This summer, we shared our IPSIM experience with VO Lab with you. But what is the Lab? Who is behind it and building this tool into a unique experience, rich in personal and creative exchange?
We interviewed our two collaborators, Héloïse and Alexia, who are at the forefront of this constantly developing and evolving project.
What is the Lab?
Héloïse & Alexia: The Lab is VO’s co-creation space, launched in 2018. It is a creativity booster, a link builder and a project accelerator. It saves time while taking into account multiple, complementary visions. It is a physical or virtual co-creation space, where everything that is done encourages the emergence of creative, useful and constructive ideas.
What is your role in VO Lab?
Héloïse: I coordinate the Lab and PICesc research with our partners. My role is to support clients throughout the process. We start each project with a discussion of the problem with the client. Then we jointly create a process and framework that will enable us to achieve the set objective. We think about the profiles of the participants to be invited and we consult our network to get different perspectives. I would say that the biggest challenge is to build the right team to solve the given problem. And that is the subject of our research with UCL.
Alexia: I facilitate the Lab on D-Day. I am involved from the beginning to the end of the process. That’s from understanding and analysing the needs of the Lab applicant to reporting and final recommendations, plus preparing the content and process that we will present to the Lab participants.
What is your background? How did you join the Lab?
Héloïse: I joined the Lab in January 2020. My interest in the Lab began when I was a researcher at UCLouvain; I was observing the sessions as part of my research on creativity. I was immediately attracted by this approach, which was totally different from what I had seen elsewhere. When my research project ended, I very quickly applied to VO.
Alexia: I have been a coach and facilitator for more than 10 years, specialising and training in personality types and their dynamics in a group or team. I have been working with VO for 6-7 years as an outsider and I joined the Lab team more actively at the beginning of 2022.
In your opinion, what makes the Lab different from other collective intelligence sessions?
Héloïse: I would say that the main difference is the typology and the group dynamics, to which we pay particular attention. This is because we are convinced that diversity of profile is crucial for enriching the creative process, and to achieve this we have two main approaches:
- The first is expertise. In addition to the hundred or so quality profiles that we have within VO and which we regularly call on depending on the subject of the request, we have a network of external contributors from all walks of life, with diverse backgrounds and specific experience. This community ensures that there are different points of view. It opens up the field and brings a necessary richness to the session.
- The second is the creative profile. This component is quite unique and was developed as part of our research in partnership with UCL and Innoviris. For each Lab, we analyse the creative profiles beforehand and organise the sub-groups and the session accordingly, in order to maximise the maturity of the thinking and the results.
Once the group has been formed, we do everything we can to support and supervise the process, making sure that everyone has the opportunity to contribute their ideas, that everyone has a role to play, and that they feel supported in the process.
Alexia: We have a well-defined method to do this. We use canvases and tools that help structure the thinking and ease the session towards the objectives. In fact, we create a real experience that is different from any other meeting or brainstorming session you are used to. Entering the Lab is immersion into another, timeless world, a space thoughtfully designed to stimulate creativity and in which you are 100% available. The energy and enthusiasm that emerge are pervasive. This is what makes the Lab unique.
Last, but by no means least, is the quality of the recording. You may have previously participated in super productive sessions, but when you come to apply the ideas, you don’t have enough context or information. Here there is no loss of ideas. The team creates a complete report that allows you to dive back into the session afterwards, even for sub-group discussions.
Why do your clients sign up for the Labs?
Héloïse – I would say there are three main reasons that justify why a lab is needed.
- To align stakeholders. Whether it’s for the launch of a project, a vision, or objectives, it’s important to converge to ensure that everyone is on board.
- To generate new ideas: this is really an improved brainstorming process.
- To validate an already advanced project before launching it, specifically by testing it and gathering feedback from a sample of the target audience.
These three crucial elements of any project apply to all kinds of themes. Depending on the Lab, we touch on the strategy, the brand, and its values; we can redefine its value proposition, find a new name, a baseline, redefine its graphic identity, work out a communication or event concept, define content, get to know the audience… the possibilities are infinite.
Any conclusion?
Alexia – A session generally lasts 4 hours, which may seem a long time at first. But when you think that, in 4 hours, you’ve been able to move forward in the right direction, with all the stakeholders, and make them enthusiastic, the time saved is actually huge. We are very careful about this. We systematically survey all our clients on the relevance of the Lab to their objectives. The feedback from our clients in 2022 is really positive and we are continuing to improve the process day by day.
- Usefulness of ideas 8.7/10
- Satisfaction with the Lab session 8.6/10
