Building Trust through Anonymity

Most people recognize that the best ideas and contributions from those who are prepared to take responsibility for their ideas. And yet most creativity literature on brainstorming espouses the use of anonymity to reduce pressure. What is the best approach for an Idea Management system?

We have found that an Idea Management system needs some form of identity control to be successful. Some people just do not feel comfortable being associated with their ideas. They may feel they are crossing informal organizational boundaries, putting their nose in areas that do not concern them. They may feel that their name may cause people to prejudge their ideas.

Our system contains three ways a person can control their identity during idea creation: be completely named, be completely anonymous, or have the idea start as anonymous, and give the author the ability to reveal themselves if asked.

According to data collected from over 20,000 ideas from several customers, only 1% of ideas are saved anonymously, and almost no one uses the complete anonymity feature. Why is it so low?

Further research has revealed that 90% of people who use the anonymity function are happy to reveal their name to the review team. And many of the ideas, based on anecdotal evidence, are more novel than the standard ideas, perhaps as people feel more free to express their opinions.

Lessons Learned: The mere existence of anonymity seems to build trust in the system and process for individuals. In their mind, a company must trust them if they are willing to accept anonymous ideas. People are also willing to accept responsibility for their ideas. And finally, don't be afraid to accept anonymous ideas - people might just surprise you.

If you have any ideas, feedback, or concepts you would like to share, please e-mail research@imaginatik.com.

Reference: Building Trust through Anonymity - RN-0802-1