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Companies that want innovative and imaginative new ideas are increasingly working with outside scientists or even students says Carly Chynoweth in this article from the Sunday Times. Builder’s Breakfast crisps, Olay Regenerist skin cream and Red Lake gold mine in Canada have one thing in common: they are all based on ideas developed by outsiders. [...]  I have posted a short video tutorial on two problem analysis methods – Why, Why and Six Serving Men. I use these methods on my innovation workshops as tools to understand and unpack complex issues. If you are facing a tough challenge then try using one or both of these methods to analyse the issue [...] Do you spend too much time in meetings? If so you are in good company. One of the most common complaints of office workers is that their productivity is hampered by too many meetings and too many unproductive meetings. Here are some ways to tackle this problem. 1. Fewer attendees. The meeting should be restricted [...] Online check-in for flights is a great innovation. Instead of standing in line at the check-in desk I can select my seat and print my boarding card at the computer on my desk (or on my smart phone). For me, the passenger, online check-in offers time saving, control and convenience. For the airline it means [...] Very often a business problem turns into an opportunity for innovation. A good example concerns Japan Railways East, one of the world’s largest rail carriers. During the 1980s they constructed a new high-speed railway line running north of Tokyo. This involved drilling a long tunnel under a huge mountain, Mount Tanigawa. Once the tunnel [...] Paul Sloane If you are a brilliant innovator or a budding entrepreneur then you are probably thinking right now about starting your own business and making a great success of your wonderful idea. If you are then please read my list of 10 Questions to ask Yourself. As a taster here are the first [...] How can you innovate with your services? A good approach is subtraction and addition. To see an example we can look at the low cost airlines like Easyjet, Ryanair or Southwestern. First they looked at the traditional elements of an airline’s service model and subtracted all the inessentials. Easyjet subtracted: Printed tickets Travel Agents Allocated seating [...] The traditional top-down structure in organizations can be a powerful inhibitor to innovation. It is a reflection of a command and control style of leadership where orders are issued at the top and followed by the ranks. People lower down the organization who have great ideas can feel inhibited about promoting them. They feel it [...] Try this exercise. Draw a flow chart diagram of your organisation’s approval process for innovations. Pick an example for a theoretical new idea. Suppose it is a good idea to improve customers’ satisfaction that would involve significant spending and the co-operation of several departments. What levels of approval and authority would it need to see the light [...] I am in the process of making some tutorials on brainstorming. Here are the first two: Introduction to Brainstorming – the Principles Two Advanced Methods – SCAMPER and Random Word Each consists of slides and audio. They will quickly help you to brush up your skills and to learn some highly effective tools to make your [...] |
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