Archive for: 2012

Innovation must reads of the week: What is the missing real cost of not innovating?

If you like these links, check out all the previous “Innovation Must Reads of the Week“. And don’t forget to Follow @jorgebarba

How do you innovate in a NO environment?

Jorge in Innovation, Question-To-Innovate, Questions

This is the fifth of a series of weekly posts where I will answer a few common questions about innovation. Please feel free to add your own response. Also, if you have any questions you think we should discuss, let me know.

Yesterday’s #innochat discussion focused on the situation lots of aspiring innovators operate in: a NO environment.

First, what does a NO environment look like? For me, it looks like:…

Tactics are superficial, strategy is deep

Jorge in Leadership, Strategy

Here’s the question posed on yesterday’s #bizforum chat.

Apple is OFTEN used as a case study for how biz can & should grow, yet it’s always a one-off. Few compare. Why?#bizforum

— Sam Fiorella (@samfiorella) October 11, 2012

My answer: Because, as always, everyone copies tactics. Not strategy.

Apple’s strategy is unique to them. Their reason for existing is theirs alone. And their tactics are aligned with that strategy. More importantly, their type of leadership, based on principles of excellence and artistic perfection; is laser focused on executing their strategy.

Who else thinks and acts that way? Not many.…

Subtract to innovate

Jorge in Innovation

You have to shed some of your old skin to make room for the new one

While I don’t advertise it, I do give workshops on social media marketing and research. I give them on a “people/businesses ask me for them” basis. Why? Because I’m not really interested in telling you how to increase the number of Likes and/or followers. This is what the industry has become about. And businesses, like always, go head first without truly understanding what “this” is really about.

What I’m really interested in telling you, is what this “social stuff” means beyond marketing. What it means for how you organize, how you hire, how you deliver on your value proposition, how you work, how you communicate, etc. What it means to let real-time customer-insights direct your strategy.

As I told a buddy of mine recently, this is not an add on process where you just “install” a new feature to your business. My buddy wanted to know what the expected ROI was for these social media initiatives. This is a short sighted and correct MBA question. But that is not the question you should be asking because this is not an add on. It is not like adding new rims or a new intake system to your car, it’s the opposite.

It’s about subtracting some of what you already do to make room for the new.…

Innovation must reads of the week: Who says innovation has to be expensive?

Jorge in Must reads of the week

If you like these links, check out all the previous “Innovation Must Reads of the Week“. And don’t forget to Follow @jorgebarba

What does “own the outcome” mean?

Jorge in Leadership, Question-To-Innovate, Questions

This is the fourth of a series of weekly posts where I will answer a few common questions about innovation. Please feel free to add your own response. Also, if you have any questions you think we should discuss, let me know.

This week I wrote about how you have to own it before you can do it. That includes anything. Not just innovation.

What does “owning it” mean?

Here’s an example. Lets suppose that you are a design agency, and a client asks you to design a stand for them because they have an upcoming trade show or event. If you are the agency, and want to truly “own it”, the key question you have to ask yourself is: what is the outcome that our client wants and how can we help him do that? And then knowing what they want, how can we make it even better?…

Innovation: You have to own it before you can do it

Jorge in Innovation, Leadership

If I were to tell you that you can’t innovate, would you try to prove me wrong? If your customers were to tell you that they will leave you because you can’t exceed their expectations, would you commit to exceeding them?

What if your customers suddenly became immune to your marketing speak? What if they suddenly stopped moving toward your preferred outcome every time you nudge them?

What if your customers offered to help you exceed expectations? Would you take their offer?…

Top