Creating something new, like a client portal, is not hard. Creating a client portal that your clients will use is much harder. Most difficult, is creating a client portal that your clients want and are willing to pay for. Take for example a company that wanted to develop a client portal as part of its […]
Have you ever considered using innovation opportunities to develop your talent and organization at the same time? Read below on how to use innovation activities as an effective way to groom your high-potential talent. Personal development training I learned a lot from the personal development training I received when I joined Fluor Corp for my […]
There were at least 1.3 million professional service firms in the US, who combined had in total annual revenues of $2.7 trillion dollars before the pandemic. In today’s world, to survive firms must be innovative. That is, develop services for new client segments, incorporate novel technologies, develop new service delivery models, etc. How can you […]
“We don’t put any bureaucratic tape around ideas”, “We give people the opportunity to take action”, “Anyone can bring up any idea in their BU or practice group”, sound like best practices for innovation to thrive. However, from our 20 years of research and experience, we know that is not how organizations should go about […]
I am not joking when I say that, pre-pandemic, the most common practice to provide support for innovation teams was to have a conversation over a cup of coffee. Checking in once every 2-3 months to ask how things are going certainly makes work fun. However, it is not a very scalable approach. It is […]
With the coronavirus pandemic, change is a given. The question is, will you follow or will you lead change and take charge of the process and your destination? The time commitment will be the same, but the experience and the outcomes are vastly different. Leading change is much more rewarding than adjusting to change. The […]
Fast Company produced its list of 100 best workplaces for innovators. Companies committed to unlocking the potential of creative individuals and as a result the best companies to work for as an innovator in 2020. It expanded this year’s list to companies, schools, and nonprofits of all sizes. The list is certainly impressive, with ASLAC/St […]
Innovating on a shoestring budget sounds like a smart thing to do. However, be careful that you are not penny wise and pound foolish. That is what Helen Wang of Organizing4Innovation said during the ILTA>ON session KM Innovation on a shoestring budget. Why is it a bad thing to innovate on a shoestring budget? Because […]
The biggest mistake innovation managers make is taking the value of innovation for granted. We tend to assume that innovation is a must; the overall right thing to do. However, if you leave your goals undefined, you’ll lack the ability to measure and explain your progress. Without results to show for your efforts, innovation will […]
What Parts of the Innovation Process Can you Outsource? Consultants can help with pretty much any part of the innovation process. However, innovation exists to help you build new capabilities and create new revenue streams; therefore, I don’t recommend outsourcing everything. If an external company can build your solution, then anyone can. In order to […]
Innovation training for teams Innovation, like most skills, is a concept best conveyed in practice, rather than on paper. In short, you learn how to innovate by doing it. The best advantage an emerging innovator has at their disposal is an innovation training program; one that provides the innovator with support, while making their idea […]
When it comes to innovation roadblocks, one of the biggest problems I see firms cite is a shortage of new ideas. In my experience, however, there rarely is a shortage of good ideas, but rather a problematic set of criteria used to identify them. When looking for ideas, management tends to look in the wrong […]