An exploration of the paradox of corporate innovation environments, discussing how organizations need to break through cynicism, embrace change and encourage innovative thinking for both bottom-line efficiency and top-line growth.
Corporate innovation struggles, and not from a lack of ideas or capital. More often, the constraints are time and attention.
Collaboration is a participation sport. To make it all work, everyone needs to change their behavior. And if you want your new technology tools to drive the process forward, you need to practice using them – every chance you get.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced businesses to change. Some are still in react mode, while others are being more proactive. Might this disruption be an opportunity to change their business model? One in a series of articles about Digital Business Continuity; real-time lessons learned, improvements we can make now and in the future.
Drive south through the state of Indiana on I-65, and before you hit Indianapolis you will come across an impressively large array of wind turbines, the new vertical symbols of energy self-reliance and innovation. I remember not so long ago, when this section of the road was just miles of cornfields, as far as the eye could see. The tallest things out here were telephone poles and the occasional power line - but that was then, and this scene is…
Over my career, I have developed a few strongly-held design beliefs, and one came up in conversation recently, during a spirited discussion on minimal quality requirements for a[ny] data mart. I hold that the data copied from source to destination must be provably correct and complete with little effort. When agile-ly rolling staged deliverables into production, I may not have all the attributes in place for full flexibility of drill down, but if you have [say] 1248 records in the…
Four required competencies for leading innovation - defined, and put in context with examples.
Understanding the job - not just the How, but also the Why - is just as important as Doing the Job. A key component of Change Management is helping the team see the difference.
To be successful in leading change and creating value, demonstrate your ability to make Change happen skills in People, Process, or Technology.
Introducing buzzword-compliant technology like a wiki, or integrated collaboration spaces like SharePoint, will typically go well with a motivated audience like your internal IT department. But if you really want to understand how this stuff works, try it with "real people" - line employees in sales and marketing, operations, and finance. Sure, you've heard complaints from these folks (they have better PCs at home, the SAP/Oracle UI is brutal compared to Amazon and AT&T U-Verse, and why can't they just…