Today is all about innovation, so grab your coffee and settle in. Only one to read and the rest you can listen to or watch. Enjoy!
First, check out how Mark King, CEO of TaylorMade drives “relentless innovation” that has doubled revenue since 2003.
Now listen to Always On CEO Tony Perkins, Tim Draper, Founder and Managing Director of venture capital company Draper Fisher Jurvetson and founding partner of ThinkEquity and author of Finding the Next Starbucks talk about What is the Next Big Thing?
Then click over and explore the bonanza of innovation inspiration in the form of podcasts and videos at the Stanford University Entrepreneurial Corner. I think you’ll find it worth bookmarking.
A few days ago an executive I’ll call Dan called me to bemoan the lack of creativity in his organization and I told him to stop hiring dogs. He informed me that he had great people and when I agreed he demanded to know why I called them dogs.
The problem is that Dan hires people he likes who fall inside his comfort zone, so his organization gets along well. And while it’s well diversified from an HR point of view it has little mental diversity.
It’s a happy place, kind of like a dog park with a large variety of breeds and mutts all well socialized to play together and those that don’t play nice are asked to leave.
That kind of peace may be good for a dog park, but it can mean death for a company’s innovation efforts.
Unfortunately, people have been moving away from thought diversity for quite awhile now. The attitude has a name, homophily, it’s been around forever and it’s an attitude I run into frequently when it comes to hiring, although it’s rarely intentional. It’s a word you should learn just so you can avoid it.
It’s what makes it difficult for Dan’s people to be creative; when something is suggested it’s often accepted with little discussion and even when a counter idea is presented it has similar DNA.
It’s not that Dan needs to toss a bunch of cats in the middle, but he does need to start hiring people that come from a variety of companies and industries, with different experiences and with whom he may not be as comfortable as he is now.
It also means that Dan will have to work harder.
Not because his people won’t get along, but because diversity of thought does foster exactly what Dan wants—higher creativity.
Creativity means multiple ideas with no common DNA leading to passionate champions, intense discussions and heated meetings. Dan will have to actively manage the various elements if he wants to harness that energy for the benefit of the organization.
Whether you consider yourself a manager, a leader or a combination thereof, the more mentally diverse your organization the more difficult to manage, but the rewards are high for doing it well.
I was delighted when I was sent a free copy of Barack, Inc.: Winning Business Lessons of the Obama Campaign to review. Not just because I voted for him, but because this is a book about how to sell change, major change, to strangers and in doing so turn them into a community of supporters.
That’s what Apple did with the iPod and that’s what every CEO recognizes as being of paramount importance.
But it’s not just about managing change; it’s about creating a desire for it. It’s about creating an environment where changes are being driven by your workers, not just by you and your execs.”
That’s what Obama and his team did brilliantly and that’s why you should read the book.
Forget politics, think about the challenges your company faces. Survival isn’t enough.
The business world and consumer landscapes are changing—industries that downplay or ignore innovation to focus on survival and the status quo out of fear of upsetting their current business model are likely to be swept away by the transformation rocking the global economy.
To thrive, you need to engage your current stakeholders (investors, employees, vendors, current customers)—just as Obama did.
His success turned on three main points, he
kept his cool under all provocations,
applied social technologies, including blogs, texting, and viral videos, and
made himself synonymous with what he was selling—change.
Obama allowed nothing to be set in stone and moved swiftly when the landscape changed.
One of my favorite examples was his choice to reject funding limitations, although he had previously said he would accept them. Why?
Because he realized that the amount of money he would raise via the Net more than compensated for McCain’s bashing him for the switch.
Now substitute ‘innovation’ for money and ‘quarterly results’ for bashing and give it some hard thought.
Read the book; adopt/tweak/adjust its lessons and tools for your company’s situation and then execute, because all the theory and examples won’t help unless you have the courage to use them.
One of the most popular series of articles at Leadership Turn was written shortly before I came. It’s about styles of learning and how they apply to you, your colleagues, your team and your kids. Written by my editor, Mary Jo Manzanares, they are well worth your time. In fact, you’ll find it useful to review them from time to time, it’s the kind of information that gets pushed to the side, but pays large dividends when kept in the active file.
For those of you who deal with products in one way or another, here’s an interesting interview with Alberto Alessi on how to sustain innovation over time. You may have to register (free) to read it, but you’ll find it a source of great information.
There are lots of articles out there about large corporations who spend millions to create environments that spark creativity, encourage teamwork and facilitate a generally happier, i.e., more productive, workforce.
Startups are known for their cool and or funky offices often done on a shoestring. But they aren’t the only ones. It’s not just the big guys or the upstarts that are jumping on the trend. Lots of small businesses create innovative environments. Take a look at Madden Corporate Services, a 15 year old branding biz that’s grown to 39 people and learn how their modest investment pays off.
One item today, because it has several parts, all revolving around a new, way outside-the-box book.
I’m referring to Jeff Jarvis’ just-released What Would Google Do?, exploring how to apply the lessons of Google to other industries and companies.
Jarvis teaches at the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism; his blog is BuzzMachine.
Business Week published an excerpt describing how a car company run by Google might function and why the auto industry would be resistant to the approach. Be sure to read through the comments, they’re as interesting as the article.
I like the Management Tip Sheet; here are the headings, but the real value is in the details, so be sure to click the link.
Manage Abundance, Not Scarcity
Make Mistakes Well
Give Up Control
Get Out Of The Way
Low Prices Are Good (Free Is Better)
Don’t Be Evil (Contrary to popular opinion the phrase has an internal focus, not external.)
Finally, here’s a video of Jarvis talking about his ideas; there are several other interviews that offer different slants and information.
Just to be clear, this isn’t a book recommendation. I think there are good lessons to learn from Google, but there are good lessons to learn from most truly innovative companies.
I know of none that can be applied straight across the board or are one-size-fits-all.
But all the companies that still believe “if we make it they will buy” are in for a very rude awakening when the economy turns around—as it will.
In 1979, the first spreadsheet software was introduced, Sony rolled out the Walkman, ESPN began broadcasting sporting events to cable TV companies, and on public television, Nightly Business Report made its debut. To celebrate their three decades on the air, PBS’ Nightly Business Report has teamed up with Knowledge@Wharton, the online research and business analysis journal of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, to select the 30 most important innovations from the last 30 years.
The full list will be announced on Nightly Business Report, in a special half hour program, next Monday, February 16, 2009.
The criteria upon which the innovations were judged:
1. Did it have a direct and/or material effect on quality of life?
2. Did it address a compelling need? Did it solve a compelling problem?
3. Was it a fresh, new breakthrough? Was there a “WOW” factor?
4. Did it change the way business is conducted?
5. Did it increase the efficiency of how resources are used?
6. Did it spark an ongoing stream of new innovations on top of the original innovation?
7. Did it lead to the creation of a vast, new industry?
For more information, or to speak with a Nightly Business Report representative, please contact Mark Ballard at 212-255-8455 or mark@rosengrouppr.com.
How much longer do you think it will take corporate Earth to get off their terrified, or comfortable, collective asses and embrace a real, live, authentic, proven solution to most of their problems?
“But businesses bold enough to develop a forward-looking, risk-taking corporate culture and brave enough to cannibalise existing successful products, in order to commercialise radically new ones, are more likely to dominate world markets and increase the competitiveness of their national economies.”
Bold and forward-looking, aren’t those the traits that every over-paid CEO on the planet claims to be their expertise along with how they will ‘lead’ their company into a bright new world…blah, blah, blah.
Are you as tired of hearing them as I am? They talk and talk…and talk.
Or they’re replaced by an impatient Board running from Wall Street’s demand for short-term profits.
Prabhu, along with a host of other experts, says his research shows that “Innovative companies appear to have a similar corporate culture, wherever they may be located in the world.”
“We have identified three specific attitudes and three practices within innovative firms that make them special and drive radical innovation. These are
risk tolerance,
a willingness to cannibalise existing products,
future market orientation,
empowering product champions,
fostering internal competition and
providing incentives for enterprise.”
Attention Wall Street, this stuff is not implemented overnight—or in a quarter.
Whoa. Do you think it’s possible that the silver lining in the current mess that was started and facilitated by Wall Street denizens might be a return to long(er) term thinking?
That CEOs will get canned for embracing quarterly numbers a la Jack Welch in place of radical innovation.
That investors will actually take Warren Buffet’s philosophy to heart and quit putting their faith in hedge funds, day trading and fast profits?
Six weeks ago I started Seize Your Leadership Day; each post had info and links to resources or articles I felt would interest/be or use to you.
Based on your reaction to date, it’s been of little use to you—a giant yawn.
So I thought I’d ask you directly, do you like the feature?
If so, is the content I find of use to you or does it need refining?
If not, what would you like to see here on Saturdays?
Please don’t be shy. The worst thing for any blogger is to ask for guidance from readers and not get any. Makes us wonder if anyone is reading.
In the meantime, Here are a couple of goodies for today.
Margaret Heffernan’s two most recent posts (1/6 and 13) are the start of a series and offer smart, real-life examples on dealing with the recession. As Heffernan says,
“Think of recessions as tests. Companies that fail them die. Companies that survive live to fight another day. But a few companies emerge stronger than ever.”
They’re short, with solid lessons and ideas for you to start using immediately.
Another useful reminder for recession managing comes in an 18 month old article in Business Week on the value of failure in achieving success. It’s more important in today’s economy than it was then, because without a safe environment in which to fail there can be no innovation and a company without innovation is a company on the slippery, downward slope to mediocrity—or worse.
I hope they’re of use to you.
Don’t forget to leave your thoughts and preferences for Saturday subjects as requested earlier. If you’d rather send them for privacy, you can reach me at miki@RampUpSolutions.com (please put Leadership Turn in the subject line to avoid filters).
I’ve focused a lot over the last six months on the problems in education and attitudes of the workforce-to-be and it’s been a pretty dismal picture. Obviously, there are plenty of exceptions, but that, too, is problematic.
It’s not just that entrepreneurship attracts the best and brightest, is also attracts a significant percentage of high-initiative students and it’s those with initiative who drive innovation wherever they’re at.
And there lies the problem.
Not because these kids want to solve problems, start businesses and attack the world’s social ills—that’s great. But the MAP that drives these kids is the same MAP that is so desperately needed by today’s corporations.
“”They’re [the Net generation] great collaborators, with friends, online, at work,” Mr. [Don] Tapscott wrote. “They thrive on speed. They love to innovate.” … A report issued last year by the Kauffman Foundation, which finances programs to promote innovation on campuses, noted that more than 5,000 entrepreneurship programs are offered on two- and four-year campuses — up from just 250 courses in 1985…Since 2003, the Kauffman Foundation has given nearly $50 million to 19 colleges and universities to build campus programs.”
We live in a world of impatience; Boomers, contrary to some perceptions, were and are impatient; Gen X is still more impatient and it’s increased by an order of magnitude in Gen Y—and it will continue to increase the faster the world moves and changes.
And, to paraphrase, the world, it is a changin’.
The youngest generation is the most impatient, and that impatience is traveling up.
Yet, it is those with initiative, not just impatience; those with a desire to accomplish, not a sense of entitlement, that companies need to attract if they want to compete and thrive in the new world.
These are the people who can fuel innovation and corporate America’s ability to succeed.
Judy Estrin is amazing. She co-founded seven companies, including Bridge Communications in 1981. Back then I was living in San Francisco, had several friends who worked at Bridge and was fortunate enough to meet her and hear her speak. Like I said, amazing.
But you may not know who Judy is, in spite of her being named one of the 50 most powerful women in American business by Fortune magazine three times.
So here’s your chance. In addition to the Google author’s interview below, there are other several other videos, and an interview by McKinsey here (may require free registration).
Enjoy getting to know Judy, she’s great fun and really smart.
Entrepreneurs face difficulties that are hard for most people to imagine, let alone understand. You can find anonymous help and connections that do understand at 7 cups of tea.
Crises never end.
$10 really does make a difference and you’ll never miss it,
Today is all about innovation, so grab your coffee and settle in. Only one to read and the rest you can listen to or watch. Enjoy!
A few days ago an executive I’ll call Dan called me to bemoan the lack of creativity in his organization and I told him to stop hiring dogs. He informed me that he had great people and when I agreed he demanded to know why I called them dogs.
One of the most popular 
Media Alert: PBS’ Nightly Business Report
How much longer do you think it will take corporate Earth to get off their terrified, or comfortable, collective asses and embrace a real, live, authentic, proven solution to most of their problems?
Six weeks ago I started 
I’ve focused a lot over the last six months on the problems in education and attitudes of the workforce-to-be and it’s been a pretty dismal picture. Obviously, there are plenty of exceptions, but that, too, is problematic.
