While working on a new project, innovators usually accumulate a long list of beliefs that may or may not be true. Some are obvious, and some you may not be able to easily articulate.

Lauren Hahn, MBA, co-instructor for the Master of Health Care Innovation course Translating Ideas into Outcomes, offers an actionable framework for organizing those beliefs and prioritizing which to test first.

Lauren Hahn, MBA offers an actionable framework for organizing those beliefs and prioritizing which to test first.

She calls this process validated learning. It enables innovators to reduce risk by surfacing and challenging assumptions early, before committing significant resources to a solution that might not work. It also enables disciplined experimentation. It gives innovators a framework to assemble tangible, relevant evidence that the proposed direction is valuable and feasible, particularly for partners and stakeholders who must implement it.

Hahn introduces a matrix to structure this work. The X axis represents impact—whether an assumption will break the project if it is wrong. On the Y axis is confidence—how sure the innovator is that each assumption is correct.

Assumption-Mapping Matrix, from Translating Ideas into Outcomes.

Before filling in the matrix, consider how each assumption might impact the desirability, feasibility, and viability of the project. Do people actually want your solution? Is it compatible with institutional constraints on capacity, expertise, and funding? And what must be true to go from idea to impact? These dimensions can clarify how sustainable an idea will be over time.

Assumptions that fall in the upper right quadrant of the matrix—those with potentially devastating impact and low confidence—should be tested first. If they are wrong, the consequences could be severe. Assumptions in the lower left, where confidence is high and consequences are limited, may not need to be tested at all.

Because assumptions are shaped by perspective, this work should not be done in isolation. Input from colleagues can help you overcome implicit biases that may prevent you from clearly ascertaining the impact of certain assumptions. And advice from individuals who will be responsible for implementing and using the innovation can reveal assumptions that might otherwise remain hidden.

Assumptions mapping is one among many tools that will help you work systematically to improve the design of health care innovations. Learn more by taking Translating Ideas into Outcomes.