Monthly Archives: July 2010
This is the sixth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘What are three specific actions that a non-innovative company can take to become more innovative?’. Here is the next perspective in the series: by Mark Turrell What are three specific actions that a non-innovative company can take to become more innovative? Limit your expectations – stop reading books about Google, and get realistic about what you can achieve in your own firm Take a baby step – find something small to do, a tiny idea, and go do it. It could be a change to the way you handle expenses, or a new format for your invoices. By taking just a small step, you begin to realize that change is possible, that it’s not that hard. Develop your ‘end goal’ – where do you want to be… your … Continue reading
Can leaders be blinded by their own success? You bet…While success is what all leaders strive for, unless you’re prepared to handle it, success can quickly complicate your life. Even worse, without the proper perspective success can actually contribute to the beginning of your downfall. So my question is this: Is your success serving as a springboard for even greater success, or is it merely a temporary state, precariously positioned and ready to implode with the slightest change in circumstance? As strange as it may sound, success can often times be the precursor to failure. Success without perspective, purpose, and focus can actually cause more harm than good. In today’s post I’ll discuss how CEOs, entrepreneurs and other leaders can either leverage success, or if they’re not careful, have it serve as a catalyst for a rapid downward spiral… While not often discussed, nothing dulls the senses like a taste … Continue reading
This is the fifth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘What are three specific actions that a non-innovative company can take to become more innovative?’. Here is the next perspective in the series: by Mike Dalton 1. Narrow your focus While concentrating too hard on one thing can cause you to mistake the forest for the trees, that’s hardly the problems in companies today. No, I normally find companies spreading people too thinly – dealing with anywhere between five and ten projects at the same time. The so-called multi-tasking required to survive this situation puts people in a constant state of distraction (beta brainwave state) as they switch back and forth between tasks. It also means that they spend a higher percentage (greater than 70% by some estimates) of their time on the non-value added activity of juggling … Continue reading
In a recent, and strangely unremarked post, I wrote about some reasons that firms don’t innovate. Perhaps one of the most telling is what I call the “safety of sameness”. No one ever gets fired if they: Hire IBM Execute a strategy McKinsey suggested, or Become a “fast follower” and mimic what other firms in the space do The beauty of the safety of sameness strategy is that we’ll allow others to take all of the innovation risk and we’ll swoop down, copy their ideas and we’ll be the winner. In theory this is a great idea, in practice there are a number of reasons why this is risky. First, becoming a fast follower, if there is such a thing, means intentionally adopting a reactive posture. If you are a fast follower you are intentionally setting out your strategies, processes and operations to react to what others do – in … Continue reading
