A Week in the life of …

Astronaut on a pop art background in colors of pink and blue

WHAT INSPIRES US AND WHO DO WE MEET? INSIGHTS FROM ELENA

A week full of inspiration and innovation

We want to dive into our world with you and show you our work behind the scenes of EARLY BRANDS and bring it to you a bit closer. Elena has been part of our team for many years. As an Innovation & Technology Consultant she takes you on a journey through a week of innovation consulting: team spirit, interaction, agility… and much more.

Go for it!

Monday – Teamspirit with What-How-Why

With a carafe of water and a cup of tea I start the day. I check the upcoming activities for the week in the Kanban for their actuality. And review the priorities for the days. Nothing works without post-its, all steps and activities come to the wall. But more on the post-its later. On mondays, we come together in our project teams. Discuss activities, milestones and next steps. Also, we talk about our feelings and thoughts – that is very important for our teaming.

Today, creative sessions with colleagues are planned. In our sessions, we help each other to discover new perspectives to protect each other from narrow thinking. Who does not know this situation: you are so deeply involved in a topic that a new look at things opens up completely new perspectives and possibilities. This exchange with colleagues is important and part of our way of working. The most important questions that almost always accompany us are: What? How? Why? What do we do? How do we do it? And why do we do it? The “Why” is essential, because that’s how we always have the goal in mind.

Tuesday – Meet exciting personalities. Inspiration.

Today I am looking forward to a session with one of our partners. The variety here ranges from the first meet up in an “Inspiration & Scoping Session”, to targeted user interviews with the client, to design sprints. The appropriate format is decided according to requirements of our partner and project progress.

Another important principle is to take up the thoughts and ideas of the people. No matter whether we get to know them in a one-hour session or run through a workshop lasting several days. It is particularly important to us to develop ideas together for the people and with the people. This is the only way to turn an idea into a market-relevant business model.

Wednesday – Towards new horizons

Aprospo business model: this Wednesday I am working on the further development of a business model. Our daily work includes identifying, structuring and testing relevant business models. If necessary, however, we adapt it to the needs of the market. To do this, we use different methods – one of the is business model canvas. We ask ourselves questions like: What are the user problems? How can we solve them? What is the benefit of the solution? Through these questions we get closer to the essence of a concept idea and develop it step-by-step with users.

Together we are also looking forward to a team lunch on our balcony or in one of the restaurants in our neighbourhood. In the heart of Bremen. The after-lunch walk has become a fixed ritual, no matter rainy days in Bremen.

Thursday – Networking with start-ups and tech partners

Every Thursday I have video calls with technology partners. Our tech partners support the technical realization and subsequent technical support of a project. We exchange ideas about the development during the week and plan next steps together. With Trello, MS Teams and Co., we can work on projects completely independent of location and keep each other up to date.

Friday – With user journey and Chilltrax into the weekend

To start the day, we listen to the favorite san francisco-based station Chilltrax. If we need a change of pace, Deep House is also welcome.

Today we want to create a persona and design user journeys. At this point, the post-its should be mentioned again. They are an integral part of our work. In the case of a user journey, for example, they represent individual steps of the user. For a persona, a post-it corresponds to a property or a pain point. We can use them flexibly and have a basis for further development, visible to all, in the shortest possible time.

On hot summer days (and sometimes also in winter), we like to go to the freezer to finish off the Friday. It is always filled with ice cream. As our “ice cream officer” I always keep an eye on it.

No week is like the other. They are full of interaction, team spirit and inspiration. We have developed processes that allow us to complete a wide range of tasks in a short time and to react quickly to new developments. Teamwork, flexibility and agility are our strengths. I live and feel that every day.

Here are inspiring links to the topics and tools for you that I mentioned: