What are the criteria to select research and development projects
What are your criteria for deciding that an idea is worth pursuing? We all have our own set of selection criteria, the first of which is usually looking for profits. However, selecting a course of action based solely on ROI can be limiting. If you are doing something really innovative,
What Are The Corporate Antibodies And Are They Dangerous To Your Ideas?
The antagonist of the innovator is the corporate antibody. Much like antibodies in our immune system attack and destroy foreign objects that might harm the body, “antibodies” in your organization identify and neutralize forces that threaten to destabilize a company. And in much the same way as antib
Catching the AI Wave: Content Management Innovation S14 Ep20
Download Catching_the_AI_Wave-_Content_Management_Innovation_S14_Ep20.mp3 From my shows on this year’s CES, you’ll know I’m leery of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the many companies touting it. On the flip side, I have also featured some interesting ventures into AI. When I
What are we throwing away because we assume it has no value
My wife is famous for being a little frugal. She once routed me and our son Logan from Las Vegas to Phoenix to Los Angeles and finally to San Jose because she could save twenty bucks each over the nonstop fare. Kind of nuts, right? But if I’m honest
To See Your Assumptions Act Like An Outsider
The problem with trying to be the “outsider” is that most of us aren’t outsiders. We are inside—inside our company, our industry, or our organization. There’s a delicate balancing act between being the person who can speak the confrontational, difficult truths, and the person who can speak these sam
Competing for Fuel Efficiency Innovation S14 Ep19
Download Competing_for_Fuel_Efficiency_Innovation_S14_Ep19.mp3 There’s been an explosion of innovation competitions in recent years. They highlight the fact that innovation can come from non-obvious sources. These competitions bring together smart people – usually industry outsiders - to tackle a problem. The annual Shell Eco-marathon
Could I create a standardized offering of a custom product
One of the first products I created as a software developer was a touch-typing program called Typing Instructor . This was back in 1985, and at that time there was no such thing as a standard PC. Instead you owned a specific brand and had access to the programs that
To Innovate You Need To Question Your Assumptions
Every year I travel around the world giving workshops and motivational talks on innovation. I enjoy doing this; I’m a naturally curious person, and there’s always something interesting to observe and learn from these speaking dates. Often I’ll walk into an auditorium full of people wondering if they
Smart Ideation to Scale Your Business S14 Ep18
Download Smart_Ideation_to_Scale_Your_Business_S14_Ep18.mp3 Great ideas come and go, but what makes an idea into something bigger? How do you develop your idea into a product that will attract venture capitalists and scale your business? Is the idea sustainable beyond one or two seasons
Who complains about my product
A few years ago, a passenger complaint letter to Virgin Atlantic circulated around the web. It was very long, fully illustrated with photos, clearly somewhat tongue-in-cheek, and very funny, but it made a few good points about the bad food and surly service this particular passenger had experienced.