Innovation Bootcamp, funded by AD3, the Alphawood Foundation, the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, and supported by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, is a multi-funder collaborative.
The Bootcamp, an eight-month program, is about learning to apply creativity inherent in arts and culture organizations to address persistent operational challenges. Participants will be guided through a structured process for creative problem solving, called human-centered design, by Greater Good Studio. Supported by a series of group workshops and individual coaching sessions, participants will use the human-centered design process to develop and test new solutions to current organizational challenges. The goal of Innovation Bootcamp is immediately actionable ideas as well as expertise in a replicable process that can be used for future problem solving.
The arts organizations selected to participate in Innovation Bootcamp began work in May. A unique aspect of Bootcamp is key staff and board members attend each session and work together as a team. In a recent session called “Synthesis,” each team used the data they gathered during constituent (donors, audience members, etc.) research to identify themes, insights, and areas of opportunity to use human-centered design.
More than 90 applications were received in this inaugural year. The organizations selected to participate are:
