Monthly Archives: September 2009
Kevin Roberts will be speaking at the World Business Forum in New York City, October 6-7, 2009. Here is our latest hand-picked article:by Kevin RobertsFor change to take real effect, it needs to be personalized. Saatchi & Saatchi S, our sustainability agency, is working with companies to implement nano-practices in the workplace to reduce carbon use.We call this DIY contagion DOT, Do One Thing. Each person is encouraged to choose one thing to pursue regularity. It can be anything from cycling to work or doing laundry with cold water. It’s just one thing, a start not a complete change of life. One person’s DOT may stand alone, but connect a billion DOTs together and you’ll see a movement of change happening.Employees throughout our own network have shared their DOTs. Here are ten, from Sao Paolo to Singapore:My DOT is to take public transportation to and from airports whenever possible.I use … Continue reading
We’re all likely involved in relationships tied to coaching, mentoring, or just plain supporting one another. They’re tremendously helpful in personal and business growth, yet at times, these relationships can become stale.What can you do if you find yourself in such a relationship? Here are four options to spice things up:1. Add a PersonI’ve been working out for more than three years with the same trainer. The results have been great, yet at times, we tend to fall into the same routines. When my niece was visiting last month, she went along as a guest trainee. The spirit of competition improved my effort and also created some new enthusiasm from my trainer.2. Reverse RolesI’ve got a great career coach who can amazingly have one meeting with me that creates about nine month’s worth of activity and progress. Recently we got together for lunch and turned the tables: I was able … Continue reading
This is the sixth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on “Where should innovation reside?” Here is the next perspective in the series:by Michael SoerensenTo define “ownership” or management of innovation within a company, it’s vital to start out by looking at the organisational side of it. You need a strong innovation organisation in order to spur and cultivate innovation throughout the company – and you need to move away from the ivory tower strategy, where the few decides for the many.You are not “born” into the innovation organisation on your job title – but on your capabilities to be an ambassador enabled to optimize the innovative thinking of your colleagues! So, how do we identify these ambassadors? The first move is to grant ownership of innovation to everyone! Management needs to stress that ongoing innovation is vital, and … Continue reading
IBM recently launched its Smarter Cities initiative. Part of its overall SmarterPlanet project, Smarter Cities is an effort to find solutions to the problems that will occur due to our ever-increasing population growth in urban centers around the world:”In 1900, only 13% of the world’s population lived in cities. By 2050, that number will have risen to 70%. We are adding the equivalent of seven New Yorks to the planet every year.This unprecedented urbanization is both an emblem of our economic and societal progress – especially for the world’s emerging nations – and a huge strain on the planet’s infrastructure. It’s a challenge felt urgently by mayors, heads of economic development, school administrators, police chiefs and other civic leaders.”IBM has the smarts and global heft to be a major voice in innovating solutions for the problems that urban population growth will bring on. And of course, it doesn’t hurt that … Continue reading
Point: Innovation doesn’t have to be expensiveStory:Current surveys indicate that more companies are reducing innovation budgets this year, but the good news is that innovation doesn’t have to be expensive. Here are two stories that show how to innovate inexpensively:J.B. Hunt was just a truck driver in the 1940s when he saw that rice mills in Arkansas were disposing of rice hulls by burning them. Rice hulls are the fluffy tough fibrous shells removed to create white rice. The waste hulls gave Hunt an idea: he contracted with the mills to haul away their rice hulls, and then he sold the hulls to poultry farmers as chicken-house litter. After Hunt’s revelation of the potential value of rice hulls, others found additional innovative uses for the material: pillow stuffing, high-fiber additives for pet food, natural building insulation, filler for injection-molded plastics, and using rice hulls to improve apple juice extraction.Similarly, …
This is the fifth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on “Where should innovation reside?” Here is the next perspective in the series:by Mark RoserHaving consulted in the new product and innovation areas of major pharmaceutical companies and commercial transportation companies over the past 12 years, and in R&D for the 10 years prior, I have seen several variations of how innovation has been ‘owned’ within organizations.The finding I would like to share is that the treatment of innovation by companies follows a progression, and as companies mature, their treatment of innovation also matures. ‘How’ an innovation group is owned appears to be much more important than ‘where’ it is owned.For companies that consider themselves early in adopting an innovation discipline, the notion of innovation can be foreign. In order for the idea of innovation to be accepted within … Continue reading
