Innovation is in the mind
Participants in the Music Training Forum will take part in a workshop dedicated to "desing thinking", a user-centered method that enables mixed teams to develop innovative solutions. Simona Hofmann and Urs Dätwiler, from Zukunftslabor (Laboratory of the Future), will lead the afternoon program. They are convinced that the best ideas don't have to change the world, and that every team can come up with innovative ideas.
Simona and Urs, you write on your website that innovation is essential today. Why is that?
Urs Dätwiler: That's right, we even say: "To innovate is to survive in a rapidly changing world". So much is happening, with digitization and now with AI, that if we don't evolve, we run the risk of sinking.
This statement could be interpreted negatively, as innovation out of necessity. What's positive about innovation?
Simona Hofmann: Discovering something new is exciting in itself. Change is often feared, even though it holds great potential.
Urs Dätwiler: Switzerland has been world champion in the Global Innovation Index for ten years - so we're very innovative! What we offer with the Zukunftslabor is process- and method-based innovation work, aimed above all at small and medium-sized companies and organizations that don't have a research department.
Is innovation expensive?
Urs: Innovation as we understand it doesn't have to be expensive. Innovation is in the heads of an organization - and the result is an incredible profusion of innovation to draw from. Unfortunately, this is rarely done.
Simona: Changes don't have to be radical - they can also be modest, quickly applicable and still have a big impact.
Urs: Even small changes naturally involve uncertainties. That's why we always say that a large part of the company should continue to operate as normal - but a small part can break away from the daily routine and embark on changes. However, these should not be dictated from above or from the outside, but worked out from within, with the people concerned.
If we assume that innovation is in the mind, is it also a matter of confidence? Confidence in your team's ability to come up with great ideas?
Urs: Absolutely. We try to bring together people with specific know-how in their department, and this leads to "eureka" moments.
Simona: We experience it every time. The best ideas come from sharing.
Do you have an example of such ideas, sometimes small ones?
Urs: We recently went on an innovation trip with a whole school. In the kindergarten, the children suggested bringing forward the morning break - and we did. they preferred to come to "Kindsgi" (kindergarten), start the day together and eat the "Znüni" (morning snack) right away rather than play for a while. The animators immediately put this idea into practice. After this process, a member of the management team introduced free workshops for project work. Shortly afterwards, students were able to sign up for workshops in dance, art and drama.
Music schools tend to be structurally rather static. Is innovation realistic here?
Simona: Even if the structure is static - the person never is. Ideas can be born anywhere. How do we design end-of-year events like concerts? How do we integrate electronic instruments, or AI? How can we paint the walls in more inviting colors?
Urs: There's one thing we won't change: learning an instrument means practising - there's no arguing with that. You need practical skills. However, with design thinking, we put the student at the center and look at how we can get young people enthusiastic about an instrument and therefore about working on it.
Simona, you studied at the Teatro Dimitri and are involved in the cultural scene - do you see it as innovative?
Simona: I think the spirit of innovation is present, but more on an individual level. Often, everyone works for themselves, also out of necessity. However, the younger generations are very willing to work together. The same applies to culture: you're stronger and you can do more when you're together. I'm convinced of that.
To sum up, we could say: it works better and we're more innovative as a group - and it's still possible to innovate?
Urs: Exactly. At the Music Education Forum, we'll be giving a boost to this with teams of people from all over Switzerland. We're just going to bounce ideas around without passing judgment. If anyone wants to try out something in this context, that would be a good result.
The design thinking workshop will take place on the second day of the Music Education Forum 2025, which takes place on January 17 and 18, 2025.
Find out more about Forum on musical training 2025
