Incremental innovation remains a critical component for organisations. However, when an organisation only rewards incremental endeavours (recognition, remuneration and promotion), why would anybody want to risk their career with transformational effort? Give the customer a 12-blade razor, a chai-latte-flavoured soda or a 6G Origami phone. By all means, be a fast-moving caterpillar-cake copycat, but invest some of the profits from the incremental present into the transformational future. Don’t use the future to fuel your present.
Helen Edwards book, “Marginal to Mainstream” shows why businesses, marketers and entrepreneurs need to break free from their ‘mainstream inhibition’ and turn their attention to the margins – to confront, evaluate and embrace the ‘strangeness’ of behaviours, ideas and ways of life at the fringes.
It is a sincere pleasure to welcome the author of “Own Your Work Journey!: The Path to Meaningful Work and Happiness in the Age of Smart Technology and Radical Change.” Edward D. Hess
We are joined by he author of “Life is a Metaphor: Metaphors, Stories and Musings for the Heart”, George Pransky, joined by his wife and long-time business partner Linda Pransky
Friction s an often-overlooked aspect of innovation and new product development. The following stories illustrate the importance of empathy, jobs-to-be-done research and understanding the balance of friction and progress.
What is the purpose of mind-wandering? The aim is to improve the efficiency of your generative model. Author of “The Hidden Spring”, Mark Solms explains.
“The more humble the person, the greater the leadership potential.” – Dr Robert Hogan (Hogan Assessments)
The Aboriginal tradition of “Right Way Fire” involves the controlled use of fire to maintain and restore ecosystems. Strategic small-scale slow burns in targeted areas during the early dry season minimise the risks of uncontrollable wildfires in the dry season. This practice is deeply rooted in the understanding that mindfully clearing away the old and stagnant creates space for new growth and vitality. This collective ancestral wisdom, long ignored, is now changing practices across several countries with similar savannah grasslands.)
Diversity of species, genetics, age, thinking and specialism (skillsets) is fundamental to the health of an ecosystem. As we will explore in this Thursday’s Thought, homogeneity risks ecosystems. Despite mother nature’s wisdom, we often think we know better. A drive for profits and short-termism frequently trump what is best for the long term.
Today’s book shows, through empirical analysis and the experiences of dozens of companies that have successfully made multiple big moves, that to dramatically improve performance, you have to overcome incrementalism and corporate inertia.
We welcome Chairman of the McKinsey Global Institute and Author of “Strategy beyond the hockey Stick” Sven Smit