The great challenge in innovation is not coming up with a discovery or great invention. The challenge is in making it stick, in nurturing it and growing it so that it spreads and changes the world. Numerous antibodies and barriers are ready to snuff out every great idea, even when it offers a solution that …
Lessons from the British Navy: Why the Cure for Scurvy Took 200 Years to Be Implemented Read More »
In many large corporations, there’s a painful and frequently repeated scenario of invention theft that we treat in several ways in the book, Conquering Innovation Fatigue. The invention theft I’m thinking of today is not from foreign spies or evil competitors. It is internal theft, wherein a powerful employee or team within a corporation takes …
Time Travel Is Easy: How to Send Your Company Back to the Dark Ages Read More »
While many US citizens are tempted to make political points from the problems we’re facing in the Gulf, there are some basic organizational issues that transcend political parties and get at one of the basic problems in responding to unexpected changes. The problem is bureaucracy and the myriad of personal and departmental incentives that are …
The BP Oil Disaster in the Gulf: Innovation Fatigue in Full Force Read More »
In recent years, scientists have been astounded to discover that the visible universe represents just a tiny fraction of the matter and energy that governs the cosmos. Based on the motion of stars and galaxies, strange “dark matter” must be present, increasing the gravitational tug on celestial bodies more than can be accounted for by …
Dark Energy and Dark Matter: What Astrophysics Can Teach Us about Innovation Success Read More »
Recently I spoke to a group of engineers, scientists and managers about the challenges of innovation fatigue within corporate R&D. I condensed that presentation down to just 14 minutes and have made it available using Pixetell.com, a nice system for recording a presentation.A short URL for the presentation is http://tinyurl.com/jlpres1. Engineers and scientists are often …
Conquering Innovation Fatigue for Those in Corporate R&D Read More »
Is your innovation organization running on empty? Crushed, lacking creative juices? Time to add some fizz again with principles from the book, Conquering Innovation Fatigue. As part of the series on Magic and Innovation, today I’m using a simple effect to illustrate what can be achieved with an innovation organization. Available on Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JVr017KZBw.
Innovation has often been killed by poor metrics, part of the innovation fatigue factor of flaws in judgment and vision. Poor metrics can include financial analysis that emphasizes short-term gains but overlooks the future. One way of illustrating the problem is with the “Apple Tree Analogy.” Imagine a fruit production company that is concerned with …
In dealing with many innovators and companies in our work at Innovationedge, we sometimes hear complaints about leaders who seem to be anti-innovation. You know, the kind who supposedly “wouldn’t touch innovation with a 10-foot pole.” Sometimes these leaders aren’t really anti-innovation, but anti-waste and especially pro-results. That’s not a bad thing! Maybe their past …
A heavy-handed or micromanaging approach to handling a community of innovators in a corporation often has an unintended chilling effect that can put the freeze on innovation. Avoid this innovation fatigue factor by respecting your innovators, listening to them, and giving them the freedom to apply their talents within the constraints required for the project. …
Avoid the Corporate Chilling Effect on Innovation Read More »
In this 4-minute video clip, I illustrate some of the principles from our book, Conquering Innovation Fatigue, using one of my favorite magic tricks, a version of the cut and restored paper trick. It speaks to the need for the innovation community in a corporation and other elements to be aligned with the true objectives …