Drawing Conclusions

Back in high school, I was able to take a course in film production. This class took us through the basics of making a film from start to beginning. It was very hands on. Throughout the semester, we worked in groups to produce short films of our own creation. One of the most tedious parts of making a film was storyboarding. This was the process of physically drawing out every shot and transition from start to end. It was tedious, but I quickly realized the value when it came time to actually shoot our film because we knew exactly what to do and when. If our storyboard was lacking in detail, we quickly realized how much more time it would take to make decisions when the camera was rolling. The better our storyboard plan was, the easier it was to efficiently shoot a film. I recently watched a TED talk that made me think of this notion. Tom Wujec talks about the value of visual planning as a group in his talk, “Got a wicked problem? First, tell me how you make toast?” Wujec outlines how planning things out visually as a group allows you to synthesize several points of view, much like making a storyboard helps plan out camera shots. This technique can be applied to numerous levels of business from decision making to aspirations for the company’s future vision. He uses the example of making toast as a starting point but explains how his technique can work for much larger business issues. Drawing out possible paths of action, made of nodes and links, can align executive teams. Nodes are the tangible steps and links connect them together. I have never heard of this as a business strategy prior to watching the TED talk, but I would be curious to see how this would work in the healthcare field.  I could imagine the resistance that would come from a board of administrators if asked to draw out their plan, but I think it could provide really valuable when trying to figure out a solution that everyone can agree on. Because everyone starts by separately drawing their path and then working to bring the ideas into one best practice, the process naturally breeds compromise and discussion. Although it may not be a realistic practice for every medical facility, those in need of an extreme overhaul or faced with a particularly tricky problem may find this useful. Although this may not be realistic for many organizations, I could see potential value for different healthcare groups at certain points in their time!

Link to Wujec’s TED talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/tom_wujec_got_a_wicked_problem_first_tell_me_how_you_make_toast