aivoriihissä

aivoriihissä is a Finnish term that literally means “in the brainstorming.” It comes from the word aivo, meaning brain, and riihi, meaning a rush or flurry, and is used to describe a group activity in which participants generate ideas or solutions collectively. The word has been adopted in business, education, and creative industries to emphasize collaborative thinking and spontaneity. aivoriihissä sessions are typically informal, allowing participants to share thoughts freely, often without judgment or immediate critique, in order to stimulate divergent thinking. The aim is to produce a large quantity of ideas that can later be refined or combined, following the basic principle of brainstorming as popularized in the 1940s.

In Finland, aivoriihissä is considered an essential component of innovation and problem‑solving processes. Many organizations hold scheduled aivoriihi sessions when launching new products, planning marketing strategies, or addressing complex challenges. The practice is linked to broader concepts such as mind mapping and design thinking, and is often facilitated by visual aids, sticky notes, or collaborative software tools. Studies show that aivoriihissä can increase engagement and yield more varied solutions than individual brainstorming. The term is widely understood across Finnish-speaking regions and is commonly used in management literature, corporate training, and educational curricula to illustrate the value of collective ideation.