COURSE OVERVIEW:

Welcome to the Innovative Thinking Skills Development course. This program will equip you with the mindsets, thinking skills, and structured innovation methods required to generate original ideas, challenge assumptions, and create meaningful solutions to complex problems. You will explore why innovation is essential, how innovative thinking develops, and how individuals and organisations can strengthen their creative capabilities in an increasingly dynamic and uncertain world.

This course begins by examining why innovate and the innovation imperative, exploring the organisational, social, and economic reasons that make innovation essential for long-term success. You will explore the reasons why you and your organisation must tackle innovation proactively, followed by an exploration of how innovative thinking can be developed by changing attitudes, creating conducive spaces, and embracing rules and deadlines that stimulate focus and discipline. This section also examines the major world challenges in need of solutions and provides a foundation for understanding what innovation is, the myths surrounding innovation, and a brief history of innovation across human development. You will also explore Innovation as a Janus proposition—its capacity to look both forward and backward—along with the darker sides of innovation, including bad innovations that were intended to produce positive results but ultimately caused harm. Additional examples include innovation by accident, innovation that emerges from thinking “in another box”, and innovation generated by people outside the field.

The next learning area focuses on the mindset and attributes of innovators. You will explore the first step in innovation, how to let go of the past to make space for the future, and what characterises an innovative mind. This section examines the innovative traits common among successful innovators, the thinking skills required for innovation, and the key characteristics of creativity. You will also explore the principles of systems thinking and how holistic perspectives enable more effective problem solving. This section further examines the role of emotional intelligence in innovative thinking—particularly around collaboration, empathy, and managing uncertainty—and the role of critical thinking in evaluating ideas, identifying assumptions, and refining concepts.

A further part of the program explores the challenging processes of innovation and the structured methods used to turn ideas into workable solutions. You will explore various innovation processes, including flowchart-based innovation, customer-focused flowcharting, the Creative Problem Solving Institute’s innovation process, the attribute listing innovation process, and the blue ocean innovation process. These methods provide practical, repeatable structures that help innovators break down problems, discover opportunities, generate alternatives, and move ideas into development with confidence.

By the end of this course you will be able to understand the drivers of innovation, apply innovative thinking techniques, develop creative mindsets, use structured innovation processes, challenge conventional thinking, and contribute to meaningful solutions that address organisational needs and broader societal challenges.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

By the end of this course, you will be able to understand:

·       Why innovate?

·       The innovation imperative

·       The reasons for you and your organisation to tackle innovation

·       How to develop innovative thinking by changing attitudes?

·       How to develop innovative thinking by creating conducive spaces?

·       How to develop innovative thinking by embracing rules and deadlines?

·       The world challenges that need solutions

·       What is innovation?

·       The myths of innovation

·       A brief history of innovation 

·       Innovation: A Janus proposition

·       The darker sides of innovation

·       The bad innovations in history that are supposed to create positive results

·       Examples of innovation by accident

·       Innovation by getting into another box

·       Innovation by those outside the field

·       The first step in innovation

·       How to let go of the past and make space for the future?

·       The innovative mind

·       The innovative traits

·       The thinking skills for innovators

·       The key characteristics of creativity

·       The principles of systems thinking

·       Emotional intelligence and innovative thinking

·       Critical thinking

·       The challenging process of innovation

·       The flowcharts process of innovation

·       The customer-focused flowcharting innovation process

·       The creative problem solving institute innovation process

·       The attribute listing process of innovation

·       The blue ocean innovation process

COURSE DURATION:

The typical duration of this course is approximately 2-3 hours to complete. Your enrolment is Valid for 12 Months. Start anytime and study at your own pace.

ASSESSMENT:

A simple 10-question true or false quiz with Unlimited Submission Attempts.

CERTIFICATION:

Upon course completion, you will receive a customised digital “Certificate of Completion”.