Innovation

What I am up to

2011-09-07T21:36:00.002+05:30

Since I am no longer actively pursuing Innovation Consulting, this is what I am doing now : visual identity design for brands & brand naming alongwith professional photography and I am also an Indian wedding photographer. Broadly, these are my focus areas and specialties. Apart from these, I am of course constantly dabbling in various interests and activities.

Been too long

2011-09-07T20:54:00.002+05:30

This was my first ever blog and reading some of the past entries is like traveling back in time. Fascinating. I am still very interested in the subject of innovation but more related to innovation in the areas of brand design, branding, social media and client interactions. I am still not sure what I might like to do with this blog - but considering this is the only web property I have that has a Google PageRank of 4, I'm going to keep it.

Accidental Innovation

2006-07-07T14:14:00.000+05:30

New post about a Harvard Business School Working Knowledge article on the new aside Innovation blog.

Thinking of Innovation

2006-07-01T18:24:00.000+05:30

Full article on the new aside Innovation Blog.

Creative Head for Bangalore

2006-03-27T18:47:00.000+05:30

I've been blogging on my design studio blog and we have a need for a Creative Head at our Bangalore office. For the uninitiated, I am now working as the Creative Head at the Mumbai office of Comart.

Now we're looking to hire someone to work as the head of the Design Studio in Bangalore. Much like me, the person will have a large and blank canvas to work with - there is nothing setup in the Bangalore in terms of a design studio, so it will be the Creative Head's responsibility to create something out of nothing.

Hire people, meet with some of India's top clientele and inform them that Comart now has a design studio, have an eye for good aesthetics and should have their hand on the pulse of the international design world. [ Much like what I'm doing now ] Its fun!

There is a lot of work involved because it's like setting up a new business - a new design studio. The advantage is that you will have the full support of the management in terms of infrastructure and contact with clients. The company is more like a family-owned, traditionally run organization - so it's not easy trying to get "full" co-operation from other "employees" - but every organization has its challenges.

Personally, I know that once I'm outta here, I can start my own company without the usual teething troubles - to a large extent.

Some other facts to know:

There is a two-year agreement that you will be required to sign [ I've signed it too ].
Money - in terms of your fixed salary is peanuts - but there are other incentives [ call me up to know more ].
Its a VERY professionally satisfying job - while you don't need to have an MBA - you do need to be a good designer as well as a good manager.
I hate to say this but you do need to know how to speak in English - more languages would be an added bonus
This time around, I am going to leave the comments open - but please send me an e-mail if you or someone you know might be interested.

Move to Wordpress successful!

2005-11-22T18:35:00.000+05:30

Finally was able to make the move to WordPress, will share the new Innovation blog URL once I am done with the tweaking with the WordPress theme.

Moving/Importing/Exporting the aside Innovation blog

2005-11-22T13:40:00.000+05:30

I recently started blogging on the Wordpress blogging platform for the aside design studio blog and have found it to be more functional and with more features to enable me to write a truly professional blog.

Personally, I feel that a good blog is one with good content and the platform does not make much of a difference, but when one can write good content and the platform can contribute to easy manageability as well as aesthetics, why not move to the better platform.

Blogger had indeed made it easy for *anyone* to start blogging but that has also led to splogs and my business networking blog being duplicated and used by someone else - even after repeated complaints to the hosting people [ something called txthub ] and also after alerting Google [ because the duplicate blog is being used for Google AdSense too ] - nothing has been done about it.

WordPress is more secure as far as I have seen - the number of plugins to tweak a WordPress blog are innumerable and also allow for more security and functionality.

The content of this blog will be transferred instantly onto a new WordPress blog but I will not be removing the content from the asideconsulting.blogspot.com domain name [ there is no way I can transfer the Google PageRank! ] - hopefully with better content in the future, I will be able to build a better PageRank on the new WordPress blog and will then probably remove content from this domain.

Managing Innovation: Emerging Trends, Spring 2005

2005-11-15T16:53:00.000+05:30

MIT's online course summary for "Managing Innovation"

Here you will find links to PDF class material as well as reading lists and links to PowerPoint presentations made in class by the course Professor.

Fortune's Innovation Blog

2005-11-03T22:07:00.000+05:30

Fortune [ the magazine ], launched an Innovation blog recently and have already put up some very readable content - interviews in collaboration with various other innovation blog authors like Chuck Frey and Renes Hopkins. The new blog has been inspired by a collective force of leaders in business innovation.

Worth a look.

Armchair converts to a dinette

2005-10-13T02:04:00.000+05:30

"This armchair swings around and converts to a miniature kitchen. The designers explain: 'because you never cook and sit at the same time."

Designed by Vestal Designs [via]

Global Financial Markets: Strategies for Growth Through Innovation

2005-10-11T23:14:00.000+05:30

From BNET

This paper presents an exploration of the changing nature of the financial markets environment and recommendations for industry leadership. It also investigates how the execution of these recommendations is unfolding in the areas of trade process transformation, risk and compliance, and financial market data management. To achieve growth in an environment of increasing competition and persistent uncertainty, the paper offers specific recommendations for fostering innovation through focused execution.

ThoughtPath calls it quits

2005-10-08T10:33:00.000+05:30

This post has been lifted from Chuck Frey's InnovationTools Weblog. Since I had no idea bout the software, I am in no position to comment. I think it's sad that the software is being retired. Least I could do was spread the news and maybe some way would emerge to help Jeff. The following is what Chuck has to say:

"Jeff Mauzy, a principal at Synectics Inc. who has been marketing the ThoughtPath
brainstorming program for some time now, has just posted a message on the program's website that says that ThoughtPath is shutting down for good.

I have been a fan of this idea-generation program for over ten years, back when it was called MindLink Problem Solver (click here to read my 2001 review of it).

ThoughtPath featured a unique approach to brainstorming, based on methods developed by Synectics, that took you on creative excursions away from your problem or challenge - into something totally unrelated - and then encouraged you to find ways to link or adapt the ideas you generated to your current challenge. This "sleight of head" technique was a reliable way to generate original ideas, and made ThoughtPath much fun to use.

I spoke with Jeff several times during the past 4-5 years, and I know he
wanted to update and extend this elegant brainstorming application, but
couldn't find a way to economically do it. Kudos to Jeff for keeping ThoughtPath
available as long as he did."

Steaming ahead with Manufacturing Innovation

2005-10-05T20:34:00.000+05:30

History has shown that pivotal moments of innovation have dramatically transformed manufacturing. To survive in such an environment, companies need to stoke their innovation engine.

On the Web: HTML
Downloadable: PDF [224 k]
From Accenture

InnovationChallenge 2005

2005-09-29T10:23:00.000+05:30

I have signed up for the ThunderBird InnovationChallenge 2005 as a Judge. Like last year, I expect it to be an experience to remember! Do view my profile here. You can view the profiles of all other judges by starting at this page.

The 10 Faces of Innovation : IDEO

2005-09-28T13:06:00.000+05:30

"In an exclusive book excerpt from the general manager of Ideo, we meet the personality types it takes to keep creativity thriving--and the devil's advocate at bay."

Find the complete excerpt from Tom Kelley's "The 10 Faces of Innovation" here on FastCompany.

Tom Kelley talks about the following [ among other things ]:

The Learning Personas

Individuals and organizations need to constantly gather new sources of information in order to expand their knowledge and grow, so the first three personas are learning roles. These personas are driven by the idea that no matter how successful a company currently is, no one can afford to be complacent. The world is changing at an accelerated pace, and today's great idea may be tomorrow's anachronism. The learning roles help keep your team from becoming too internally focused and remind the organization not to be so smug about what you know. People who adopt the learning roles are humble enough to question their own worldview, and in doing so, they remain open to new insights every day.

1. The Anthropologist brings new learning and insights into the organization by observing human behavior and developing a deep understanding of how people interact physically and emotionally with products, services, and spaces. When an Ideo human-factors person camps out in a hospital room for 48 hours with an elderly patient undergoing surgery, she is living the life of the anthropologist and helping to develop new health-care services.

2. The Experimenter prototypes new ideas continuously, learning by a process of enlightened trial and error. The Experimenter takes calculated risks to achieve success through a state of "experimentation as implementation." When BMW bypassed all its traditional advertising channels and created theater-quality short films for bmwfilms.com, no one knew whether the experiment would succeed. Its runaway success underscores the rewards that flow to Experimenters.

3. The Cross-Pollinator explores other industries and cultures, then translates those findings and revelations to fit the unique needs of your enterprise. An open-minded Japanese businesswoman was taken with the generic beer she found in a U.S. supermarket. She brought the idea home, and it eventually became the "no brand" Mujirushi Ryohin chain, a 300-store, billion-dollar retail empire. That's the leverage of a Cross-Pollinator.

The Organizing Personas

The next three personas are organizing roles, played by individuals who are savvy about the often counterintuitive process of how organizations move ideas forward. At Ideo, we used to believe that the ideas should speak for themselves. Now we understand what the Hurdler, the Collaborator, and the Director have known all along: that even the best ideas must continuously compete for time, attention, and resources. Those who adopt these organizing roles don't dismiss the process of budget and resource allocation as "politics" or "red tape." They recognize it as a complex game of chess, and they play to win.

4. The Hurdler knows that the path to innovation is strewn with obstacles and develops a knack for overcoming or outsmarting those roadblocks. When the 3M worker who invented masking tape decades ago had his idea initially rejected, he refused to give up. Staying within his $100 authorization limit, he signed a series of $99 purchase orders to pay for critical equipment needed to produce the first batch. His perseverance paid off, and 3M has reaped billions of dollars in cumulative profits because an energetic Hurdler was willing to bend the rules.

5. The Collaborator helps bring eclectic groups together, and often leads from the middle of the pack to create new combinations and multidisciplinary solutions. Not long ago, Kraft Foods and Safeway sat down to figure out how to knock down the traditional walls between supplier and retailer. One strategy--a way to streamline the transfer of goods from one to the other--didn't just save labor and carrying costs. The increased efficiency sent sales of Capri Sun juice drinks, for example, soaring by 167% during one promotion.

6. The Director not only gathers together a talented cast and crew but also helps to spark their creative talents. When a creative Mattel executive assembles an ad hoc team of designers and project leaders, sequesters them for 12 weeks, and ends up with a new $100 million girls'-toy platform in three months, she is a role model for Directors everywhere.

The Building Personas

The four remaining personas are building roles that apply insights from the learning roles and channel the empowerment from the organizing roles to make innovation happen. When people adopt the building personas, they stamp their mark on your organization. People in these roles are highly visible, so you'll often find them right at the heart of the action.

7. The Experience Architect designs compelling experiences that go beyond mere functionality to connect at a deeper level with customers' latent or expressed needs. When Cold Stone Creamery turns the preparation of a frozen dessert into a fun, dramatic performance, it is designing a successful new customer experience. The premium prices and marketing buzz that follow are rewards associated with playing the role of the Experience Architect.

8. The Set Designer creates a stage on which innovation team members can do their best work, transforming physical environments into powerful tools to influence behavior and attitude. Companies such as Pixar and Industrial Light & Magic recognize that the right office environments can help nourish and sustain a creative culture. When the Cleveland Indians discovered a renewed winning ability in a brand-new stadium, they demonstrated the value of the Set Designer. Organizations that tap into the power of the Set Designer sometimes discover remarkable performance improvements that make all the space changes worthwhile.

9. The Caregiver builds on the metaphor of a health-care professional to deliver customer care in a manner that goes beyond mere service. Good Caregivers anticipate customer needs and are ready to look after them. When you see a service that's really in demand, there's usually a Caregiver at the heart of it. Best Cellars, a retailer that takes the mystery and snobbery out of wine and makes it simple and fun, is demonstrating the Caregiver role--while earning a solid profit at the same time.

10. The Storyteller builds both internal morale and external awareness through compelling narra-tives that communicate a fundamental human value or reinforce a specific cultural trait. Companies from Dell to Starbucks have lots of corporate legends that support their brands and build camaraderie within their teams. Medtronic, celebrated for its product innovation and consistently high growth, reinforces its culture with straight-from-the-heart storytelling--patients' firsthand narratives of how the products changed or even saved their lives.

Full article

Innovation Convergence: 2005

2005-09-23T19:53:00.000+05:30

Chuck Frey at Innovation Weblog has got some fantastic coverage of the Innovation Convergence 2005 Conference. Snippets:

Innovation must be customer-centric
Look beyond product and service innovation [ like business-model innovation ]
More connections = more innovation [ networking might be a good idea of better and innovative ideas; has anyone of you tried idea-a-day?
Innovation is a process that can be learned
Emerging markets = innovation labs: When you're selling products to emerging markets (such as 3rd world countries), your products must be low-priced, of course. But the process of getting to that low price point forces organizations to rethink the core value of their products, an exercise that can be quite revealing for its primary markets, too.
Creative recombination trumps the "new"

Full post

Another post talks about Innovation aspirations, insight pilgrimages and more, which talks about strategies for building support for your innovation initiatives.

The Innovator's Advantage: A Customer Relationship Management Perspective

2005-09-23T15:27:00.000+05:30

Innovation has always played an important role in the success of all types of organizations. However today - with intense competition and demanding customers - innovation has become absolutely critical to a company's ability to generate consistently superior levels of operational and financial performance. This paper illustrates how innovation in customer relationship management can result in superior business performance. Through the client work, this paper identifies three broad innovations in the customer relationship management arena that a number of leading companies are using to improve their financial performance, generate competitive advantage, and dramatically increase demand for their products and services.

Download PDF [113 KB]

Gautam Ghosh on Building Creativity

2005-09-21T12:58:00.000+05:30

Full Article

A short excerpt with the main points:

Some of the misconceptions which hinder creativity
For every problem, there can be only one solution
One must be logical and rational when solving any problem
An idea can be useful, only it if falls within the norms and standards of the organization/society
One should always be clear in one"s thinking
In solving problems, one should always avoid mistakes and failures
Problem-solving is a "serious" activity
Expertise and specialization is a must for effective problem-solving
One should obviously not take weird ideas seriously
Some people are creative, others are not

Pizza Fork and Cutter

2005-09-20T23:05:00.000+05:30

Slice and eat with the same utensil! This time-saver cuts through pizza crust, forking up bites and delivering them right to your mouth! Great for pancakes and waffles too. Stainless steel; dishwasher safe. 8 1/2"L x 2"W.

More...

Using Communities of Practice to Drive Organizational Performance and Innovation: Best-practice Report Excerpt

2005-09-20T22:45:00.000+05:30

Today, as more organizations attempt to draw knowledge assets and people together in communities of practices (CoPs), managers and executives want to use them to run their global businesses in new and innovative ways. This article explores the rapidly evolving methodology of CoPs, from planning and creating to maintaining and measuring effectiveness. It reveals that CoPs are becoming a key success factor for impacting time to market, reuse of knowledge, response time, employee development, knowledge sharing, organizational learning, and change implementation.

Download [PDF] [363KB]

Anonymous Quote

2005-09-20T12:55:00.000+05:30

Nothing is more dangerous than an idea when it is the only one you have.

Continuous Renewal: Managing for the Upside

2005-09-15T10:40:00.000+05:30

An organization's ability to learn, grow and refresh itself is critical to high performance. Fostering and managing continuous renewal are most effective at the project and initiative levels. Here are five contrarian principles for making it happen.

Reach Beyond Your Grasp Leaders of highly successful initiatives do not base their goals only on what they know they can achieve. Instead, they fuel their achievements with aspirations that others often call impossible.
Blaze Your Own Trail When reaching for aims that appear impossible, pathbreaking leaders put aside their proven methodologies and disciplined plans and strike off with a brash kind of confidence, knowing there is no turning back. Frequently, these kinds of leaders will inspire a great number of followers.
Create a Strong Emotional Field Leaders of highly successful initiatives realize that it is vital to recognize the power of emotion, especially on a team that is breaking new ground, and that with the right attention, this emotion can magnify the strength of the team and be transformed into the energy necessary to succeed.
Spiral Up Highly successful initiatives sometimes progress along unexpected arcs, and part of the genius of it all is knowing how to influence an initiative along the arc most likely to reach the goal.
Use Luck as an Accelerator Organizations capable of continuous renewal know they are riding a beast only partly tamed. They do not control all the factors that produce success, but they know how to turn events to their advantage. They know how to spot opportunities and how to propel themselves forward when luck turns to their advantage.

On the Web: HTML
Downloadable: PDF [293 k]
From Accenture

Smart pegs keep rain off

2005-09-08T16:09:00.000+05:30

Hanging out the washing only to witness a downpour five minutes later has long been accepted as one of life's little bugbears.
But a final year student at Brunel University has come up with a weather-predicting clothes peg he hopes could solve the issue.

The peg holder can sense changes in air pressure and send electrical signals to metal strips on household pegs.

If rain is forecast within the next half hour, the peg will lock itself.

The lock-down prevents the washing being hung on the line.

Full article.

Idea Generation Methods

2005-09-05T12:18:00.000+05:30

The definitive collection of Idea Generation Methods by Martin Leith.

This is what Martin has to say about his website: "This website lists and explains every idea generation method I've encountered during the past 15 years. It is the result of extensive research; my many sources include books, management journals, websites, academics, consultants and colleagues.

The methods have been drawn not just from the worlds of creative problem solving and innovation, but also from other worlds such as organisational change, strategic planning, psychotherapy, the new sciences and the creative arts.

The methods are listed below. Each is linked to a description, and in some cases you will find full instructions for using the method to generate ideas."

Seeking the source of innovation

2005-09-03T10:21:00.000+05:30

From MediaWeek

"Unconventional methods are being used to get the creative juices flowing among media managers. Steve Hemsley accompanied a group of aspiring lateral thinkers on a “mind-altering” trip to Norfolk, hosted by OMD Ignition."

Democratizing Innovation

2005-09-01T23:13:00.000+05:30

HBS Working Knowledge

Democratizing Innovation looks at which users are likely to innovate, why they decide to build it themselves rather than buy an improvement, the tradition of user-innovators who freely reveal their innovations, and how manufacturers can tap into this creativity.

"Users' ability to innovate is improving radically and rapidly as a result of the steadily improving quality of computer software and hardware, improved access to easy-to-use tools and components for innovation, and access to a steadily richer innovation commons," says the author.

As a result, manufacturers must change their mindset from "Let's find a need and fill it" to "Let's find and commercialize innovations that our users have developed." Writes von Hippel: "A variety of manufacturers have found it profitable to shift the tasks of custom product design to their customers along with appropriate toolkits for innovation."

What kinds of products can come out of such user-centered innovation? Von Hippel looks at his own research at 3M, which develops products both by following a lead-user approach and by more traditional product development processes. The customer-centric products 3M has worked on include a new approach to preventing infections from surgery; a pioneering use of audio, video, and remote data access in electronic test and communication equipment; a novel approach to applying commercial graphics films such as those that provide advertising wrapped around buses; and more effective and environmentally safe packing materials.

In general, ideas generated by lead users at 3M were not only more novel, with a much greater potential for revenue creation, but they also were found to "address more original or newer customer needs, to have significantly higher market share, to have greater potential to develop into an entire product line, and to be more strategically important," writes von Hippel.

It may be time to think of your customer not only as profit but as partner.

Warren Bennis Quote

2005-08-12T21:55:00.000+05:30

Innovation - any new idea - by definition will not be accepted at first. It takes repeated attempts, endless demonstrations, monotonous rehearsals before innovation can be accepted and internalized by an organization. This requires "courageous patience."

What Business Can Learn from OpenSource

2005-08-09T12:46:00.000+05:30

For the detailed essay by Paul Graham, go here.

As a summary, which I got from David Gurteen's "The Gurteen Knowledge-Letter":

"I think the most important of the new principles business has to learn is that people work a lot harder on stuff they like."
"Another thing blogs and open source software have in common is that they're often made by people working at home."
"The third big lesson we can learn from open source and blogging is that ideas can bubble up from the bottom, instead of flowing downfrom the top. Open source and blogging both work bottom-up: peoplemake what they want, and the best stuff prevails."

Innovation Paper

2005-08-09T00:24:00.000+05:30

Leadership, Change and Innovation from BNET.com

Overview: In today's turbulent business environment, organizations that foster extraordinary performance and take a positive approach to change have the best opportunity to thrive and prosper. This paper guides business leaders in developing the qualities in the people who can lead their organizations to excellence.

Edward R. Murrow Quote

2005-08-09T00:11:00.000+05:30

The Wright brothers first flight was not reported in a single newspaper because every rookie reporter knew what could and couldn't be done.

Big-Box or Out of the Box!

2005-08-04T01:44:00.000+05:30

Big Box Thinking by Hans Henrik on the CPH127 Blog.

The post refers to the DMI paper on the same subject.

Six Steps to Operational Innovation

2005-08-02T00:07:00.000+05:30

by Michael Hammer

"Operational innovation is notoriously difficult. The power of creating and deploying new ways of performing fundamental business processes is indisputable; it has been the springboard to success for leading companies in virtually every industry. But many firms have failed at their efforts to make operational innovation work. What is the secret to success? The experiences of Schneider National, a transportation and logistics firm based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, provide an object lesson in how to get operational innovation right."

"Process focus

When the effort restarted, it began with the creation of an enterprise process model, which describes a business's operations in terms of a small number of value-creating end-to-end processes. Schneider's model included Develop Transportation Solutions, Acquire New Business (ANB), Acquire Transportation Order, Move Freight, and Provide Ability to Move Freight. These few processes encompassed virtually all work performed by Schneider's thousands of employees. By defining the Acquire New Business (ANB) process, setting its boundaries, determining its metrics, and targeting it for improvement, Schneider appropriately defined the problem to be solved.

Most companies set too narrow a scope for their innovation efforts and thus can make only incremental improvements. The first time around, Schneider conceptualized the effort purely in terms of proposal preparation, thereby excluding numerous groups and activities relevant to the larger goal of acquiring new business. By focusing the second time around on the entire ANB process, comprising as it did eight different departments and a host of different activities, the Schneider team could address the full range of issues responsible for slow customer response.

Process owners

Major results demand change to many parts of an organization; but since each part of the organization - and its manager - has its own agenda, goals, and metrics, efforts to make major changes typically run aground on the shoals of turf, inertia, and resistance. A process owner is a senior executive empowered to make the changes needed to the process across the enterprise as a whole. Schneider appointed process owners for each of its processes; the process owner for ANB was the driving force behind the creation and successful implementation of a new way of winning sales opportunities.

Full-time design team

The first time, the people involved in developing new ways of working were themselves working on only a part-time basis, typically less than eight hours per week; the second time, this project was their sole responsibility. Part-time assignment to a process redesign team is an exercise in frustration: Scheduling is a nightmare, emergencies in team members' day jobs inevitably arise, and the organization is inclined to doubt leadership's commitment if it can spare only limited resources. Schneider treated process redesign as the serious undertaking it is, investing in education for the team members, providing them with a formal methodology, and backing them up with a program office. Most team members stayed with the effort between fifteen months and two years - that is, until the design was largely in place and delivering results.

Managerial engagement

The finest idea will not get implemented unless there is an organizational framework for shepherding it from concept to reality. Schneider put in place several groups to ensure that the design team's innovations did not languish in the limbo of reports and studies.

First, seniormost leadership was actively engaged in this effort, meeting monthly to review progress and solve problems that needed their involvement. Second, a process council was formed, consisting of the process owners and a handful of other operating managers. This group was responsible for boosting Schneider's operating performance by linking improvement initiatives to strategy and by leading change in the business. Third, senior leaders from each department involved in the ANB process were brought together as a team to lead the implementation of the new process design. This was a particularly important and difficult role, requiring departmental managers to let go of their focus on narrow departmental concerns and focus instead on the larger goals of the end-to-end process.

Building buy-in

The rubber of operational innovation hits the road at the front lines, where people will have to change what they do on a daily basis and how they do it. For many, this is a difficult and even wrenching experience, and one that they will find all kinds of excuses to avoid. Dropping such changes on them out of the blue will guarantee failure, and preaching to them about enterprise financial goals will not help them adjust. Schneider wisely got the front lines engaged throughout the redesign effort. A thousand people were exposed to the new process as it was being developed, making them feel like participants rather than victims and helping them see both the flaws in the old ways of doing things and the power of the new. Many of these individuals were turned from resisters into advocates of change. They were also provided with training and education, reinforcement and support, and results-based incentives, all to help them adapt to the new ways of operating.

Bias for action

Voltaire's observation that perfection is the enemy of the good is especially germane to operational innovation. Companies that strive to design the ultimate new way of doing things usually do nothing at all; they lose momentum while tinkering and revising, and the resulting solution is too grandiose to be implemented. Wisely avoiding this trap, Schneider adopted a principle of "70 percent and go": Develop a solution that provides most but not all desired capabilities, get into the field quickly, and then enhance it over time. This approach allows concepts to be tested, builds momentum and credibility, and delivers early benefits that silence critics and sway doubters.

The revised ANB process differs from the old one in numerous ways: Sales reps, who had been specialized by offering, now represent all Schneider's services, so no time is lost handing off an opportunity from rep to rep; proposals no longer bounce across multiple departments but are handled by integrated customer response and development teams; and pricing has been simplified, standardized, and supported with a new computer system.

This new process is far from the end of the story, however. Enterprises are tightly integrated systems; change one part, and many other parts must adapt. Schneider quickly discovered that its existing ways of handling orders and shipments could not accommodate the increased volume generated by the new ANB process, so it began redesign efforts for these processes, which are now delivering significant business value. Nor was the new ANB process enshrined behind glass. A new project has just kicked off to come up with a revised design that will exploit advances in technology to support customers even more effectively."

Full Article on Harvard Business School Working Knowledge

Anonymous Quote

2005-08-01T15:48:00.000+05:30

Ideas are like apples; to get them you have to shake the tree.

Inventive Services

2005-07-30T18:08:00.000+05:30

The value of inventive services from BusinessWeek's Innovation and Design Portal

"It's the biggest part of the economy these days, but many companies' innovation remain focused on products. Here's why that needs to change.

Ask most executives how innovation can spur their growth, and they'll immediately think about changes in their product lineup. Wrong. They should be thinking "services."

First of all, there just isn't a lot of information or rigor around the topic. While reams of books and articles abound on the topic of product innovation and product development, very few focus specifically on services and the distinctions therein.

And you would be hard pressed to find a course on service development or innovation on any B-school campus, reflecting the dearth of academic concentration in the area. Today, few universities even teach service management, and if they do, the emphasis falls to quality management and the operational excellence associated with existing service environments, never the invention and nurture of new service concepts. Further, there are few public forums where professionals involved in service innovation can learn from exemplars.

Second, although we have found that the best service innovators draw on the conventional wisdom associated with product development, most aren't using the latest tools, such as ethnographic research and rapid development techniques, to drive innovation. Just as important, they don't understand the basic distinctions between product- and service-innovation environments. Before rushing off to innovate in services, managers would do well to understand their uniqueness.

Finally, research and development groups don't tend to exist in most service companies. This makes it more difficult for innovation expertise to find a home. By comparison, product-based companies regularly invest billions to understand where their future revenue streams will come from."

Bruce Lee Quote

2005-07-26T23:55:00.000+05:30

Observe what is with undivided awareness.

The Creative Economy

2005-07-23T17:20:00.000+05:30

BusinessWeek Special Report: Complete List of Articles

Get Creative!
How to build Innovative Companies.
"Listen closely. There's a new conversation under way across America that may well change your future. If you work for Procter & Gamble Co. or General Electric Co., you already know what's going on. If you don't, you might want to stop what you're doing and consider this..."

Old Needs, New Ideas
"Paradigm shifts have not just replaced products, they've revamped the markets the items sell in. Take a look at some of these transformations..."

Bringing Innovation to the Home of Six Sigma
Says GE CEO Jeff Immelt: "We want to make it O.K. to take risks".
"Jeff Immelt is creating a stir at General Electric Co. (GE ) Through the years, GE has produced a string of superlative results using precision management tools such as Six Sigma and by giving execs rich incentives for efficiency. Now Immelt wants to turn GE's buttoned-down ranks into a legion of innovators with a flair for creative thinking. He spoke with BusinessWeek's Diane Brady about his experiences and his expectations."

Section on Innovation and Design on the BusinessWeek website. They call it the Innovation Portal. Great news for us!

A Creative Corporation ToolBox
BusinessWeek Special Report on Doblin

What this means for me, as an innovation consultant with Optimus Solutions, USA, is that we are doing it right! BusinessWeek talks of how companies like Optimus are using anthropology and ethnography to help client companies get more innovative - CUSTOMER-CENTRIC INNOVATION is what we call it at Optimus. Our Innovation WorkGroup is headed by David Wittenberg who has been practicing the above since the last 30 years! So it's definitely not "new" but it's a great feeling to know that companies are waking up to this approach instead of the "3-Day Workshop on Creativity" approach.

At our recently initiated Indian office, we are already talking to three of India's leading organizations in various sectors, how Optimus can help them get innovative and have results to show too.

The biggest contribution of this BusinessWeek article is going to be "CLIENT-AWARENESS". For sometime now, we [the innovation consulting fraternity] have been involved in trying to determine how to make a case for innovation at companies who aren't convinced. Don't get me wrong, the typical workshop approach has it's merits - it increases employee awareness about the concepts of innovation and creativity - but doesn't really contribute to the organization directly - meaning bottomline.

Like everyone else, since I too am a user of various products and services, I know that if a company [who's products / services I used] picked my brains, they'd probably get some good ideas on how to improve their offering. The latest example being the online networking portal openBC - as a user / member I had ideas and they were enthusiastic and receptive enough to ask. Result: they're working on functionalities that other online business networking portals might not even be dreaming of.

For more on Optimus: Visit their website.
For more on openBC: Join my network! and visit my Business Networking Blog
For personal attention: E-Mail me!

Interview with Malcolm Galdwell

2005-07-22T17:26:00.000+05:30

A few thin slices of Malcolm Gladwell From Powells.com

"The Tipping Point is the biography of an idea, and the idea is very simple," Malcolm Gladwell assured readers early in his hugely successful debut. "The best way to understand the emergence of fashion trends, the ebb and flow of crime waves, or, for that matter, the transformation of unknown books into bestsellers, or the rise of teenage smoking, or the phenomena of word of mouth, or any number of the other mysterious changes that mark everyday life is to think of them as epidemics. Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread just like viruses do."

Tipping Point Summary

2005-07-22T17:13:00.000+05:30

Robert Paterson's Radio Weblog has a nice summary of the Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell. So if you haven't had time to read the book, I'd suggest you go through the summary.

Innovation, a key for future of IT: NASSCOM President

2005-07-20T20:43:00.000+05:30

Chennai: There was no dearth of talent in India but the future of Information Technology was in innovation, NASSCOM President Kiran Karnik said today.

In his keynote address at the annual HR summit here, he said there was a need to change the process itself. While companies could sustain in the short term by making available cheaper and better products, it was imperative for adopting innovative methods in their practices for companies to sustain in the long run.

Mr Karnik said since innovation had to come from young people, it had to be bred at the university level by providing the right atmosphere and making available the right input.

Marketing and monetising of such innovation must be possible, he said and called for greater interaction and mutual cooperation between the industry and the academia.

''Incubate and foster innovations, which is valuable in terms of economics and how to bring to bear the industry's expertise on innovation gains importance.'' Confirming an enthusiastic response from the academia, Mr Karnik said NASSCOM had signed MoUs with AICTE and UGC, giving momentum to its ''IT Workforce Development Initiative.'' From the industry's point of view, he said the need was to work with academia for its own interest.

On the government's role, he said while funding was welcome, the government as a facilitator, could also provide the cushion of rules and regulations periodically for enabling the forging of private and public partnerships.

Anna University Chancellor D Viswanath, in his address, highlighted that the fundamental resource was in having a knowledge pool. Like a harbour providing a base for flow of goods, there was a need for a knowledge harbour.

He said focus areas would be communication, perfect management and resource management and train adequacy to excellence through these qualities.

Universities like Anna Varsity could contribute through activities like internships, post-doc programmes and data sharing to cater to global increasing demand by providing adequate supply of young talent.

From NewKerala.com

Case Study: Keep Track of the Bright Ideas

2005-07-20T20:34:00.000+05:30

Nine out of 10 senior managers see innovation as a key source of future competitive advantage, according to a study by business consulting firm Bain & Company, yet the same study found that two-thirds of the respondents were dissatisfied with their company's innovation performance.

What many companies lack is a formal process for capturing and vetting ideas. "In a low-odds, inductive game like innovation, the idea you lose could be the idea that would have worked," notes Bain's Paul Calthrop.

People tend to associate innovation with industries such as high-tech, pharmaceuticals, genetics and the like, but it's also the source of competitive advantage in comparatively low-tech industries. Advanced Drainage Systems (ADS), for example, has been perfecting its idea management program for more than two years. The manufacturer of polyethylene pipe used in residential and commercial construction first adopted a paper-based approach to capturing ideas and then sharing them among the company's 12 fabrication shops. The program involved some 100 employees, and it helped ADS develop standardized best practices that improved efficiency and quality.

In 2003, ADS decided to take the program companywide, applying the same principles, though not the same paper-based process, to 21 manufacturing plants and associated production and operations activities. By May 2004, the company piloted a centralized idea management program managed on a Microsoft Access database accessible throughout the company on a shared network drive. Facilitators in each plant collected ideas from employees (most of whom had no access to up-to-date PCs) and submitted them to the central database at headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio, where reporting and tracking took place.

Unfortunately, the prototype system was soon overwhelmed. "We were pulling in hundreds of ideas out of just a few plants, and working with the network drives and Access proved slow and time consuming," says Scott Anderson, manager of employee involvement.

The next step was to look for purpose-built software that could scale up. Innovation management software, or "idea management" as some call it, is a small but growing category that also includes Brightidea.com, Imaginatik, MindMatters Technologies and General Ideas. Anderson narrowed ADS's choice to two vendors. After seeing demos, the company selected Brightidea.com's On-Demand Innovation Management Suite. The hosted service starts at $49 per registered user and $1 per contributor per month.

ADS chose Brightidea in part because the hosted solution was compatible with "relic" computers in the company's plants. These dated machines were fine for punching in production numbers, and with browser-based access to Brightidea.com, they could also serve as capture stations where employees can submit their ideas.

Anderson says Brightidea also simplified central administration. "I used to spend 20 hours a week on tracking and reporting, but that's down to about five hours," he explains. "Now I can spend more time doing the prescreening, making sure ideas are valid and that they haven't been submitted by another plant."

The system also facilitates collaboration without the chaos of e-mail. Users can share their ideas and related attachments, and reviewers can then enter comments that are captured and visible to all.

Once ideas have been prescreened, review groups at each plant approve suggestions for their own facilities and can then escalate ideas for review by a corporate review group. When ideas are approved as companywide best practices, the system also tracks progress toward implementation in all locations.

Thus far, the 1,200 employees with access to the system have been a wellspring of new ideas. In fact, one standout employee has submitted more than 60 ideas, 90 percent of which have been implemented and half of those companywide. Some ideas are simple and easily implemented. In one example, an employee suggested switching the type of spindle bearings used on cut-off saws in the pipe plants; as a result, bearing replacements and, thus, saw outages are now rare. In other cases, suggestions require development, as in the case of the design and production of a "mitered joint pusher" idea contributed by a fabrication department employee. The tool eases the assembly of pipe in the field, and it's being used companywide.

The next step for ADS is to extend Brightidea to ADS's six international plants. Translation technology available with the system is expected to ease idea sharing among Spanish- and English-speaking employees in North, Central and South America.

From Intelligent Enterprise.com. Written by Doug Henschen.

Albert Einstein Quote

2005-07-18T20:54:00.000+05:30

Imagination is more important that knowledge.

Organization not conducive for innovation

2005-07-18T20:53:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Organization not conducive to innovation

Interdepartmental borders prevent communication of innovative ideas
Incorrect measures hinder the advance of innovative products and services
No processes defined for innovation
Not listening to customers
Not knowing what customers really want to buy
No recognition of the need for a creativity process
Inappropriate incentives
Incompatible innovations producing confusion rather than growth
Inability to handle uncertainties about risks, results and timing of innovation
Lack of information on markets and technologies

Anonymous Quote

2005-07-14T23:26:00.000+05:30

You'll keep gettin' what you been gettin' as long as you keep doin' what you been doin'.

Typical reasons for innovating

2005-07-14T23:22:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Typical reasons for innovating

Responding to customers
Increasing market share
Being at the forefront of industry
Establishing a new market
Improving the quality and speed of service
Expanding the product range
Meeting Government standards/regulations
Reducing costs
Increasing revenues

Kurt Hanks and Jay Parry Quote

2005-07-11T13:32:00.000+05:30

A person might be able to play without being creative, but he sure can't be creative without playing.

Organizational conditions in which innovation can flourish

2005-07-11T01:17:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Create the organizational conditions in which innovation can flourish

An environment for innovation
A flexible organization
Build an infrastructure that encourages communication
Put in place a good Change Management program
Create measures of innovation performance
Build a climate of trust
Provide venture finance for innovation projects

Age of Abundance Requires Innovation

2005-07-08T19:51:00.000+05:30

You might have the best team with the best of innovation, but there are these overly diluted markets out there, glutted with look-alike brands and identical services. The challenge is to fine-tune a marketing process that will not only re-energize the production but produce a shaper edge in design, quality and value, and build a unique iconic identity.

Full article at TechNewsWorld

The Oxford Handbook of Innovation

2005-07-08T19:45:00.000+05:30

Summary from InnovationWatch.

Return On Network

2005-07-08T10:47:00.000+05:30

Now Out: July edition of Return On Network

Sustain Success

2005-07-07T22:16:00.000+05:30

The Strategy Pyramid: How to Create and Sustain Success (RedefiningStrategy.com)

Built around the theory introduced in "Strategy, Redefined." (later termed the Theory of Business Solutions), this presentation highlights another facet of this theory - its unifying character. While the business world is divided between a "you are what you do" perspective and a "you are what you say" perspective when it comes to strategy, this theory introduces a "you are what you do AND you are what you say" perspective that can help businesses achieve and sustain success.

Outside-the-box

2005-07-07T22:14:00.000+05:30

Using 'Outside-the-Box' Thinking to Drive 'Inside-the-Box' Strategies
(Marakon Associates)

Rather than spurring on creative thinking in strategy development, the command to "think outside the box" is often taken as a rallying cry for radical change. For most large companies, however, radical change - be it portfolio transformation or diversification - has not been all that effective in producing superior shareholder returns. More often than not, the biggest opportunities for sustained value creation stem from applying creative thinking to a company's existing business portfolio. The article asserts that this does not mean that executives should mute the call for outside-the-box thinking.

Napoleon Bonaparte Quote

2005-07-07T22:13:00.000+05:30

Those who have changed the universe have never done it by changing officials, but always by inspiring the people.

Mencius (Meng-Tse) Quote

2005-07-06T10:31:00.000+05:30

Great is the human who has not lost his childlike heart.

Innovation That Fits

2005-07-06T10:22:00.000+05:30

Innovation That Fits: Moving Beyond the Fads to Choose the RIGHT Innovation Strategy for Your Business
by Michael Lord, Donald deBethizy and Jeffrey Wager

The trouble with innovation models is that people have been very innovative with them. Do you encourage innovation from within, or partner to get what you need? Do you spin an innovation out or keep it inside? Where does funding come from? What does the process look like? There is fine theory for all of these issues, but what would work best in your company?

According to the authors of Innovation That Fits, the call over the last decade to "innovate at all costs" has cost many companies dearly. It turns out that those costs do matter. Ask Enron. Ask the many "business incubators" that incubated nothing but failure.

In this very short (248-page, fairly large print) book, the authors study innovation trends from the years 1998 to 2003, deriving case studies to guide companies that know they must get better at innovation, but see no clear path to doing so. Major themes analyzed here include corporate ventures, IP licensing, in-house innovation versus partnering, and spinouts.

The book ends with a recipe for a new, post-bubble model, which focuses on sustainable innovations that have fit and focus with the organization.

As the authors state, "What all the innovation fads and fashions had in common was that, in both presentation and execution, they tended to ignore, neglect, or distract (and therefore ultimately detract) from core innovation." Procter & Gamble did it right, the authors argue, with the Crest Whitestrips and Spinbrush lines. "Procter & Gamble chose to expand its portfolio of innovation sources and modes, even as it renewed the purpose and refocused the direction of its core innovation strategies."

From HBSWK

Anonymous Quote

2005-07-05T11:05:00.000+05:30

It's easy to come up with new ideas; the hard part is letting go of what worked for you two years ago, but will soon be out of date.

Why you have to innovate

2005-07-05T11:01:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Why you have to innovate

Advancing technology
Changing environment
Changing industrial structures and strategies
Evolving society
Evolving customer desires
Competitors improve their products, processes and services
Customers stop buying your old products and services so you need to replace them and add new products and services

John Locke Quote

2005-07-03T23:32:00.000+05:30

New opinions are always suspected and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not already common.

Creative Publicity

2005-07-03T23:26:00.000+05:30

It talks about networking - in the music industry - for artists, but I am sure all of us can derive some parallels in business neworking! Do visit my recently launched Business Networking Blog for more on Online Business Networking.

Take This MIT Survey - Social Networking, Blogs

2005-07-01T23:31:00.000+05:30

Innovation Design Questions

2005-07-01T10:54:00.000+05:30

What is innovation?
Why do we innovate?
When do we innovate?
Where do we innovate?
How do we innovate?
What do we innovate?
Who innovates?
What skills are needed for innovation?
What knowledge is needed for innovation?
What resources are needed for innovation?
What infrastructures, contexts, cultures are needed for innovation?
What technologies enable innovation?
How is innovation done collaboratively?
How is innovation restricted or limited?
How is innovation continually maintained?
How is innovation lead? How is it managed?
How do we justify innovation?
What are the costs of innovation? What are the costs of no innovation?
What are the economics of innovation?
How is innovation localized? How is it outsourced?
How are sources of innovation shared or protected?
What results from innovation?
What are examples of innovations? Who are examples of innovators?
How do we measure the success of an innovation?
What are the roles of designers in innovation?
How does design thinking differ from business thinking?
How does the design process differ from the innovation process?
What are the processes, techniques and methods of design that can be used for innovation?
What is needed for design to be involved in business innovation?

From this post on CPH127 Blog.

Milton Berle Quote

2005-07-01T08:08:00.000+05:30

If opportunity does not knock, build a door.

Effective Cold Calls

2005-07-01T08:03:00.000+05:30

Report 103

"How can we make cold calls more effectively and generate more interest in our products and processes?" There are a number of components in this problem. Which do you see?

I see several:

1. Identifying what is interesting in your products and processes.
2. Who are you calling? Obviously some prospects are better than others. Focusing on better prospects will lead to better results.
3. Who is doing the cold calling? Can they be improved, perhaps through training?
4. How are you communicating? Are you reciting a script? Are you smiling? (research shows that when people smile while talking on the telephone, they sound friendlier)
5. What are you asking the customers to do? Order something directly? Make an appointment to meet a salesperson?
6. What follow up are you doing to help make the sale? Are you calling the customers again in a week or two?

I am probably the world's worst salesman. A professional could surely break the problem into further components.

Once we have broken down the problem, it may become clear that the problem is with a single component. In the above example, it is possible that the company has never really analysed their products and processes in order to determine what makes them attractive to their existing customers. Clearly this information would be extremely helpful in selling to new customers.

Alternatively, the company above might realise that they are doing no follow up on their cold calls. As a result, people who would buy their products are not being offered an easy chance to do just that.

When breaking problems into components, it is useful to establish several small creative teams – each of which is briefed on the overall problem and assigned a component for which they should brainstorm solutions. Give them time to work on solutions (this could be a half hour or it could be a week depending on the nature of the problem) and then bring the teams together to report on their results.

Those results can be impressive, often groups will have complementary ideas that fit together like puzzle pieces, thus providing a big solution which can be applied to the problem. At other times, one team will come up with a solution that can be applied to all of the components of the problem.

So, the next time you are facing a problem. Break it into pieces. Not only will doing so make problem solving easier, but it should result in better solutions.

Sweden and Finland

2005-06-29T21:20:00.000+05:30

SWEDEN AND FINLAND ARE EU'S LEADING INNOVATORS

The 2004 European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS), an annual evaluation of each European Union member state's level of innovation, has just been released. It ranks Sweden and Finland as the union's leading innovators. Estonia and Slovenia are the top performing innovators of the ten new members of the EU.

The EIS was established by the European Commission and looks at "20 indicators, measuring human resources, the creation of new knowledge, the transmission and application of knowledge, and innovation finance. A composite indicator provides an overview of national performances."

You can read more as well as download the scorecard itself.

From Report 103, by Jeffrey Baumgartner.

Albert Einstein Quote

2005-06-28T22:15:00.000+05:30

THE IMPORTANT THING IS NOT TO STOP QUESTIONING.

Getting everyone on board for innovation

2005-06-28T22:09:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Get everyone on board

Implement cross-functional and inter-company team structures
Enable collaborative working
Ensure working relationships are win-win not win-lose
Provide incentives - financial and other - for innovation
Train your people to be great innovators
Encourage people to be creative
Create the desire to innovate
Provide career and skills development opportunities
Provide role-modeling

Zaphiropoulos Quote

2005-06-27T10:15:00.000+05:30

DO NOT FOLLOW WHERE THE PATH MAY LEAD. GO INSTEAD WHERE THERE IS NO PATH AND LEAVE A TRAIL.

Practice of Innovation

2005-06-27T10:07:00.000+05:30

The Practice of Innovation by Peter Senge

One possibility for difficulties innovating is that most people really don't care about innovation. After all, Theory X is still the prevailing philosophy in most large institutions -- certainly in the American corporate world. Few people in positions of authority would admit to that view, but our practices belie our espoused values. If we look honestly at how organizations manage people, most appear to operate with the belief that people cannot work without careful supervision. As Arie de Geus has shown in his recent book The Living Company, we treat the business enterprise as a machine for making money rather than as a living community. Consequently, we view people as "human resources" waiting to be employed (or disemployed) to the organizations' needs. (The word resource literally means "standing in reserve, waiting to be used.")

1. Know your purpose
2. Define vision
3. Assess results
4. Habit to Discipline

Excellence can be attained if you

2005-06-26T00:31:00.000+05:30

- Care more than others think is wise
- Risk more than others think is safe
- Dream more than others think is practical
- Expect more than others think is possible

Dr. Rollo May Quote

2005-06-26T00:28:00.000+05:30

When you are completely absorbed or caught up in something, you become oblivious to things around you, or to the passage of time. It is this absorption in what you are doing that frees your unconscious and releases your creative imagination.

Six creativity killers

2005-06-23T19:30:00.000+05:30

1. There is only one right answer
2. Always follow the rules
3. Don't rock the boat
4. Don't make a mistake
5. Be practical
6. Become highly specialized

Picasso Quote

2005-06-23T19:23:00.000+05:30

When I eat a tomato I look at it the way anyone else would. But when I paint a tomato, then I see it differently.

15 ways to stimulate CREATIVITY

2005-06-22T14:26:00.000+05:30

1. Associate with diverse individuals
2. Spend time with children under the age of 6
3. Eat and drink different foods and beverages
4. Try a new hobby
5. Fly a kite
6. Exercise stimulate endorphins)
7. Relax (blow bubbles, review momentos from last vacation)
8. Meditate (beta state of brain)
9. Go to a cultural celebration
10. Visit a museum
11. Walk in the woods
12. Visit a foreign country or watch a foreign film
13. Practice saying "Yes" and "why not" to something new
14. Listen to music or an opera
15. Encourage creativity in yourself and others

Charles F. Kettering Quote

2005-06-22T14:24:00.000+05:30

WHERE THERE IS AN OPEN MIND, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A FRONTIER.

Turning FAILURE into SUCCESS

2005-06-20T21:26:00.000+05:30

Ivory Soap wasn't meant to float, but a manufacturing error became its top selling point. Kleenex failed as a cold cream remover. Repackaged as a disposable handkerchief, its success remains nothing to sneeze at.

Lawrence Miller Quote

2005-06-20T21:06:00.000+05:30

THE ACHIEVEMENT OF EXCELLENCE CAN ONLY OCCUR IF THE ORGANIZATION PROMOTES A CULTURE OF CREATIVE DISSATISFACTION.

Professor Robert Ornstein Quote

2005-06-18T12:36:00.000+05:30

When the 'weaker' of the two brains (right and left) is stimulated and encouraged to work in cooperation with the stronger side, the end result is a great increase in overall ability and ... often five to ten times more effectiveness.

Creativity Goes Stale

2005-06-18T12:23:00.000+05:30

For the self employed, there is also a danger of becoming stale. If you have found that you can do a particular kind of work well and earn good money doing it, it is all too easy to become complacent with the income and professional respect you gain from such a situation. It is also all to easy to grow bored. It is necessary to either grow your own business with new products or services, possibly in partnership with other self-employed people; or to reinvent your business - and probably yourself - altogether. The latter, though is a real challenge and should not be attempted without suitable savings to keep your cash-flow moving. You will find that you can reinvent yourself faster than your clients can.

From Report 103, by Jeffrey Baumgartner.

Anonymous Quote

2005-06-16T19:58:00.000+05:30

If you want to be part of the solution, get involved. If you don't, don't complain.

Ten Crazy Things

2005-06-16T19:45:00.000+05:30

From Report 103

TEN CRAZY THINGS TO DO WITH YOUR COMPANY THIS WEEK

I've often talked in this newsletter about long term issues in corporate innovation; issues like establishing a culture of innovation in your organisation, encouraging risk taking and so on. Today, just for fun, let's look at some very short term, possibly quite crazy ideas for boosting your company's creativity.

1. Rearrange the physical organisation of your office by moving people around randomly. Rather than put accounting people together with other accounting people; sales people with sales people; operational people with operational people and so on, mix people up so that an accountant might have her desk next to a saleswoman and a logistics specialist might have his desk next to a research scientist. Better still rearrange the physical organisation every quarter or so. While this will result in some communication inefficiency – people in the same division do, after all, often need to work together - it will certainly bring about more varied internal networking and breed new ideas as people from different departments work together, get to know each other and share ideas.

2. Hold staff meetings in varied locations. Why must you always have staff meetings in your boring meeting rooms? Why not hold them in a public library, a nearby park, a children's playground, a pub, in a swimming pool, or any other location that is distinctly unbusinesslike? The unfamiliar surroundings will surely inspire people. To make the unusual locations more effective, tie them into the meeting somehow. If your company is having financial difficulties, hold a meeting in a swimming pool and discuss the importance of remaining afloat financially.

3. Put a person with no relevant experience in charge of a project. Need to do a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis of a new product concept? Why have a marketing person to do it when an engineer can do it completely differently? Admittedly, the engineer will probably not produce a typical SWOT analysis – and might even miss a few key issues a marketing expert would automatically see. But an engineer would almost certainly take a different approach and look at the problem in a different way than the experienced marketeer would. And looking at a problem from a different perspective is certain to produce different, creative solutions.

4. Run an ideas campaign (or competition) to come up with the craziest idea for a particular issue. And then provide the winner(s) with Euro 10,000 (approx: US$13,000) to actually fund their idea. Sure, the project may fail. But the winners will gain more than Euro 10,000 worth of training and discover a lot of great ideas along the way. Moreover, crazy ideas work more often than you might think – and the result could be a substantial return on your Euro 10,000 investment.

5. Ban e-mail and telephone use for internal communications for a day. Force people to get up and visit each other to discuss ideas. Moving around shakes up the brain cells and helps people think more clearly. Face to face conversations are usually in more depth than e- mail or telephone conversations. Physically walking across the office to talk to one person often results in meeting and speaking with several other people along the way; people who can bring new ideas to old problems and issues.

6. Come up with a running theme for the day, such as "cats" or "drinks" or "baking a cake" and apply the theme as a metaphor every where possible. For example, you select "baking a cake" as your theme for the day. Every project that day should then somehow tie into baking a cake. The sales people preparing a presentation should base it around the theme of baking a cake. The R&D people developing a prototype for a new product should think about baking cakes while brainstorming ideas for the prototype. And so on.

7. Get an eight year old child to act as a consultant for a day, offering advice on all issues you work on that day. While the child's advice may lack the weight of experience of a seasoned professional, its comparative naivety will doubtless be inspirational and lead to new ideas that an experienced professional would be blind to.

8. For one week, use toys instead of PowerPoint slides as a presentation tool. For example, if you have to present your ideas on a new product launch, use a big box of Lego or building blocks as your presentation tool. It will force you to think about how you present data visually and will certainly capture the attention of participants in the meeting.

9. Apply "How would Winnie the Pooh [or George Washington or Queen Elizabeth I or Dagwood Bumstead or Jesus or whomever] tackle this problem" to all problems for a week. For example, if you are preparing a project proposal for a client, ask yourself: "How would Winnie-the-Pooh prepare and deliver this proposal.

10. Actively encourage that everyone take public transportation to work. Not only is this great for the environment, it is also good for the collective mind of your employees. If they are not driving to work,they can read, think, make notes and take more time to notice and be inspired by the scenery as they go to work.

Get Proactive About Innovation

2005-06-15T13:34:00.000+05:30

By James Champy

Executives' obsession with corporate growth and competition has produced a new interest in innovation.

That means ways of finding new products, services and businesses to fuel growth. As a CIO, you can find opportunities and become an active innovator, but you must sharpen your skills, or you will be viewed as strictly a service provider.

Begin by recognizing that corporate innovation is not limited to producing new or enhanced products and services. When thinking about innovation, you also need to think about the business model, processes within the organization, or the way customers experience your company.

Business Model Innovation
Process Innovation
Product Innovation
Experience Innovation

Paul Sloane on Innovation Checklist

2005-06-14T14:23:00.000+05:30

I had to share this comment by Paul Sloane from Destination Innovation regarding the Innovation Manager's Checklist that I posted. I agree with him about the original list being "over-engineered".

"Great list - but maybe it is a little over-engineered for everyday use. For managers facing a creative challenge and needing to find an innovative solution, I would suggest this checklist:

1. Analyse and explore the problem
2. Define a clear goal or desired outcome
3. Pull together a small, diverse, enthusiastic team
4. Throw down the challenge
5. Generate lots of ideas
6. Choose criteria for selecting the best ideas
7. Select the most promising ideas
8. Explore further and then implement prototypes rapidly.

Innovation involves taking action, taking risks, managing failure and (sometimes) celebrating success!

regards

Paul Sloane
Destination Innovation
www.destination-innovation.com"

What happens if you don't innovate

2005-06-14T11:03:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

What happens if you don't innovate

Customers stop buying your products, processes and services
Sales drop
Revenues drop
Shareholder returns drop
Stock price drops
Key employees leave
More customers stop buying your products, processes and services
Sales drop

Jose Ortega y Gasset Quote

2005-06-14T10:58:00.000+05:30

WE LIVE AT A TIME WHEN MAN BELIEVES HIMSELF FABULOUSLY CAPABLE OF CREATION, BUT DOES NOT KNOW WHAT TO CREATE. LORD OF ALL THINGS, HE IS NOT LORD OF HIMSELF.

Why innovation is becoming more important

2005-06-13T10:50:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Why innovation is becoming more important

Technology is changing fast, new products come from new competitors
Fast changing environment, product lifetimes shorter, need to replace products sooner
Products are increasingly difficult to differentiate
Customers are more sophisticated, segmented and demanding, and expect more in terms of customization, newness, quality and price
Customers have more choice
New technologies no-one understands
Apparently separate technologies come together
Markets forming and changing fast
With markets and technology changing fast, and good ideas quickly copied, there is continual pressure to devise new and better products, processes and services faster

Anonymous Quote

2005-06-13T10:47:00.000+05:30

IT IS EASIER TO BEHAVE YOUR WAY INTO A NEW WAY OF THINKING THAN IT IS TO THINK YOUR WAY INTO A NEW WAY OF BEHAVING.

Anonymous Quote

2005-06-11T13:44:00.000+05:30

Those who say something can't be done should get out of the way of those who are doing it.

Why innovation is so difficult to manage

2005-06-11T13:41:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Why innovation is so difficult to manage

Management is used to running the existing business, not building the future business
Management hasn't set aside time to focus on innovation
Management is too far removed from the details of individual products and services
Nobody knows what will happen in the future

Creating an Innovation Engine

2005-06-10T12:43:00.000+05:30

Creating an Innovation Engine by Gary Hamel

You are never too old to innovate!

What's standing in the way of companies that fail to innovate? In many cases, it is the tried-and-true recipe that brought them past success.

1. The inevitability of commoditization
2. The impossibility of forecasting future trends
3. The futility of waiting for inspiration

If companies can't depend on the lightning bolt of sudden inspiration or serendipitous discovery, then what? An innovative environment can be consciously created -- if a company is willing to abandon old rules, shed old habits, and upend cherished conventions. The key is recognizing that past achievement militates against future adaptability by creating well-worn ways of doing things that cause a company to undervalue or ignore rule-breaking insights. Yesterday's laserlike focus becomes today's set of blinders, narrowing an enterprise's field of vision from what is truly new to what it already knows. Glimmers of great ideas are evident in most organizations; the problem is that in direct proportion to the degree those great ideas are different, the "immune system" of most organizations attacks those ideas as foreign organisms, threatening the host.

1. Part of the challenge is demystifying innovation by breaking it down to its constituent parts. Here are three ways to begin the process of awakening innovation in your company:

2. Recognize that innovation doesn't follow a schedule. Most companies are so bounded by existing orthodoxies and obsolete business models that they think they can schedule strategic insight the way you record a reminder in your day-planner. But the truly innovative bursts of insight that trigger new ideas don't obey the corporate planning calendar.

3. Consider that the idea for Nokia's wildly successful rainbow-hued cell phones emerged not from a daylong strategy session in the corner office but from an afternoon at California's Venice Beach, as company execs watched sun-drenched skaters slash down the boardwalk, sporting color-coordinated shades, Rollerblades, and bathing suits. The realization: Mobile phones are as much fashion accessory as communications tool, an inspiration that's pushed Nokia to the cutting edge of cells.

4. Shatter the "strategy monopoly." In any company, a hierarchy of organization dominates a hierarchy of ideas. The antidote: To encourage innovation, unlock ideas from across the company. Bring together a cross-section of employees at all levels to share the new perspectives that may just contain the kernel of a bold new idea. Realize that every company promotes success as defined by today's reigning strategy; the question is how to promote new ideas that may have nothing to do with that strategy -- or may even cut against it.

That's how Virgin Enterprises operates under the lead of Richard Branson. Every employee has Branson's phone number, and can pitch new project ideas directly to the top. That's how a Virgin Airlines flight attendant turned her difficulties in planning her own wedding into a new venture: the wedding planning boutique Virgin Bride.

Institutionalize innovation by building a safe place for people to think new thoughts. In some companies, new ideas are in short supply -- stifled by a corporate climate that cuts off intellectual oxygen, discourages change, and demands conformity. At other companies, ideas abound -- and the challenge takes a different shape: Creating the conceptual conveyor belt that moves from ideas to action.

From Ideas to Action

What can innovation-minded executives do to create such a culture in their company? Here are three ways to kick-start the innovation process:

1. Start new conversations. New ideas don't obey an organizational chart. Companies that want to get serious about innovation need to break the "strategy monopoly" that closes off the executive suite from new ideas percolating in other corners of the company. Innovation-minded companies spark new conversations by bringing together executives with employees of all ranks to question corporate orthodoxies and search for new ways to do business.

2. Seek new perspectives. If you want your company to do a better job of envisioning the future, ask the people who will get to the future first: Your youngest employees. If you want to know how consumers act, don't observe them in focus-group captivity -- join the Nokia execs for a day at the beach. Want a new vision? Try a new vantage point -- and watch a world of opportunity open up.

3. Innovation comes from the heart as well as the head.
Spark new passions. Innovation comes from the heart as well as the head. Companies that aren't afraid to innovate engage employee energies in a new and profoundly different way. When people are part of a cause and not just a cog in the wheel, their IQ -- innovation quotient -- skyrockets.

4. And above all, recognize that in today's economy, capital is plentiful; good ideas are scarce. Companies that look to incremental change to generate additional revenue will tend toward subsistence at best -- eclipsed by companies that create an environment of innovation, spawning the new ideas that generate new wealth. That's why an ambitious enterprise must replicate within itself the basic DNA of innovation: A culture of continuous experimentation embedded broadly and deeply throughout a company.

All of which brings us to the final characteristic of the true innovator: courage -- the guts to realize it's time to take a hammer to your own business model, before someone else does it for you.

Spotlight on Constantinos Markides

2005-06-08T22:16:00.000+05:30

An interview discussing the limitations of first-mover advantage and the arguments for what is dubbed 'fast second' movement in radical new markets. Emphasizes two aspects of innovation, the creation of a product and the creation of a mass market, stressing the crucial importance of timing for fast second movers, and pointing out that potential returns for fast second movers are far greater than for the pioneers of such innovations. Cites numerous examples of successful fast second movers.

For full interview go here: Emerald

Innovation Editorial

2005-06-08T22:11:00.000+05:30

Dictionary definitions of innovation indicate that this extends to "the alteration of what is established", whether a thing, practice or method, as well as new inventions. In the creation of radical new markets, Costas Markides points out that there is another, distinct aspect to innovation beyond the creation of the product or service: that is the creation of a mass market. The latter, if achieved - and here he emphasizes that timing is of the essence - can provide huge returns, far exceeding those made by the pioneers.

Professor Markides' argument for aspiring to be a "fast second" mover rather than a pioneer in a radical new market is compelling. But the timing question is no easy one. "Fast second" movers, as he dubs them, need to come in at just the right time, contributing to what will emerge as the dominant design. Knowing how and when to do this is the "one million or ten million dollar question". And, as he points out, getting that timing right is largely down to luck even if there are some potential indicators as to the right time to move.

There is also, it appears, an optimum age for the creative side of innovation - representing the time needed to absorb sufficient knowledge and to develop the expertise and confidence to innovate successfully. A recent, fascinating piece of research funded by the US National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) has established that the average age of successful innovators, whether in the arts, business or sciences, is 29. The world-changing creativity of Nobel prize winners takes somewhat longer to come to fruition - at almost 40 years old. Interestingly, the research reveals that every decade sees an extension to these average ages of 0.6 years - presumably representing the ever growing body of knowledge that creative people need to get to grips with. However, this is clearly time well spent.

From Emerald

Technology Brokering and Innovation

2005-06-08T22:04:00.000+05:30

Technology brokering and innovation: Linking strategy, practice and people [PDF]

Andrew Hargadon
Strategy and Leadership; 33: 1 2005; pp. 32-36
Keywords: Innovation Strategy, Communication Technologies
Article Type: Conceptual Paper

People Centered Innovation

2005-06-08T21:55:00.000+05:30

People-centered innovation: Moving beyond technology-led innovation [PDF]

Strategic Direction; 21: 4 2005: pp. 30-32
Keywords: Communication Technologies, Innovation, Design, Team Working, User Studies
Article Type: Literature Review

Pioneer Advantage

2005-06-08T21:45:00.000+05:30

Pioneer advantage: Is it real? Does it matter? [PDF]

Dennis J. Cahill
Marketing Intelligence & Planning; 14: 4 1996; pp. 5-8
Keywords: Competitive Strategy, Market share, New Product Development, Product Innovation, Time to Market
Article Type: Literature Review, Case Study, Comparative/evaluators

Innovation as Newness

2005-06-08T19:55:00.000+05:30

Innovation as newness: What is new, how new, and new to whom? [PDF]

Jon-Arild Johannessen, Bjorn Olsen, G.T. Lumpkin
European Journal of Innovation Management, 4: 1 2001; pp. 20-31
Keywords: Innovation, Measurement, Entrepreneurialism, Norway
Article Type: Theoretical with Application in Practice

De Bono Innovation

2005-06-08T10:26:00.000+05:30

A great deal of lip service is given to innovation because it is always easier to talk about it than actually do anything about it.

De Bono's definition of innovation is: 'the putting into effect of something new for that organisation'. There could be many sources for what is new:

-- It might be something borrowed or copied from another organisation.

-- There might be a logical reaction to information and research data.

-- There might be a logical design that puts forwards something new.

-- There might be innovations produced directly by the exercise of creativity.

Innovation always requires a readiness to do something new, and anything new is risky, a distraction from the normal routine and requires commitment of some resources.

Because of this, many organisations are reluctant to try new things. Executives reach senior positions through being good at continuity and problem-solving; the readiness to try new things is not often a factor in a promotion.

There is also the fear of failure, as something new that doesn't work out is deemed a mistake. There is no word for 'a fully justified venture which, for reasons beyond your control, did not work'.

Many organisations work on the basis of osmosis, where if a new idea has been around for a long time and has been taken up by others then it becomes natural and low risk to adopt it. This is not a proactive approach. It is following rather than leading; not wanting to be left behind but not wanting to take the risks.

If a climate is created where there is a readiness to try new things and explore new possibilities then innovation can happen. Unfortunately, this is not usually the case, even when lip service is paid to innovation

From Management Intelligence, by Edward De Bono.

Business Networking Blog

2005-06-08T00:36:00.000+05:30

A new idea - planning to write a book on Business Networking. Do visit the blog - comments welcome.

Don't Listen to "Yes"

2005-06-07T13:57:00.000+05:30

It's essential for leaders to spark conflict in their organizations, as long as it is constructive. A Q&A with Professor Michael Roberto, author of the new book Why Great Leaders Don't Take Yes for an Answer.

John Masters' Quote

2005-06-07T09:32:00.000+05:30

YOU HAVE TO RECOGNIZE THAT EVERY 'OUT FRONT' MANUEVER YOU MAKE IS GOING TO BE LONELY, BUT IF YOU FEEL ENTIRELY COMFORTABLE, THEN YOU'RE NOT FAR ENOUGH TO DO ANY GOOD. THAT WARM SENSE OF EVERYTHING GOING WELL IS USUALLY THE BODY TEMPERATURE AT THE CENTER OF THE HERD.

Reasons fo failure to innovate

2005-06-07T09:31:00.000+05:30

From John Stark

Reasons for failure to innovate

Innovation is a long-term activity (failure to maintain interest)
Innovation has a long payback period
Innovation is expensive (failure to continue to invest)
Innovation is too complex to manage
Everyone's overloaded with everyday problems
Competing priorities
Management systems can't handle innovation
Innovation costs are too hard to control

Human centered innovation

2005-06-06T14:34:00.000+05:30

Two sentences from the Accelerating.org review of "A possible declining trend for worldwide innovation", by Heubner - reviewed by Ray KurZweil - that caught my attention:

"... as technological progress increasingly satisfies current human needs, individuals become less concerned with technological development and turn more toward personal growth, unique experiences and other activities which, wjile equally creative on an individual level, are less obvious examples of innovation in a technological sense."

AND

"The more industrialization we experience, the more we become ready to take a long-deserved break from generations of toiling, including much of the traditional work of innovation, and the more we become willing to let our machines take over the task of supplying our very finite human needs."