This is a talk I gave at Yahoo! Archiects conference. uCome up with innovative solutions to architecture problems, taking inspiration from buildings and nature. Techniques for brainstorming and lateral thinking.

1. Innovation & Architecture
Y! Architects Conference
Viswanath Poosala (vishy)
poosala@alcatel-lucent.com| twitter: vishyp
Head of Bell Labs – India

2. Random Slide #1: Let’s think outside the basket

3. Impressions
•3 | Architecture Innovations

4. The Big Picture
Architects think of the big picture,
dream of an elegant world
• Developers think they are just
“thinkers” and “dreamers” ☺
• Should every architect hack?
•4 | Eingeering innovation | 2009

5. The Idea
Architects are passionate about
their ideas
• Ideas go obsolete
• Design for short life?

6. The Individual
Architects are creative individuals
• Risk of creating mismatched
systems
• Break the silos: Fun Joint
Projects?
• Accept mismatch?

7. The Blueprint
Architects feel responsible for everything
• They ARE - esp. for the things that
can’t be easily fixed ☺
• Debugging for architecture?
• Adaptive architecture?

8. Random slide #2

9. Innovations & Inspirations
•9 | Architecture Innovations

10. Innovations in all places
Product, Design Process
Create something new that is useful (worth paying for)

11. We hardly think about thinking
• Critical thinking: Is it TRUE?
• Creative thinking: What else is possible?!

12. Beaten Track
Side track
• Logical push: This is
so. Hence this follows.
• Creative Pull: This Main track
COULD be so. If we
Direct
make that jump, then Roundabout
what?

13. 3 tricks for generating new ideas
• Pick an unrelated (even
random!) word
– Smoking + Frog A cigar that
goes of intermittently, like a
hopping frog
• Suggest the outrageous
– No one buys books anymore
• Ask the opposite
– Shopping What if the shop
pays the buyers?
– Audience speaks. Speakers
take notes

14. A pattern for brainstorming
Study
Create
Enhance
Critique
Refine
Decide

15. Organization Support
Bell Labs Ventures Business Market
Business Incubator Group
Expertise Support
Target Opportunity
High ROI
1 2 Venture 3 Significant Revenue
execution
Early Customer
Interaction
Open to all employees
All the Excitement and Passion of a Start-up to Work on
Cutting-Edge Technologies

16. Organic Inspirations
•16 | Eingeering innovation |
2009

17. Dynamic Inspirations
•17 | Eingeering innovation |
2009

18. Roadmap: Keep it simple

19. A-B-Cs of Prioritizing Ideas
•A: Can’t drive the car
without it
•B: Would consider paying
for that A/C
•C: Will take it if it’s free

20. Remember who you are building it for

21. Bell Labs India
Innovating for Emerging Markets and Beyond,
with Research & Startups in One Place
•21 | Eingeering innovation |
2009