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Viewing 10 of 16 gradable items Saturday, 15 October 2016

Daniel James Middlemiss (Activity) Exit

BRD Consolidated Reective Journal

Posted by Daniel James Middlemiss atSaturday, 15 October 2016 13:33:11
Last Edited:Saturday, 15 October 2016 13:35:30

Week1
Wow,whatastarttoacourse!ThiswasthefirstcourseintheeMBAthatIhaveenrolledinwithamixofmastersdisciplines.
WehadalreadybeenrandomlygroupedwithdifferentmastersstudentsandIcouldalreadytellthatthiswasgoingtobea
challengingexperience.

WhenitcametoselectinggroupsitwaslikeallthenoneMBAstudentsweredeerinheadlights,theireyesdartingbetween
eachotherandthehandfulofmoremature,extrovertedindividualswhohadintroducedthemselveswithgreatconfidenceand
vigor.AlmostasiftoaskwhichoneamIgoingtoget?

Thisweekwewouldproduceapersona(seebelow)aswellasaCLNcontractwhichwoulddictatethewaywewouldoperate
asaCLN.Interestingly,thiswasthefirsttimeIhadcompletedaCLNcontract,somethingthatIthinkisverypowerfuland
shouldabsolutelybeintroducedacrossalleMBAcourses.

Figure1:Personal:DanielMiddlemiss

Week2
Thisweekweexploredthewickedproblemingreatdetail:Howtoaffordablyenabletravelerstoimpactpositivelyonclimate
andtalkedaboutdifferenttypesoftoolsthatcouldbeusedtodevelopvaluepropositions.Lookingaroundtheroomdesign
thinkingseemedtobequiteaforeignconcept,howeversomethingfortheeMBAstudentsthathasbeenintegratedthroughthe
entireprogram,sothiswasalotofrepeatedmaterial.

WhatIhadntbeenexposedtowastheBusinessModelCanvass(BMC).Thistoolistheultimatein'onepagers'andIcould
instantlyseehowIcouldusethisasatoolinpractice.IhadseenthebelowimagefloataroundLinkedInovertheyearsand
wasafairlyaccuraterepresentationofmanyorganizations.
Figure2:ManagementistheEnemyofInnovation(GameChanger,2014)

Ofteninworkplaceswehavepeoplewithgreatideasbutperhapswithoutthecommercialacumentoconsideriftheideais
actuallyviable.Withoutanywaytocollaborativelyiteratetheidea,oftenthepathofleastresistanceseesaleadersimplyshoot
downtheideawithverylittleexplanation.Whiletheleadermayhavebeensurethattheinitialideawasnotviable,this
approachhamperscreativityanddoesnotallowthepersonwiththeinitialideatolearnfromtheexperience.Oftenthisleaves
themdejectedandlesslikelytoofferasuggestioninfuture.

InnovationissomethingthatItrytoencouragewithinmyteams,however,oftenitishardtogetideasoffthegroundfloor.By
sharingtheBMCtoolwithmyteammembers,itcanbeusedasaguideforallthingsthatneedtobeconsideredbecauseit
breaksapartabusinessmodelintologicalbitesizepieces.Eachpieceisinterdependentbutcanbeworkshoppedindividually,
providingfocus.Icouldalmostmakeitcompulsoryforeverystaffmembertocreateanewbusinessmodelcanvasseachmonth
toencourage.

Schrage(2016)wroteanarticleintheHarvardBusinessReviewabouthowcompaniesarenowmakinginnovationeveryones
job.ThepiecediscussestheideathatinnovationisnolongerrunandimplementedbyClevelexecutives,butratherits
championedbyevangelistswhoarebecominginnovationtrainers,creatingandpromotinganinnovationfunnelthroughevery
individualwithintheorganization.Ibelievecompanieswhoadoptthiskindofmentalitywillnotonlybreedafantasticculture,
butwillalsobemoreagileandresponsivetochangeswithintheirindustry.AtoolliketheBCMisdefinitelyusefulforan
organizationtryingtopromoteaninnovativeculture.

DuringourtutorialmyCLNstartedexploringtheideastodevelopavaluepropositionforacustomertohelpsolvethewicked
problem.Thiswaspainstakingsosaytheleast.Despitethelectureandadditionalfocusondesignthinkinginclasstheteam
werejustlookingfortheeasyanswer,likemakeanewhelmet,orcreateanappthatmakesiteasierforinternationalstudentsto
travelduringholidays.Iwastryingtoencouragecreativityandtoassisttheminbreakingdowntheproblem,butitwasdifficult.
Alloftheideaswerevalidbutnoneofthemwerereallyfocusingonfixingthewickedproblem.EventuallyIcameupwiththe
ideaofstoppingpeoplefromtravelingaltogether.Thisideawasinspiredbythe2010TedTalkbyDavidMcCandlesswherehe
describedavolcanothatwhilereleasingagreatdealofcarbonintotheatmosphere,simultaneouslygroundedenoughplanesto
actuallybethefirstevercarbonneutralvolcano(TEDEd,2012).Unfortunately,despitemystoryandvideo,theideawas
receivedwithblankstaresofconfusion.

The beauty of data visualization - David Mc...

Video1:Thebeautyofdatavisualization(TEDEd,2012)

Weallseemedtobeextremelylimitedbyourownbias,framingideasbasedonourownpersonalexperiencesoftraveling.
Walsh(1995)discussescognitiveframesasmentallyimposedtemplatesthatcauseustoseetheworldthroughalensbased
onourownexperience.IhadneverbeeninasituationwheremylenswassofarremovedfromthatofeveryoneofmyCLN
teammembers.Itwasgettinglateandwehadexchangedenoughconfusedlooks.Isuggestedweallgoawayandcomeback
thefollowingweekwithsomenewideasafterdoingsomemoreindividualbrainstorming.
 Week3
Thisweekstutorialwasabreathoffreshairafterthepreviousweekscreativechallenges.IfeelthisallowedmyCLNtoreally
understandtheconceptofdesignthinkingandthepowerofaniterativeprocesstodefinetheproblemandcreateasolution
throughconstantlycapturingfeedback.

"Inorderunderstanddesignthinking,somepeopleneedtobehelped(forced)todosomedesignthinking."Daniel
Middlemiss2016

IwasluckyenoughtoworkwithBenDeAmiciswhoIhadworkedwithinothercoursesthroughouttheeMBA.Wewereableto
collaborateandprovidedetailedandhonestfeedbacktooneanotherwhichultimatelyledtodesigningfantasticsolutions(even
ifIdosaysomyself)!Itturnedoutthatwehadalotincommonwhenitcametoimprovingthegiftgivingexperience,which
madeitveryeasytoempathize.Theprocessiscapturedinthebelowimage:

Figure3:TheUltimateGiftGivingExperience:CocreatedbyDanielMiddlemissandBenDeAmicis

Afterthisactivity,itwasbacktotheCLNgroupstodefineourcustomerandvalueproposition.Unfortunately,theweekof
brainstorminghadveryminimalyield.Atthispointintime,Ithoughtitstimetogetthismovingandstopbeatingaroundthe
bush.Icontinuedtodiscussmyideaofanaccreditationsystemwherewepromoteflexibleworkplaces.Theideawouldhave
twocustomersegments,beingthetraveller(employee)andthecompany(employer)whowouldusetheaccreditationto
promotethemselvesandattractthehighestqualitytalent.Iexplainedthattheconceptwoulddelivervaluetotwocustomer
segmentswhichOsterwalderandPigneur(2010)defineasmultisidedplatforms(ormultisidedmarkets).Inthistypeof
businessmodelbothsegmentsareequallyimportantandthemodelwillfailunlessyoucreateaneffectivevaluepropositionto
eachtypeofcustomer.

Ihadtakenanactiveleadershipwithinthegroup,butIwasconsciousthatIdidn'twanttodominatethegrouportheideas,soI
openedthediscussionbackuptoseeiftherewereanyotherideas.Jesseresurfacedtheinternationalstudenttraveler
travelinghometochinafortheholidays.Igenuinelydidn'tunderstandthevalueproposition.Welettheideamarinateamongst
theteamforsometimeuntilIsaidwehadtomakeadecision.Wedecidedtogowithmine,thoughIcanthelpbutthinkImight
havedominatedthedecision.WeplannedtomeetthefollowingweektodeveloptheBMC.

Week4
Thisweekwhenwemetasateam,Kaiopenedbysayingthatmyideamightbetoocomplicatedandthatteamwouldpreferto
dosomethingmoresimple.Iaskediftheywouldlikemetotrytoexplainitonemoretimeandtheywerehappytohearmeout.
Byexplainingslowlyandaskingquestionsthroughoutmyexplanation,Iquicklylearnedthatallalong,muchofthelanguageI
wasusingwasnotbeingcomprehended.Infact,noneofthemhadanyideawhataccreditationactuallymeant.Itwasduring
thisconversationthatIrealisedthebestwaytoexplainmyideafurther,wasntbyspeakingaboutitinalanguagethatwasnt
nativeforthem,insteadIstartedtocompletetheBusinessModelCanvass.
WOW.AsIwent,theteamwerewatchingthedocumentongoogledocsandcopyingwordsoutandsearchingfortheir
definition.Iusedthehearttickasanexampleofhowconsumersdecidewhattoeat.UnknowinglyIwasprototyping!After
about30minutes,wehadourfirstiterationofabusinessmodelcanvassandtheteamunderstoodmyidea.Iaskediftheystill
wantedtochangetosomethingmoresimplebutunanimouslytheysaidtheywerehappytorunwiththeaccreditationmodel.
ThiswasaMASSIVEmilestoneinourworkasateam.

Wefinishedthesessionbyplanningwhatwewouldneedtoresearchinordertovalidatethisbusinessmodel.Wecameup
withthefollowingfourkeyareasthatwouldrequireresearch:

(1) Justify the positive impact on climate of these customers

What percentage of workers work in an ofce environment (eg. 50%)

What percentage of workers travel via car to work?
How many cars are on the road per day
How long do they travel for?
Calculate the impact of reducing the amount of workers travelling in 1 organization
Calculate the impact of reducing the amount of workers travelling across all organizations (market saturation or total
market opportunity) Population x % ofce workers x % car travelers x Average time travelling
measure the co2 levels on # roads in Melbourne as well as the corresponding # cars

(2) Justify the value being provided to the customer (traveler)

Do our customers want to work from home?

Would they be more likely to work for an organization that does offer exible working arrangements?
What is our ideal traveler within this market, who would get more or less value? EG: IT Industry, Accountants? Idea
is to rene target market based on providing the most value
(3) Justify the value being provided to the (company)

Isitcurrentlyofferedandreasonwhy/whynot?

Whataretherisks?

Doescreatingthisflexibleworkingenvironmentactuallybenefittheorganization?

Basedonresultsmaydefinecustomersegmentmoreaccurately(EGperhapsretailersarelesslikelytoadoptthese
kindsofconditionswhencomparedtoITcompanies)?

Whatisouridealcompanyinthismarket?EGSoftwareengineeringcompanieswheregoodtalentishardtofindand
conditionsarehighlyvalued?

(4)Industry/academicresearchthatpromotesflexibleworkingenvironments(company)

Ididsomequickonlineresearchwiththeteamtoshowthemwheretofindthisinformationandwewereonourway.Iwasable
todemonstratehowtofindinformationonvehicleemissionstandardsviatheDepartmentofInfrastructureandRegional
Developmentwebsitewhichincludedanincredibleamountofinformation(DepartmentofInfrastructureandRegional
Development,2016).IwasalsoabletofindanarticleontheHarvardBusinessReviewthatpromotedtheideathatallowing
employeestoworkfromhomewouldraiseproductivity(Bloom,2014).
However,allofasuddenIhadarealization,whatareweactuallysupposedtobedoinghere?Shouldwebedoingthe
research?Whatisresearchdesignexactly?Iquicklysearchedforwhattoincludeinaresearchproposalandfoundagood
referenceontheMonashUniversitywebsitethatexplainedwhatshouldbeincludedinaresearchproposal(MonashEducation,
2016).Butbeforewewentanyfurther,IthoughtitmightbeworthbookingameetingwithTerrytomakesureweareonthe
righttrack

Week5
ThisweekwemetwithTerrybeforethetutorialtotestsomeofourassumptionsandourefforttodate.Pleasingly,Terry
mentionedthatwewereprogressingverywellandwereaheadofthecurve.Whenwesharedourfourpointplanforresearchit
wasprettyclearthatwewereovercookingtheamountofresearchweneededtocompleteandmayhavecomplicatedthingsby
havingtwocustomers.ThiswastheahhuhmomentformewhenIfinallyputthethreewordsbusiness,researchanddesign
together.Ifinallyunderstoodwhatthecoursewasaimingtodeliverandhowtotackletheresearchproposal.Wedidn'tneedto
completetheresearch,weneededtodesignin.

Point1:Justifythepositiveimpactonclimateofthesecustomersrequiressomeinitialresearchtobecompletedandcanbe
usedtoframethepurposeoftheresearchproposal.
Point4:Industry/academicresearchthatpromotesflexibleworkingenvironmentsshouldbeincludedasapartoftheliterature
reviewanddoesnotneedtobedesigned.

Point2and3arewhatweneedtofocusonandwedonotneedtocompletethisresearch,butratherdesignhowtheresearch
shouldbeundertaken.Butwashavingtwocustomersegmentsoverlycomplicated?

Itwaswhilstreadingthechapter3ofBusinessModelGenerationthatIconcludedthathavingtwocustomersegmentswas
absolutelyrequiredforourmodel.OsterwalderandPigneur(2010)concludethatbusinessmodelinnovatorsshouldavoid
focusingexclusivelyonexistingcustomersegmentsandlookfornewandunreachedsegments.Ourmodelwilleffectively
provideaservicetotwouniqueandnewsegmentswithanofferingthatsimplydoesntexist.

IwentontogothroughtheprocessofcreatinganempathymapwhichwasoriginallydevelopedbyXplaneforbothofmy
customersafterlearningmoreaboutthetoolfromwatchingthevideobelow(XPLANE,1993).

Customer empathy map

Video2:Customerempathymap(OptimaTraining(UK)Limited,2015)

Thistoolhelpedmecomeupwiththefollowingconclusions(assumptions)byempathisingwithmycustomers.IfIama
talentedemployeewhowantstocompareprospectiveworkplaces,thereisnosystemoraccreditationthatcancomparenon
financialincentivesinanunbiasedwaywithoutalotofeffortfrommepotentiallygoingthroughmultipleinterviewsfirst.Equally,
thereisnoeffectivewayforworkplacesthatdooffergreatconditionstobeabletopromotethemselvesortobeabletouse
thesenonfinancialincentivestomaximizeatalentacquisitioncompetitiveadvantage.

SonowImconvinced,butnextweekIhavetotrytoconvinceothers

Week6
Thisweekwewereabletopresentourbusinessmodelcanvassandwereabletospendsometimelisteningtothefeedbackof
theclassandTerryonhowwewentexplainingthemodel.Onreflection,thiswasanabsolutelyfantasticimmersivefocusgroup
thatusedforcedconnectionswithallclassmatessharingtheframedwickedproblemtogeneratenewideasandinsights.Inot
onlyenjoyedpresenting,butlovedbeingabletoprovidefeedbackandideastootherteams.Thiswasbyfarthebest
experienceIhavehadindeliveringandwatchingpresentationsinanyeducationalenvironment.

InowknowwhatTerrymeantbybeingaheadofthecurve,becausewewerealreadywellintoourseconditerationofthe
businessmodelcanvassandwewerestillpresentingourfirst.Someofthefeedbackreceivedfromtheclassquestionedthe
viabilityofthebusinessmodelwhichIbelievewasbecausewehadn'tclearlyidentifiedthetwosegmentsanddistinctvalue
propositions.Wehadn'ttoldthestory.

ErikNissenisquotedinhisTEDxtalkonthepowerofstorytellingthat,itsreallysmarttodothescriptbeforethefilm,whichis
tothatsayyouactuallyneedtohavethestorywelldefinedbeforeyoustarttryingtocommunicateit(TEDxTalks,2013).This
wassupportedinDavidRiemerslectureonstorytellingwhereIwassurprisedtolearnthatthereasonwhyaPixarfilmtakes
fiveyearstoproduce,isn'tbecauseofthetimeittakestoproducetheamazingcomputergeneratedimagery,butrather,thefirst
fouryearsarespentperfectingthestory(Riemers,2016).Inmypresentation,Ihadfocusedintentlyonthesolutiontothe
problem,Ihadneglectedtoemphasisewhatproblemwasinthefirstplaceandtellmycustomersstories.

 The power of storytelling: Erik Nissen Joha...

Video3:The power of storytelling(TEDxTalks,2013)

Getting Your Story Straight by David Reimer

Video 4: Getting your story straight(Riemers, 2016)

Week7&8
Thisweekthelecturewascenteredaroundtheresearchiceberg.TodateIknewthatIneededtodesignsomeresearch,butI
didn'tactuallyknowwheretostart.Iwascapableofunderstandingresearchmethodsandthebasicsofresearch
methodologies,howeverIhadabsolutelynocomprehensionofontologyorepistemologyorwhyitwasimportantbutIwas
abouttobeenlightened.

Ontology(thenatureofreality):
Realistunderstandonetruthtocreateknowledge
Relativismtherearemultipletruthswhichevolveandchangetocreateknowledge

Epistemology(themethodofinquiry):
Objectivist:Youhaveatheoryofwhatisthetruththatyouaretryingtoprove
Constructivist:Interpretismisyourepistemology:thetruthisrevealed.Thereissomethingtobelearntbystoriesandnarrative.
Thisisdeepandphilosophical

Inordertodesignresearch,youabsolutelyhavetostartwithdefiningsomeparametersincludingyourownontologyand
epistemology.ListeningtotheinterviewwithDrMartinWooditwasinterestingthatmostoftheresearchconductedinrelation
businessiscurrentlydominatedbytheobjectivistviewoftruth(ADGBusinessRMIT,2016).Tome,thiswascrazy!!I
understoodthatthereisalongstandinghistoryofthetheoryofbusinessandmanagementwhichispredominantlybasedon
objectiveresearch,butthisalmostdirectlyopposedtheconceptsofdesignthinkingwhichhavebeenusedsuccessfullytobuild
someofthemostamazingproductsandservicesforbusinessesinrecenthistory.

ImtakenbacktothediagramthatIfirstsawduringBusinessinaGlobalContextwhichnotablywasoneofthefirsttimesthat
designthinkinghadbeenpublishedinamanagementjournal.ThediagrampublishedintheAcademyofManagementjournal
inFebruary2015,displaysthreedistinctapproachestotraditionalproblemsolvingEngineering,businessanddesign
(Gruberetal.,2015).Traditionalbusinessproblemsolvingcanbelikenedtotheobjectivistapproachofresearchasitstarts
withknowingtheproblemwhereasthethedesignthinkingapproachgoesthroughadiscoveryphasefirstallowingfordivergent
thinkingtotrulyuncoverthetrueproblem.

Figure4:ManagingbyDesign(Gruberetal.,2015)

Sowhatismyontologyandepistemology?Iwaschallengedbythenotionthatasanindividualyoucouldnotbebothan
objectivistandaconstructivistatthesametime.IthinkIcanappreciatethatbothhavetheirplaceintherightcontexthowever,
ultimately,IleantowardandIbelievetheworldofbusinessshouldbeleaningtowardstherelativism/constructivistapproachto
knowledge.Beinginnovativebynature,thisperspectivesupportswhatIbelievewillcreatethemostmeaningfulbusinesses,
businessesthatIwouldwanttobealignedwith.

Week9&10
ThisweekwewentdeeperwithDr.MartinWood,inperson.Whiletodatewehadtakenalmostablackandwhiteviewofthe
twoperspectivesofknowledgecreation,withinthesetwoperspectivesthereareextremesandevensomecrossover.Icreated
thediagrambelowtotrytosummarisethis.Thishasbeenthroughafewiterations,butmightbesomethingthatcouldbe
furtherdevelopedusingsomedesignthinking!

Figure5:ApproachestoKnowledgeCreation(Middlemiss2016)
Thecoloursaredesignedtorepresenttheextremesofthethinking,withtrueobjectivethinkingbeingabsolutelyblackandwhite
andpostmodernismnotconformingatalltoablackandwhiteworldusingblueandorange.BothSocialandcriticalrealismare
greyasthesecrossoverandhaveaninherentappreciationfortheopposingperspective.IhavealsoplottedwhereIbelieve
designthinkingfitsin.Mypersonalapproachwouldalsobebestalignedwithsocialrealism.

Whenthinkingaboutpostmodernism,Irememberedasceneinoneofmyfavouritemovies,TheMatrix.Infact,thiswholefilm
isalmostametaphorfortheinternalbattleonehaswithunderstandingtheirownontologybyfollowingafictionaljourneyof
characterwhomusttransitionfromNaverealismtopostmodernism.Inthisscene,thespoonanditsphysicalpropertiesare
theobjectivetheory,howeverwhenNeodisregardsthistheory,heisabletoconstructanewtruthaboutwhataspoonisand
cando.Thereisnospoon!

 THE MATRIX: THERE IS NO SPOON

Video5:ThereisnoSpoon(PabloPARRADO,2011)

Duringthisweekwewereabletopresentandgetfeedbackonourfinalpresentation.Again,thiswasafantasticopportunityto
getsomecriticalfeedbackandimprovebeforethefinalpresentation.Ilearntthefollowingaboutmypresentation:

Linkthewickedproblemtellthestoryofthepresentation(showthestatofcartravelandthephoto).

Talkaboutthephotocreateanempathysituation.

IntroducetheBMCstructuretoprovidecontexttotherestofthepresentation.

Focusonvaluedotpointsforbothcustomersinvaluescreen(why?Why?Why?)

Showtheprototypingusingotheraccreditation.

Ifyoudonthaveagoodengaginggroup,plantaseedinthecrowd.

Withoutgoingintothedetailofallofthefeedback,oneofthebestpiecesoffeedbackIreceivedwastocapitalizeonthepower
ofimagestotellastory.Myphotooftheeasternfreewayinpeakhour(below)wasextremelypowerful,butIdidn'tallow
enoughtimenordidIguidetheaudiencetoempathisewiththetravelersinthosecars.ThisgoesbacktothestorytellingandI
candobetterandwilldobetternextweek!

Figure6:Traffic(noauthor)

Thispresentationenabledmetoconfirmmyjudgmentonourresearchdesignwhichwouldincludethefollowing:
ResearchDesignExploratoryResearchUncoverpatterns,ideasandissues
ResearchStrategyQualitativePrimaryDataObservation,Surveys,Interviewsand eventually Prototyping
TimeDimensionCrosssectionalstudyoverashortperiodoftime
DataCollectionDepthandFocusgroupinterviews,openendedquestionnaires

Week11&12
Feedbackwasappliedandthepresentationwentextremelywell.IsloweddownandspentsometimeontheimageryandIwas
abletogettheentiregroupinvolvedbygivingthemamultiplechoicequestion:

"Ifyouhadthechoiceoftwojobs,bothpaythesameamountbutwithone,youwillattendtheoffice5daysaweekandthe
otheryouwillattendtheoffice3daysperweek,whichwouldyouchoose?"Unanimouslytheanswerwas3daysperweek.

Ialsodisplayedanentirepageofaccreditationlogos(whydidntIdothiswhenIwastryingtogetmygrouponboardwiththe
idea!!).Theotherpresentationswerefantastic,wehadagreatgroupthathadsomebrilliantideasandbeautifulpresentations.
WhilemostofthepresentersweretheeMBAstudents,forthestudentsfromotherdisciplinesitwouldhavebeengreattobe
abletoseethepowerofdesignthinkinginactionasthesepresentationswentthroughiterationtoproducewhatwereveryhigh
qualityresults.
Ididnttalkaboutitpreviously,butsomeofthefantasticfeedbackIhadreceivedenabledmetopresenttheideaofcreating
sharedvaluewithourbusinessmodel.Byusingthesharedvaluemodelitsreallycleartoseehowfindinginnovativesolutions
toproblemscancreateawin,win,winsituation.Inourcase,wecreatedabusinessmodelthatcreatedawinforbusiness(the
employer)andsocialvalue(wins)forboththeemployeesandtheclimate.

Figure7:CreatingSharedValuethroughtheTeamTeleportationbusinessmodel

PorterandKramer(2011)explainthetheoryofcreatingsharedvalueeloquently,Sharedvaluecouldreshapecapitalismand
itsrelationshiptosociety.Itcouldalsodrivethenextwaveofinnovationandproductivitygrowthintheglobaleconomyasit
opensmanagerseyestoimmensehumanneedsthatmustbemet,largenewmarketstobeserved,andtheinternalcostsof
socialdeficitsaswellasthecompetitiveadvantagesavailablefromaddressingthem.

Onfinalreflection,theBRDexperiencehasbeenafantasticone.Ihavecertainlyhadsomechallengeswithintegratingwitha
groupofChinesenationalstudentsfromotherdisciplines,limitedprofessionalexperience,Englishspeakingandwritingskills.
However,despitethesechallengestomethecoursewasagreatsuccessasitledmetocreatenewknowledgesummarisedin
thefollowingpoints:

TheBusinessModelCanvasshowIcanactuallyapplythisfantastictoolpersonallyandwithinmycurrentworkplace.

ResearchDesignIgetitnow,Iknowwhatitisandwhyitsimportant,whenandhowtouseit.

DesignThinkingIknewallaboutthisandhaveusedelementsofit,howevertheBRDcoursedesigncreatedadesign
thinkingexperientiallearningenvironmentandsolidifiedthepowerthatcanbeunleashedwhendesignthinkingmethods
areputintopracticeinalargescale.

PresentationSkillsIwasabletoimproveexponentially,fasterandmoreefficientlythanIeverhadbefore.Thiswasthe
bestlearningIhaveeverhadinrelationtopresentationskillsanditwasevidentinalloftheweek12presentationswhich
wereabsolutelyphenomenal.

Finally,LeadershipskillsWhileIalreadyleadateamofover200individuals,Iwaschallengedbyleadingateamof
internationalstudents.Ihavenodoubtthatotherswillcomplainaboutthis,butIlookedatisatanopportunityandwas
abletostrengthenmyleadershipskillsasaresult.Whileitmaynothavebeenbycoursedesign,thosewhocannot
appreciatelearningfromthesechallengesarereallymissingout.AnMBAisnotallaboutlecturesandassessments,
gradesandgettingtotheendofthe12weeks,butratheraboutthevaluablelearningthathappensthroughtheprocess.
Perhapsthisisareflectionofmyalignmentwithsocialrealism,inthat,whileothershaveanobjectivetheoryofwhata
courseissupposedtodeliver,ifyouopenyourselfuptoandembracethepossiblemultipletruths,youmaybeableto
constructlearningsthatprovideyouwithevengreatervalue.

ThankstoTerryandHeicofordeliveringafantasticcourse.

References
ADGBusinessRMIT(2016)Buildingaresearchproposal.Availableat:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5tISZqz
1Q&feature=youtu.be(Accessed:15October2016).

Bloom,N.(2014)Toraiseproductivity,letmoreemployeesworkfromhome.Availableat: https://hbr.org/2014/01/toraise
productivityletmoreemployeesworkfromhome(Accessed:15October2016).

DepartmentofInfrastructureandRegionalDevelopment(2016)Vehicleemissionstandards.Availableat:
https://infrastructure.gov.au/roads/environment/emission/(Accessed:15October2016).

GameChanger(2014)ManagementistheEnemyofInnovation.Availableat: http://www.gamechanger.net/wp
content/uploads/2015/04/managementistheenemyofinnovation.jpg (Accessed:15October2016).

Gruber,M., de Leon,N.,George,G.andThompson,P.(2015)Managingbydesign,AcademyofManagementJournal,58(1),
pp.17. doi:10.5465/amj.2015.4001.

MonashEducation(2016)Writingaresearchproposal.Availableat:
http://www.monash.edu/education/research/degrees/proposalwriting(Accessed:15October2016).

OptimaTraining(UK)Limited(2015)Customerempathymap.Availableat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAdbbsZolOw
(Accessed:15October2016).
Osterwalder,A.andPigneur,Y.(2010)Businessmodelgeneration:Ahandbookforvisionaries,gameChangers,and
challengers(portableversion).Amsterdam:AlexanderOsterwalder&YvesPigneur.

PabloPARRADO(2011)THEMATRIX:THEREISNOSPOON.Availableat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAXtO5dMqEI
(Accessed:15October2016).

Porter,M.andKramer,M.(2011)Creatingsharedvalue.Availableat: https://hbr.org/2011/01/thebigideacreatingsharedvalue
(Accessed:15October2016).

Riemers,D.(2016)Gettingyourstorystraight.Availableat:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaGWeSgkceE(Accessed:15
October2016).

Schrage,M.(2016)Companiesarenowmakinginnovationeveryonesjob.Availableat: https://hbr.org/2016/01/companiesare
nowmakinginnovationeveryonesjob(Accessed:15October2016).

TEDEd(2012)ThebeautyofdatavisualizationDavidMcCandless.Availableat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zg
C8AAIGg (Accessed:15October2016).

TEDx Talks(2013)Thepowerofstorytelling:ErikNissenJohansenatTEDxUmea.Availableat:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEBJaQf4ymM (Accessed:15October2016).

Walsh,J.P.(1995)ManagerialandorganizationalCognition:Notesfromatripdownmemorylane,OrganizationScience,6(3),
pp.280321. doi:10.1287/orsc.6.3.280.

XPLANE(1993)Visualsalignworksheetno.3:Empathymap.Availableat:http://x.xplane.com/visual_alignment_dl(Accessed:
15October2016).

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