It is an astonishing fact that there are laws of nature, rules that summarize conveniently--not just qualitatively, but quantitatively--how the world works"--Carl Sagan, Astronomer (1934-1996)

Topic of the Month: Dynamism
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A key predictive line of evolution within the TRIZ methodology is that everything (products, systems, organizations) becomes more dynamic with time. Using this concept to assist in new product and business planning is essential to stay ahead of the competition. What exactly is dynamism or the concept of something becoming more dynamic? It's more than the simple notion of change. It's pro-active change and change in response to, and possibly ahead of, circumstances or information. Think about how organizations change their behavior in response to a crisis in terms of business, a PR incident, or loss of key people. This is reactive dynamism. In the last newsletter, we talked about "doing in advance". Dynamism in many cases planning about this in a very extensive way. What are all the possible things that might happen and is my organization dynamic enough to respond and survive? Think about things as simple as airplane boarding, toothbrush handles, package delivery, types of American Express cards, etc. as other examples.

Those of you who have attended our workshops know of our table saw example where we trace the evolution of table saws from one dimensional cutting to a tilting, two dimensional design and finally to a 360 degree rotating design. These patents cover over 4 years of time and belong to 3 different companies. What if you were company number 1 and had knowledge of the TRIZ Lines of Evolution. You wouldn't just rely on consumer research (frequently consumers don't tell you things they think can't be done), but you would think in terms of dynamism and shape your product development as well as consumer research (what do you think about a 360 degree rotating saw? Wow! Is that possible? Sure!). You would patent the concept early on while developing the product details and then put a fence around your new product or collect royalties. Take a look at the latest Skymall catalog and you will (finally!) see a 360 rotating shaver from Schick. How long have electric shavers been around? How long have they frustrated users who can't seem to match the head profile with that of their face? If there are design contradictions that prevent total dynamism, use the other parts of the TRIZ took kit to resolve them. What else could a shave head be "responsive" to? Face chemistry? Length of whiskers? Desired noise volume? Time since blade change? Take every product, system, service, and organization and ask yourself, how can I make it more dynamic and responsive? To what?

We are in the process of forming small group consortia of non-competing companies to do joint problem solving and have discussions with outside speakers. A low fixed cost per company will support our efforts with the group and content of sessions will be determined by group members. No sales pitches from us or anyone else. Let us know if you're interested in participating.