an engineering consultancy and the editor for one of   the markets ’ internal newsletter . It is my goal to make the newsletter the single vital source of   information all things related to the industry . We have about 260 recipients on our email list . 

 Despite having previously conducted informal interviews with several readers on what they would   like to read in an internal market newsletter , it was disappointing to see that since launch , open   rates and click through rates have been hovering below the 50 % mark . This is on the lower end of   the scale when compared to open rates for other internal newsletters - historical data indicates   that a 70 % open rate is considered a success . 

 The newsletter has been identified as a key channel in which management can engage directly   with employees , therefore it is crucial that the open rates and click through rates are improved . 

 Selection and application 

 I have chosen to apply mind mapping for the “ What is ” phase . It is a group exercise tool which   helps me identify key themes and clusters from a set of data . It is an effective tool for   communicating large quantity of data in a format that is meaningful and can be easily understood .   It will also help me transition from “ What is ” to “ What if ” by drawing out the design criteria for my   revamped newsletter based on the patterns and themes identified . 

 My data is based on 20 in - depth phone interviews I had conducted with current readers using a   set of questions I had formulated . I had an interview quota of 50 - 50 for regular readers and   actively disengaged readers . 

 Application 

 In the consulting industry , working hours are based on utilisation rate , i.e. most employees have a   set target of hours to be charged to project work – some as high as 90 % . Given the current   challenging economic environment , I was unable to gather a cohort to undertake the mind   mapping exercise together as a team due to management ’s heavy focus on immediate revenue   generating activities . 

 I improvised by first doing the ground work of identifying patterns and themes . I would pore over   the interviews and extracted comments that gave key insights and write them on a Post - It note   and then stuck it to a giant A3 Post - it note and slowly watched the themes emerge . 

 To meet the “ group think ” criteria , I invited three colleagues to review the mind map to ensure key   themes have been identified and nothing has been overlooked . 

 While my colleagues all agreed on the themes and patterns identified , the real challenge however   was moving from a “ label ” to an insight statement . For example , one of the themes identified was   “ I want more case studies ” . As I dug further the insight statement emerged as “ what are new ways   I can share opportunities and demonstrate my thought leadership and expertise in that field ” . In   order to reveal the real insight behind a statement , I had to keep asking why . It was also   interesting to see the relationship between clusters emerge , and there were many ! 

 Translating the insight statements into design criteria was easier than expected and it was this   part of the exercise that I could see how mind mapping is a natural segway to “ What if ” . 

 Insights 

 The “ aha ! ” moments came when I had to dig deep to search for the insight statements . When I did   find the ‘ meaning ’ behind these statements , it became very apparent what my design criteria   would be . Mind mapping also forced me to confront previously held perceptions I had of what   readers wanted . 

 I also now understand why it was pertinent to do the exercise as a team . Not only does this   prevent confirmation bias when looking for emerging patterns and themes , diversity of thought   and perspective were needed in order to identify different , and less subtle , themes and to   understand different perspective of truth behind statements from interviewees . 

 Approach 

 Mind mapping was the perfect introductory tool to Design Thinking for my learning and project . It   helped identify unconscious assumptions I had about the root cause . 

 If I were to use mind mapping as a tool for another project , I feel it would be helpful to undertake a   scoping exercise before jumping into the “ What is ” . A scoping exercise would help clarify what the   focal question really should be . For example in this case study , the focal question should be “ How   can I inspire problem solving and innovation ” , rather than , “ How can this newsletter inspire   problem solving and innovation . ” The latter focal question assumes that the newsletter is the   correct tool to inspire change . Fortunately in this case , a newsletter is the right tool , but it is not   the only tool . 

 This exercise helped me understand the value design thinking brings to the innovation process .   There is no right or wrong answers , you need to just keep testing your assumptions . It ’s about   incremental changes until you get cut through . 


EMAIL: 
ID_NUM: 
NAME_STUDENT: 
PHONE_NUM: 
STREET_ADDRESS: 
URL_PERSONAL: 
USERNAME: 

### Task: You are a PII (Personal Identity Information) Detection. Given a essays written by students, you have to identify ONLY the following:
NAME_STUDENT - The full or partial name of a student that is not necessarily the author of the essay. This excludes instructors, authors, and other person names.
EMAIL - A student’s email address.
USERNAME - A student's username on any platform.
ID_NUM - A number or sequence of characters that could be used to identify a student, such as a student ID or a social security number.
PHONE_NUM - A phone number associated with a student.
URL_PERSONAL - A URL that might be used to identify a student.
STREET_ADDRESS - A full or partial street address that is associated with the student, such as their home address.
### Input: Reflection : Mind mapping 

 Challenge 

 I am a communications specialist working for an engineering consultancy and the editor for one of   the markets ’ internal newsletter . It is my goal to make the newsletter the single vital source of   information all things related to the industry . We have about 260 recipients on our email list . 

 Despite having previously conducted informal interviews with several readers on what they would   like to read in an internal market newsletter , it was disappointing to see that since launch , open   rates and click through rates have been hovering below the 50 % mark . This is on the lower end of   the scale when compared to open rates for other internal newsletters - historical data indicates   that a 70 % open rate is considered a success . 

 The newsletter has been identified as a key channel in which management can engage directly   with employees , therefore it is crucial that the open rates and click through rates are improved . 

 Selection and application 

 I have chosen to apply mind mapping for the “ What is ” phase . It is a group exercise tool which   helps me identify key themes and clusters from a set of data . It is an effective tool for   communicating large quantity of data in a format that is meaningful and can be easily understood .   It will also help me transition from “ What is ” to “ What if ” by drawing out the design criteria for my   revamped newsletter based on the patterns and themes identified . 

 My data is based on 20 in - depth phone interviews I had conducted with current readers using a   set of questions I had formulated . I had an interview quota of 50 - 50 for regular readers and   actively disengaged readers . 

 Application 

 In the consulting industry , working hours are based on utilisation rate , i.e. most employees have a   set target of hours to be charged to project work – some as high as 90 % . Given the current   challenging economic environment , I was unable to gather a cohort to undertake the mind   mapping exercise together as a team due to management ’s heavy focus on immediate revenue   generating activities . 

 I improvised by first doing the ground work of identifying patterns and themes . I would pore over   the interviews and extracted comments that gave key insights and write them on a Post - It note   and then stuck it to a giant A3 Post - it note and slowly watched the themes emerge . 

 To meet the “ group think ” criteria , I invited three colleagues to review the mind map to ensure key   themes have been identified and nothing has been overlooked . 

 While my colleagues all agreed on the themes and patterns identified , the real challenge however   was moving from a “ label ” to an insight statement . For example , one of the themes identified was   “ I want more case studies ” . As I dug further the insight statement emerged as “ what are new ways   I can share opportunities and demonstrate my thought leadership and expertise in that field ” . In   order to reveal the real insight behind a statement , I had to keep asking why . It was also   interesting to see the relationship between clusters emerge , and there were many ! 

 Translating the insight statements into design criteria was easier than expected and it was this   part of the exercise that I could see how mind mapping is a natural segway to “ What if ” . 

 Insights 

 The “ aha ! ” moments came when I had to dig deep to search for the insight statements . When I did   find the ‘ meaning ’ behind these statements , it became very apparent what my design criteria   would be . Mind mapping also forced me to confront previously held perceptions I had of what   readers wanted . 

 I also now understand why it was pertinent to do the exercise as a team . Not only does this   prevent confirmation bias when looking for emerging patterns and themes , diversity of thought   and perspective were needed in order to identify different , and less subtle , themes and to   understand different perspective of truth behind statements from interviewees . 

 Approach 

 Mind mapping was the perfect introductory tool to Design Thinking for my learning and project . It   helped identify unconscious assumptions I had about the root cause . 

 If I were to use mind mapping as a tool for another project , I feel it would be helpful to undertake a   scoping exercise before jumping into the “ What is ” . A scoping exercise would help clarify what the   focal question really should be . For example in this case study , the focal question should be “ How   can I inspire problem solving and innovation ” , rather than , “ How can this newsletter inspire   problem solving and innovation . ” The latter focal question assumes that the newsletter is the   correct tool to inspire change . Fortunately in this case , a newsletter is the right tool , but it is not   the only tool . 

 This exercise helped me understand the value design thinking brings to the innovation process .   There is no right or wrong answers , you need to just keep testing your assumptions . It ’s about   incremental changes until you get cut through .
### Output: 