Think Differently Week 2026

Two Sessions. 

Two PDUs. 

One Week to Think Differently.

What if the biggest obstacle to solving a project problem isn't the problem itself—but the way we've learned to think about it?

SoAfrSPM's Think Differently Week is a special two-part learning experience designed to help project professionals challenge assumptions, break familiar thinking patterns, explore new possibilities, and apply creative problem-solving techniques to real project challenges.

Led by Dr. Rikus Grobler, PMP, Open Innovation Practitioner, and author of Think Differently: Lateral Thinking Challenges and Experimentation Techniques for Creative Problem Solving, the experience begins online during the Saturday Success Series (S3) and concludes one week later with an interactive face-to-face session at the Third Annual PM Network Night.

Participants don't simply learn about lateral thinking. They learn it, try it, and then put it to work.

We solve problems every day, but familiar thinking patterns, assumptions, and past experience can sometimes limit the solutions we see.

In this interactive online session, participants will experience lateral-thinking challenges firsthand and examine how assumptions influence the way problems are understood and solutions are developed.

Using practical examples, Dr. Grobler will introduce techniques for surfacing and challenging assumptions, reframing problems, generating alternative possibilities, and using small experiments to test promising ideas before committing significant resources.

But Part 1 doesn't end when the webinar ends.

Your Think Differently Challenge

Participants will leave Part 1 with a challenge: select a real problem from your project, workplace, or organization and apply the techniques during the week leading up to Part 2.

From 1–7 November, question what seems obvious. Challenge an assumption. Reframe the problem. Explore alternatives. Consider what you could test differently.

Then bring that thinking with you to Part 2.

What happens when a room full of professionals stops looking for the obvious answer?

In Part 2, participants move from learning about creative problem-solving to actively putting it into practice.

Working in small groups, participants will tackle a realistic project management challenge through a structured creative problem-solving process. Groups will identify the obvious solutions, surface and challenge underlying assumptions, reframe the problem, generate less conventional alternatives, and consider how a promising idea could be tested through a small, low-risk experiment.

Designed specifically for PM Network Night, the session combines professional development with networking. Participants will exchange perspectives, challenge one another's thinking, and discover how different project professionals can see—and solve—the same problem in very different ways.

Why Attend Both Sessions?

Part 1 gives you the tools. 

The week between gives you the opportunity to experiment. 

Part 2 gives you the opportunity to apply, collaborate, and learn from others.

Together, the two sessions demonstrate that creative problem solving is not simply about generating more ideas. It is about learning to question what appears obvious, explore different possibilities, and turn promising ideas into practical experiments that can improve project decisions and outcomes.

Participants attending both sessions are eligible for a total of two (2) professional development units (PDUs) from the Project Management Institute (PMI).

Join us for Think Differently Week.

Part 1: 31 October 2026 | Online
Think Differently Challenge: 1–7 November 2026
Part 2: 7 November 2026 | Face-to-Face at PM Network Night