APPLYING 'SCAMPER' FOR CREATIVE SOLUTIONS

-Sadasivam, Consultant

Creativity is a mental process of generating new ideas, concepts and associations.

Innovation is the capacity to:

·         connect intellectual and organisational resources

·         Convert that into novel things

·         create value to products, services and processes

Innovation is the outcome of creative process.  Innovation begins with creativity.

SCAMPER is one of the techniques that can be used to generate creative solutions to a problem. It also helps develop new ways of looking at things and processes. In team settings it is an effective tool. SCAMPER is easy to use. SCAMPER provides a framework for thinking and asking questions in the process of creative problem solving.

The acronym SCAMPER is expanded as follows:

S = Substitute

C = Combine

A = Adapt

M = Modify

P = Put to another use

E = Eliminate

R = Reverse

The problem or challenge is first stated.  It could be a challenge in personal life or it could be a product, service or process that we want to improve.  After defining the problem a set of questions are asked as per the SCAMPER checklist.

Examples:

S (Substitute): "What can I substitute in this process?"

C (Combine): "How can I combine other parts or processes?"

A (Adapt): "What can I adapt from ‘XYZ’ process or product?"

M (Modify): "What can I modify in this process or product or service?"

P (Put to another use): "How can I put ‘ABC’ to other uses?"

E (Eliminate): "What can I eliminate in this process or product?"

R (Reverse): "How reverse the way the process or product that is currently in use?"

These questions will help us think differently about our problems and help us find innovative solutions.

Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them. - Albert Einstein

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