Enabling Strategic Collaboration and Creative Thinking with a UK-based University

A UK-based university wanted help to prepare for a substantial grant application that would enable a large and long-term programme of research.

Kinkajou developed a bespoke, interactive workshop, enabling the lead academics to organise their thinking around both the project as a whole and the specifics of the funding application.

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Sponsoring Professor

The workshop was instrumental in the development of a £2M application for funding

Industry: Higher Education
Size: Large
Location: United Kingdom
Services: Tailored Workshop

£2M

Grant Application

10/10

Net Promoter Score

The Challenge

The client wanted to think strategically and creatively about a highly complex large-scale software research project, and also drill down to the detail necessary to apply for funding.

The Solution

A bespoke half-day interactive workshop using Design Thinking principles.

Unique

Kinkajou designed the workshop around the client’s needs and context.

Creative

The workshop enabled new and different ideas.

In Person

Face to face delivery enabled a nimble approach and fast decision-making.

Collaborative

Worked in partnership with the client before, during and after the workshop.

Client and context

The client was a UK-based university that had conceived a very large programme of research lasting multiple years. The project would involve numerous partners across sectors - academia, business, government and others - as well as in multiple regions. The next step in the process was to submit an application for £2m of funding.

A Complex Challenge

The Lead Professor wanted help to organise the team’s thinking, challenge assumptions, uncover blind spots and identify stakeholders. The workshop needed to enable a high degree of strategic, creative and practical thinking around a project of huge scale and complexity. Additionally, the client wanted to work with an independent partner who was divorced from the day-to-day challenges of the academic sector, but came with experience of the software industry.

Unusually, they wanted Kinkajou to both facilitate and participate in the process, and it was also important that whoever they worked with had the expertise and agility to create something bespoke for their unique needs. An off-the-shelf solution would not suffice.

Kinkajou's solution

A bespoke, interactive half-day workshop using Design Thinking principles. Kinkajou worked in partnership with the client to understand their objectives and create a workshop that was truly designed to meet their specific needs.

The Kinkajou Workshop Approach

The preparation for the workshop was intensive and included a mini, virtual workshop using MIRO, an online visualisation tool. This pre-work allowed the client and Kinkajou to co-create the approach, align the expectations of participants beforehand and ensure the client’s needs would be met on the day.

The workshop made use of short, time-boxed sessions to ensure that both divergent and convergent thinking were given sufficient space. Face-to-face delivery allowed a high degree of responsiveness and adaptability in the moment.

The engagement continued after the workshop, with Kinkajou liaising with the client to ensure all needs were met and also using their unique access to software industry contacts to make introductions to relevant potential partners.

The Results

The client clarified their goals and identified the next steps to complete and submit the research grant funding application. Additionally, through Kinkajou’s network, they expanded their connections with potential research partners in the software industry.

Sponsoring Professor

...the most tangible outcome(s) has been the submission of a £2M grant application, involving 29 partner organisations, across academia, industry, government, and other sectors, and from the UK, Europe and the United States of America