Monthly Archives: November 2009
This is the fourth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘What is the most dangerous current misconception in innovation?’. Now, here is Mark Turrell’s perspective:by Mark TurrellCurrent Misconceptions of Innovation: Time to Paint by the Numbers Innovation is such a broad term, and can be used in so many ways, that it is hard to pick out the top five misconceptions, let alone focus on the biggest one. Is it the battle between the innovation process people and the innovation creativity people? Is it the use of consultants to support one-off innovation projects rather than investing in organization-wide innovation capacity? Is it the impending IT stampede towards innovation software tools, with the likely neglect of the human beings needed to support the process? Or is it the persistent view that companies are ‘close to the customer’ when in … Continue reading
If the numbering in this post doesn’t seem to jive with yesterday’s, that’s because the list of 110 tactics seems to have grown in the course of the week; we’ve adjusted accordingly.Adhocracy. Love It or Leave It.Projects “emerge.” Recall “spontaneous discovery process,” our item #3. Most projects invent themselves, rather than being the product of a formal planning process; and their growth into something big is also mostly organic. An effective culture of innovation is largely ad hoc—which drives many senior managers crazy. If they can’t “get it,” then they don’t belong.Leadership is on the fly. Things change rapidly. Teams are born and teams die. Yesterday’s leader is today’s follower – and vice versa. Developing “on the fly” leadership skills is no walk in the park. First, it must be perceived as a describable and learnable skill. (Hint: Women are better at this than men. Arguably, much better.)Plan-less-ness. If your … Continue reading
How hard is it to innovate? Not once but over and over? How can you repeatedly implement great new products, processes or services? Continuous innovation is not easy and if you keep using the same method you will experience diminishing results. Try innovating how you innovate by employing some of these ideas.Copy someone else’s idea. One of the best ways to innovate is to pinch an idea that works elsewhere and apply it in your business. Henry Ford saw the production line working in a meat packing plant and then applied to the automobile industry thereby dramatically reducing assembly times and costs.Ask customers. If you simply ask your customers how you could improve your product or service they will give you plenty of ideas for incremental innovations. Typically they will ask for new features or that you make your product cheaper, faster, easier to use, available in different styles and … Continue reading
This is the third of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘What is the most dangerous current misconception in innovation?’. Now, here is Jim Estill’s perspective:by Jim EstillThe five most common misconceptions of innovation include:1.In order for an innovation to succeed, it must be dramatically different than any other products in the market. Wrong. In reality if something is dramatically different than what’s in the market, it can be very difficult for people to put a frame of reference on the product, so they won’t know what to do with it to start with. I sit on the board of Research In Motion and when RIM first came out with their Blackberry, they called it a two-way pager, because people in that area understood what pager was, but didn’t understand an e-mail device on their hip.2. Major innovation is … Continue reading
Warren Buffet Is Betting His Farm Investing In A 190 Years Old Innovation Platformby Idris MooteeI love trains. I remember how happy I was when my Dad bought me the first expensive German made Minitrix train set (I was about 8). I was fascinated for months by different freight and passenger trains and had the catalog under the pillow going bed every night dreaming about them. Whenever I see trains, I think about him even sadly he is not around anymore. It is funny how toys can have so much sentimental value.Anyone know when the railroad was invented? It depends on how you look at it. The invention of the steam engine was critical to the invention of the modern railroad and trains. In 1803, a man named Samuel Homfray decided to fund the development of a steam-powered vehicle to replace the horse-drawn carts on the tramways (it is a … Continue reading
Entrepreneur, CEO or Both? Which hat, or hats do you wear? CEO…that title sounds good doesn’t it? Okay, so you founded the company, but does that mean you should also be the chief executive? Did you bestow the title upon yourself simply because you had the authority to do so, or are you the right person for the job? Perhaps you were the right person for the job initially, but has the company outgrown your management ability? As the founder, can you, or should you, attempt to grow with the company? What does a CEO really do anyway? In today’s blog post I’ll assess what it takes to be an effective CEO and you can decide for yourself if you have what it takes to get the job done.Sure, it’s your business, your idea, your net worth at risk and certainly nobody else will work as hard as you will, … Continue reading
