Monthly Archives: July 2010
The Rise of the Biomimetist by Yann Cramer One of IDEO’s ten faces of innovation is the anthropologist: the one who observes human behaviors and actions to discover wasted effort that could be turned into an innovation challenge. In the past decade, an eleven’s face has been quietly but steadily rising to prominence in the innovation team: the biomimetist, who observes animal and plant characteristics to discover supreme efficiency that could be turned into an innovation breakthrough. The kingfisher’s beak isn’t just a fashionable accessory that the bird has picked on the shelves of supermarket nature. It is the result of millions of years of evolution and natural selection. The biomimetist starts from the humble assumption that, even if it is not obvious at first, there may be a good reason why nature has designed animal and plants as we see them. The kingfisher’s beak turns out to be supremely … Continue reading
This is the fifth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘How should firms identify innovation opportunities and predict market potential at very early stages and in new areas (“green fields”) and ambiguous environments?’. Here is the next perspective in the series: by Mike Dalton Last month’s perspective suggested getting out of your environment and into the customer’s as one of the three steps to caffeinate your innovation. It’s fitting then that this month’s call for innovation perspectives should ask how firms can identify innovation opportunities and predict market potential at very early stages and in new areas. In this innovation perspective, I’ll brief six of the most effective practices in conducting customer visits for the purpose of identifying new and emerging opportunities in B2B markets. 1. Focus on the problems Customer visits must be focused on both finding … Continue reading
You’ve perhaps heard the saying that politics is the art of the possible. Otto von Bismarck said that over a hundred and thirty years ago. He was the chancellor of the German nation. You’d think that a guy with that much power would have been able to push almost anything through, no matter how harebrained. But he realized and accepted the limitation foisted on him by the political system. Otto was interested in what could be accomplished within the framework of his political situation, which was bounded by the bureaucracy of the government, the expectation of the people, what his treasury could fund, and a number of other constraints and barriers. What he wanted was the best possible outcome based on these constraints. Unfortunately, a lot of people who want to be innovators think this way as well. Whether you are in government, in a not-for-profit, …
Well it’s about time! The United States Department of Energy (DOE) announced in May that it’s launching three Energy Innovation Hubs, designed to “help advance highly promising areas of energy science and engineering from the early stage of research to the point where the technology can be handed off to the private sector.” These hubs not only demonstrate the nation’s commitment to tackling our energy and climate challenges, but they also represent an innovation endeavor not often associated with the U.S. government. Each of the three hubs will tackle a different energy challenge in a highly collaborative way that welcomes diversity of thought. They will “bring together top researchers from academia, industry and the government laboratories with expertise that spans multiple scientific and engineering disciplines under the leadership of a dynamic scientist-manager.” They differ from other DOE R&D projects that have smaller teams, more clearly defined leaders and few disciplines … Continue reading
This is the fourth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘How should firms identify innovation opportunities and predict market potential at very early stages and in new areas (“green fields”) and ambiguous environments?’. Here is the next perspective in the series: by Drew Boyd Here are three green field innovation approaches: 1. Find Innovation Adjacencies: Adjacent markets are an attractive way to grow. Adjacent markets are not too far away from your core business in terms of channels, technology, price point, brand, etc.. To find them, I recommend The Big Picture framework developed by Professor Christie Nordhielm at The University of Michigan. The Big Picture outlines four quadrants that completely define any market category. To find “green fields”, consider each quadrant one at a time and imagine extending beyond the bounds of the category in some close …
Confidence vs. Arrogance… Is it merely a question of semantics? I think not. While confidence can be mistaken for arrogance, and vice-versa, they are clearly not interchangeable terms. When you think of yourself as a leader do you view yourself as having the quiet confidence of David or the boastful arrogance of Goliath? In today’s post I’ll describe the power that resides with the truly confident, as contrasted with self-destructive characteristics that plague the arrogant… When you think of a true leader do you envision someone who displays a quiet confidence or a blatant arrogance? In the competitive worlds of business and politics a reserved attitude of humility can often be misinterpreted as a sign of weakness. However if you’ve ever negotiated with a truly confident person who is authentically humble, you’ll find that their resolve is often much greater than the feigned confidence of the arrogant. While hubris can … Continue reading
