Hits and HotSpots

Hits and Hotspots (DI Roadmap pg. 122)

Hits and Hot Spots is a generating and focusing tool that can be used when the team has generated a long list of ideas that need to be focused.

You will need flip chart paper, sticky notes, and colored sticky dots for this tool.

Choose two or three topics that relate to the Challenge solution (e.g., story location & time, story plots, characters, or set ideas). Write the topics on the top of individual flip chart papers. Give each team member several sticky notes. Each team member silently lists as many ideas as they can, one idea per sticky note. Team members place their sticky notes on the appropriate flipchart. Encourage them to list as many ideas as they can, asking them to dig a bit deeper.

Divide the team members into groups based on the number of flip charts you have. Assign a group of team members to each flip chart. Each group will cluster all the ideas on the flip chart into related categories. For example, all outer space locations might form a category.

Ask each group to discuss the categories and ideas on the flipchart.

Give each team member a specified number of sticky dots (10 is a good number, but you can choose a lower or higher number of dots). Explain that the dots represent their level of approval of an idea. Have the team members put one dot on each idea they really like. (If you give them more than 10 dots, the team members can “spend” their dots as they wish – with more dots representing more approval).

When the team is finished with the dots, the team members will probably see some agreement around categories and ideas. The team can use the same tool or a different tool to focus those ideas even further.

😀 Team Manager Tip: Hits and Hotspots does not have to be done silently. The team can generate idea lists together and the Team Manager can write down the ideas on sticky notes exactly as the team says them. The Team Manager could also list the ideas on flipchart paper which could make it difficult to group the ideas, but the sticky dots can still be used to identify the most popular ideas.