tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-365090462011-07-14T14:28:03.542-07:00A place to learn about creativity, share ideation techniques, give each other inspiration, discuss innovation related problems, and tell stories about what works and what doesn't.ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.comBlogger801100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-77175965879176813282011-01-28T09:38:00.001-08:002011-01-28T12:18:15.461-08:00

So we have just finished a large study to understand what makes a brand desirable, some really interesting learnings here.Brands work because they create desire and brands that create more desire make more money. It's as simple as that. But desire isn't about luxury: a new study of 17,000 people globally found that the World Wildlife Fund is a more desired brand than Mercedes, Cartier and Rolex!

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-59324399399969605472008-05-14T13:09:00.000-07:002008-05-14T13:15:15.966-07:00

(Adam) I stumbled upon this innovation podcast and blog, I think it is an interesting approach as we absorb stimulus in different ways and having audio means that you can listen to innovation and creativity tips on your ipod. http://www.killerinnovations.com/blog/index.htmlI have only listened to one so far but intend to do more, will keep you updated if there is anything of particular

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-72807244090806793322008-05-13T16:50:00.000-07:002008-05-13T16:53:17.325-07:00

(Adam) It has been a while since I posted here, sorry for that I have been busy moving over to New York and getting settled here so that rather took over.I thought I would put this up quickly as it could be of interest to you, it is a LinkedIn group for people interested in innovation. Seen as we tend to be quite a disparate group of people it is interesting to look through the list of people

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-54642397326111361092007-10-11T07:08:00.001-07:002007-10-11T07:17:57.156-07:00

(Scott) Was just listening to National Public Radio and heard a great bit on automobiles and emissions. The commentator offered a simple principle - when it comes to pollution, automobiles are not the problem. Oil is the problem.We so often focus our ire on automobiles (e.g. SUVs are heavy polluters!) This particular commentator pointed out that cars are not the problem... they are merely an

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-14157155525548931532007-10-02T09:16:00.001-07:002007-10-02T09:33:00.632-07:00

So Nike has abandoned its runlondon gig and replacing it with SuperSonic. An innovative twist? Perhaps.In the past you'd log onto an easy to use, clean and simple site that was about one thing: running. You'd sign up for the race, and hope you were one of the first 4000 to do so so that you could secure a place.Seems Nike is doing things a differently with SuperSonic.For starters, the website is

Sofiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04173437914961409651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-52049556786653154382007-09-12T08:30:00.000-07:002007-09-12T08:32:12.982-07:00

Want to know how Trendwatching thinks about, collects and applies trends: http://trendwatching.com/briefing/It's an interesting way to spend 15 minutes of reading time and has a couple of good little info nuggets along the way.

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-54181559546547095522007-09-12T08:00:00.000-07:002007-09-12T08:09:27.447-07:00

(Scott) The other day a friend was out walking her neighborhood. She came across a freshly-painted house with a big sign in the front yard advertising the services of the paint company. On the sign, the painter had taped a small stack of business cards (in addition to the company phone number printed boldly on the sign).What a simple, but effective idea! You see, when I'm out for a walk and see a

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-41498164421323795912007-09-05T19:48:00.000-07:002007-09-05T20:00:37.203-07:00

(Scott) Out of sheer coincidence today, I had my hands on a bottle of Athena water and a bottle of Ethos water. Both are closely tied to critical causes...Ethos donates $0.05 from the sale of every bottle to investing in clean water sources in developing nations.Athena donates 100% of its profits to women's cancer research.Which leads me to wonder, what is the "giving" threshold amidst the

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-64063980566785047982007-09-05T04:35:00.000-07:002007-09-05T04:38:15.916-07:00

(Adam) I came across this https://www.mobyko.com which is a free service where you can back up all your mobile phone numbers. Obviously tapping into a large consumer need. I presume it will start off free and then graduate to a charge but still a good idea and if they keep the charge low enough e.g. £1 - £2 then i can see it being a winner.Also handy for those of you who have a tendency to lose

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-44325225499946540322007-08-15T19:34:00.000-07:002007-08-15T19:47:51.991-07:00

I ran across an interesting new TV program last night called "iCaught". It's a real table-turner.The show concept is simple... it takes videos from the web (mostly extraordinarily popular YouTube videos), plays them on TV and tells the story behind their creation. Of course, it's kind of ironic, since YouTube so often captures TV content, and is the subject of copyright infringment allegations.

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-91642732573220111392007-08-14T09:05:00.000-07:002007-08-14T09:51:15.714-07:00

Perhaps it's selective perception, but I feel that I'm seeing a growing number of articles on bottled water these days - and a growing tension.The footprint of bottled water on society is growing rapidly, drawing critiques like this Fast Company article (actually, quite a balanced and thoughtful article), and policy reaction like the St. Louis school mentioned here. We've also seen Pepsi recently

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-8955754057399599822007-08-09T06:24:00.000-07:002007-08-09T06:28:51.347-07:00

Design agency, The Partners have come up with a really innovative solution to promote the National Gallery.Instead of creating advertising campaings to woo people into the Gallery, they've bought the gallery to the people.The Grand Tour is an exhibiton of pieces from the Gallery placed around London - outside. Obviously not originals, but rather high quality prints.You can download a walking tour

Sofiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04173437914961409651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-30254748516394695292007-08-05T11:08:00.000-07:002007-08-05T11:13:43.346-07:00

(Scott) Ran across this collection of 100 tips to improve your life... from "Empty your Inbox in 30 seconds" to "Use your Money to buy Happiness", an organization named Behance has assembled the advice from a bevy of blogs.http://www.behance.com/Featured/Articles/100-Tips-to-Improve-Your-Life/5591It's an interesting way to aggregate information, so check it out. You might just find a tip or two

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-16314552556690707902007-08-02T09:31:00.000-07:002007-08-02T09:35:15.681-07:00

(Adam) I come across this http://humanbraincloud.com/ which is currently a game based on mind mapping using 1st associations around a random word.Although it is currently more of a game, I think there could be potential to use this within innovation projects as a source of stimulus. Or could a version be set up that is exclusive to a company or a group? This would give more control over the

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-25545867852992707842007-07-23T15:11:00.000-07:002007-07-23T15:15:13.359-07:00

(Scott) Building on my last post about reduction... just saw this business concept in Springwise (trends e-newsletter) about "mini-sizing" fast food. Chicago-based "Minnies" offers mini-sized hamburgers, grilled cheese, etc., bucking the super-size fast food trend.I just found this an entertaining example of how flipping the dominant idea (or phrase) in an industry on its head can create new

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-86421804126066754462007-07-23T14:28:00.000-07:002007-07-23T14:42:35.570-07:00

(Scott) Wow - I've been a bit neglectful of this lil' blog for a while. Not that my mind has been blank or free from questions... just lots of travel and dial-up internet connections.In flight yesterday, I was reading "Made to Stick" by Chip and Dan Heath... which includes the story of Hamburger Helper, a "quick prep" meal for those who are unfamiliar (essentially, noodles and sauce... you add

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-6230307511665378532007-06-19T07:45:00.000-07:002007-06-19T08:03:50.066-07:00

(Scott) I'm catching up on some reading and just worked through an article titled "Innovating Through Design" in the December 2006 edition of Harvard Business Review.The article describes the approach to innovation of Italian furniture, lighting and household goods companies, focusing on the firm, Alessi, and their work with Michael Graves to produce the model 9093 tea kettle.Step 1: Absorb -

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-86636598760891708692007-06-15T09:01:00.000-07:002007-06-15T09:10:14.476-07:00

Found this really interesting site called Imagini which is a visual social networking sight.http://imagini.net/The site asks you a series of questions – the answers to which are visual.It then gives you a neat little folder which contains your VisualDNA split into themes: mood, fun, habits, love. You can then link up to people with similar DNA’s...If the site aked more profile questions, this

Sofiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04173437914961409651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-69161389760871430342007-06-12T01:42:00.000-07:002007-06-12T01:50:45.922-07:00

(Adam) I thought I would give you an update on this event that I went to last night. Firstly my reason for going was that the title sounded interesting, with the possibility of learning different approaches.What actually happened was that there were 4 agencies (Advertising, Digital, Media, DM) who gave short talks in a Pop Idol style format about why their discipline would be the next Master of

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-28199820645875452942007-05-21T23:40:00.000-07:002007-05-21T23:52:08.804-07:00

Reading a book titled "Citizen Marketers" by a couple of old acquaintances, Jackie Huba and Ben McConnell. They talk about the impact of social networks on products / brands / companies.They talk about the 1% rule... the percentage of your audience who are also content creators. A couple of examples from the book: (1) Wikipedia. In June 2005, 7.4 million people visited Wikipedia, but only 68,682

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-39551457872842400172007-05-21T02:48:00.000-07:002007-05-21T05:53:42.860-07:00

(Adam) I have been looking at different business models that companies have that operate in the loosely defined innovation space and have come across some interesting ways that companies are working with small scale inventor or just people who have ideas.The first one is Davison (http://www.davison54.com/) who take the initial idea, put it through their workshops and then license the product to

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-85865652915352761012007-05-16T09:26:00.000-07:002007-05-16T10:14:10.637-07:00

I just returned from a trip to Asia... Japan being one of the stops. I didn't have a lot of time to soak in the local culture, but the one image that is burned into my brain is the line-up for Krispy Kreme donuts in Tokyo (picture included).According to my Tokyo-based colleagues, there is a 60 to 90-minute wait for Krispy Kreme, from opening to closing, every day, rain or shine. That blows my

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-64972453159290643662007-05-08T02:50:00.000-07:002007-05-08T03:01:12.572-07:00

(Adam) I was recently talking to a friend of mine who has set up a hypnosis site in partnership with a hypnotist friend. Initially their model was reliant on paid for downloads, basically you choose what type of phobia/ habit that you want to change, then download and listen to it.However what they found was that the market was swamped with this type of offering (admittedly of very variable

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-32822707049369744542007-05-08T01:46:00.000-07:002007-05-08T01:49:20.225-07:00

(Adam) Hello, thought that i would post this in case any of you who are based in London are going to/ interested in this:http://www.marketing-society.org.uk/main.asp?page=event-details&eventid=L-WS06007Not much in the way of details as to who is going to be talking, but could be interesting. I'll be there so let me know if you are going.I will post my thoughts on the event in any case afterwards.

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-17763158285363405822007-04-30T17:00:00.000-07:002007-04-30T17:07:17.050-07:00

There are all kinds of stories about products and services, ill-fated because of poorly chosen names... the Nova in Mexico ("no go") comes to mind.Choosing a good product or service name demands a lot of foresight... business owners, brand managers, etc need to think years ahead (not just imagining pcatchy roduct launches). Case in point, my local auto repair shop. It's named "Mark's Japanese

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-37941266093488176712007-04-23T12:11:00.000-07:002007-04-23T12:12:57.951-07:00

(Scott) This is far and away the most interesting book pitch I have seen in a long time. Do check it out... it's an engaging little story: http://noonebelongsheremorethanyou.com/

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-31836280106414843442007-04-16T16:13:00.000-07:002007-04-16T21:42:11.029-07:00

The other day, while spending some time on his tummy, my 3-month old son discovered his hand for the first time. He was transfixed. He must have stared at it for 5 minutes before he rolled over, discovered our skylight, and was again transfixed for minutes.In my own day-to-day routine, I never stop to marvel stuff. I take the world around me for granted because I've "already seen it". Rather, I

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-15366668597260889062007-04-16T07:25:00.000-07:002007-04-16T07:37:47.629-07:00

(Adam) I have recently being asked by a client about innovation networks, particularly for knowledge sharing within organisations. I have put some of my response below but would be interested in your thoughts on this:1. There are no formal innovation networks, currently sharing takes place through informal networks such as this one, or through the conference circuit - e.g. PSFK, centaur etc.2.

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-55950673031175406792007-04-08T12:27:00.000-07:002007-04-08T12:35:55.391-07:00

Following on from Scott's last post, I keep finding out that everyone works in innovation. Last weekend I was at a first aid for babies class and someone asked me what I did. When I told him, he said he also worked in innovation - for oil tankers. He's just been appointed the job, and it's his business to innovate around new business models. Right now they are a big company that hires out oil

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-4458919837928061192007-03-30T08:09:00.000-07:002007-03-30T08:14:47.596-07:00

(Scott). Quickie post. I received my monthly copy of Cooking Light magazine yesterday. On the cover was a graphic that proudly exclaimed: "Cooking Light, Celebrating 20 Years of Innovation"Really? I thought Cooking Light was about cooking? Is "Innovation" really an attribute they can own? I think the graphic should read something like, "Celebrating 20 Years of Good Taste and Great Health", or "20

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-9166897418148805242007-03-30T07:55:00.000-07:002007-03-30T08:09:38.859-07:00

(Scott) Had a neat discussion with some colleagues yesterday about how companies should be tapping into social networks (myspace, Facebook, etc.)Becoming a part of an existing social network is a good way to create connections with your audience; but, what is the right way to represent the company? Should the "face" of the company be the product, the "spokesperson", the brand? What can the public

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-69357529700254300852007-03-22T13:15:00.000-07:002007-03-22T13:22:23.761-07:00

(Pam) As you know, I'm part of a new innovation department within a big company. It's been tough setting up, as not everyone's convinced of what we do or how valuable it is to the company. But we are making progress - it's almost 4 months since I started, and it's been exhausting, high pressured, challenging and scarey, as well as exhilarating, exciting, inspirational, packed with learning,

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-81656992209758340302007-03-21T13:48:00.000-07:002007-03-21T13:51:08.813-07:00

(Scott) What are the greatest innovations of all-time? Businessweek and the Doblin Group ventured to define the list... http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/feb2007/id20070216_377845.htmBelieve it or not, no iPod, mini-skirts, polyester or Cheetos on the list. They're thinking much bigger. It's the kind of list that provokes a little banter. So, what do you think? What is on the list that

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-74848092742969521322007-03-14T08:05:00.000-07:002007-03-14T09:31:08.363-07:00

I just read this article on how marketing firm, Strawberry Frog, helped Microsoft create a "Cultural Movement" for its Accounting software.They basically created a website www.ideawins.com (which I mentioned way back in 2006), and an accompanying campaign to solicit business ideas... the winner receiving a NY storefront and some monetary support.More than one thousand ideas were submitted... but

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-72926300086503647742007-03-13T08:55:00.000-07:002007-03-13T08:57:07.489-07:00

Innovation is so darn buzz-y that CNBC has created an entire series on Innovation, with an accompanying website, and guru, Roger Schank.Check out http://innovation.cnbc.com for videos, stories and all kinds of examples of "innovation"... and see if you think they've done the subject justice (contributed to the understanding of innovation) or simply jumped on the bandwagon.

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-807772733849353652007-03-12T09:44:00.000-07:002007-03-12T09:55:29.848-07:00

There is a new coffee spot in my town called Terra Bites... with one very unique feature: no posted prices. You pay as much or as little as you like into a small, metal box.I've talked to the manager, who figures they make about 80 cents on the dollar (of say, Starbucks prices).Does this type of pricing policy make sense? Are people good at "valuing" the goods they consume?And, would this kind of

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-79894577463850068572007-03-05T03:14:00.000-08:002007-03-05T03:19:08.038-08:00

(Adam) I have been doing some work on developing my companies offer and looking at a range of sources, some academic, some from the real world and came across this:http://www.f-laws.com/Rusell Ackoff is a Wharton professor and outlines some simple truths/ laws that organisations often end up submitting to. It makes for interesting reading and i am sure that we will all see behaviours we have

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-81723976161676836182007-03-03T12:21:00.000-08:002007-03-03T12:52:54.993-08:00

(Pam) My team and I paid a small fee to attend an overview of De Bono techniques with an experienced De Bono trainer from the US. We had been told to expect a 3 hour workshop with these techniques, but what we got was a 1 hour formal powerpoint presentation giving the names of the techniques with no details whatsoever - a thinly disguised sales pitch that we paid to attend! What made it all the

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-44908541671393185682007-02-22T20:22:00.000-08:002007-02-22T20:28:31.807-08:00

Yahoo has launched an internal innovation team, Brickhouse. Run by a Flickr founder, seeded with lots of creative engineers, Brickhouse is designed to help keep Yahoo fresh (and avoid the Innovator's Dilemma that comes from complacency).Check out the article at http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2007/tc20070209_179924.htm?chan=search and score an idea or two for keeping the fire

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1171978938361002732007-02-20T05:37:00.000-08:002007-02-22T15:37:49.650-08:00

(Pam) It's my job to collect observations and apply them to our work for inspiration - which in it's simplest form is keeping your eyes open, and more complicated - it's about sensing culture as it is and how it changes. I'm finding it hugely hard to do what should be the most enjoyable part of my job. I have to be outside, experiencing life, culture, art, people as much as possible. I have

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1170977005466385002007-02-08T15:11:00.000-08:002007-02-08T15:23:25.480-08:00

(Scott) I was musing with a friend the other day about the importance of simplicity in both B2C and B2B environments. It leads me to wonder - which companies have done the best job of distilling their message to something crisp, compelling and simple?Naturally, Google is known for simplicity in search (at least with respect to its interface). Southwest offers simplicity (with respect to fare

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1170883822418154242007-02-07T13:27:00.000-08:002007-02-07T13:30:22.430-08:00

(Pam) I'm in the midst of a dilemma at work. On the one hand I want to learn everything there is to know about tv so that I can talk the same language as them, influence them, impress them. On the other hand I'm supposed to be an outside, fresh perspective that always inspires a new viewpoint specifically from a non tv background. I have to learn the tv language to be successful at influencing

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1170546976499093422007-02-03T15:48:00.000-08:002007-02-03T15:56:16.513-08:00

(PAM) I heard someone once say that cynics are the best people to have on a project, and the worst are those who seem to agree and support, but are undermining the project behind closed doors. Far better to have a cynic who forces you to do due diligence, cover every angle and prepare you to know how to answer the inevitable cynicism that will arise.On a project I'm setting up at work we've

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1169742215841242812007-01-25T08:23:00.000-08:002007-01-25T08:23:36.036-08:00

As was mentioned a couple of posts back, I'm a new Dad. At the hospital, post-birth, we were moved to the maternity ward. Walking the halls with baby, we could not help but notic every three feet on the wall was a beautifully framed photo of children at play. In the bottom right corner of each frame was a small ad that read, "Kelly Chandler Photography", with a phone number. This photo studio /

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1169229337409574492007-01-19T09:52:00.000-08:002007-01-19T09:55:37.416-08:00

(Scott) I've also felt that a weakness in the idea generation process is the "converging" stage. I haven't come across a process / company that has a tried and true, scientific method for identifying the best ideas.In my experience, we tend to sort through ideas and use a combination of gut instinct and basic criteria to separate out the "winning" ideas. There must be a more concrete, systematic

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1169064039158581592007-01-17T11:46:00.000-08:002007-01-17T12:00:39.296-08:00

As per the previous post, I'm totally thrilled to be a Dad! Callum was born on 1/11/07 and in 6 short days (actually long, given the lack of sleep) has changed our lives.I'm hoping it also makes me more creative as I learn to see things for the first time (through Callum's eyes). I'm interested in the little things you do on a daily basis to stretch your creative thinking... what are your mental

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1168958641388778052007-01-16T06:41:00.000-08:002007-01-16T06:44:01.396-08:00

Wonderful news - Scott's first child Callum was born last week. Here's a picture of his wife Alison and the little one. Congratulations to Scott!

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1168742749854875132007-01-13T18:38:00.000-08:002007-01-13T18:45:49.860-08:00

Third Friday of every month = Likemind.Likemind is a gathering of creative, thoughtful folk for coffee, banter and ideas. Whether you're in Seattle, London, NYC, Oslo, etc. there could be a Likemind in your neighborhood. I'm involved in the Seattle edition, and I've found it a really inspiring, entertaining way to start a day.

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1168284328820530182007-01-08T11:17:00.000-08:002007-01-10T12:32:59.836-08:00

(Scott) Hey there - Sofia's last post has got me thinking... what are some of the most compelling or memorable behaviors / actions / human factors you have observed in other countries. Let me get the discussion started... (from my experience)1. Russians drink on planes. You may find this a generalization, but both times I've traveled to or within Russia, many of the passengers became drunk (

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1168188401492953332007-01-07T08:41:00.000-08:002007-01-07T10:04:34.600-08:00

Hi Guys,One of the things I have noticed on my trip (I am in India) is that a lot of products are sold in mini-formats. For example Ariel washing powder is sold in sachets. Initially I was confused by this. Surely in a country where poverty is so prevalent, people would want to buy in bulk?I asked a shop keeper what people usually use to wash their clothes. Most people are so poor, they just use

Sofiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04173437914961409651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1167932479993391242007-01-04T09:37:00.000-08:002007-01-18T15:38:31.950-08:00

(Scott) Inspired by subway maps, Nowandnext and Future Exploration Network have mapped out the major trends impacting society... check out this PDF - it is an incredibly cool visualization of the intersection of trends. Great inspiration.http://www.psfk.com/files/Trend_Blend_2007_map.pdf Do you agree / disagree with what you see depicted? What trends are missing? What trends are you betting on in

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1167264798662379522006-12-27T16:07:00.000-08:002006-12-27T16:13:18.670-08:00

When someone is stuck in the status quo / old-thinking, how do you rescue them? What have you found are the best ways to break through and get them to see that a new, more creative approach is needed?As an example, just had a chat with a colleague who "owns" a brochure we produce for one of our products. After a bunch of research they found that our customers didn't even know they had the

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1166837832319853402006-12-22T17:33:00.000-08:002006-12-22T17:37:12.326-08:00

(Scott) Hey there - here's another cool trend / new biz idea newsletter that I always find entertaining - Springwise: http://www.springwise.com/weekly/2006-12-15.htm Check it out and sign up for their regular updates... they usually have some pretty thought-provoking stuff. What other great sources of online inspiration (websites, newsletters, etc) are you tapped into? Let's create a list.

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1166809357797304492006-12-22T09:35:00.000-08:002006-12-22T09:42:37.810-08:00

(Scott) I'm working on a new program that I need to market internally to my colleagues across the organization. I need to get them excited, engaged... sitting on the edge of their seats begging for more program info.The challenge is not so much the message, as the medium (or media). My teammates want to produce brochures and posters to promote our program; but, these will just blend in with the

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1166619865990863352006-12-20T05:03:00.000-08:002006-12-20T05:04:25.990-08:00

http://www.businessinnovationinsider.com

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1166619819770241592006-12-20T05:02:00.000-08:002006-12-20T05:03:39.776-08:00

Hi allThis was a very funny presentation at the Fortune Innovation conference on the downside of innovation by Stanley Bing; summarised by someone who attended:Consider the basic equation: Innovation = Constant Change = Pain. There are various sources of this pain -- meetings where nothing gets done, the constant demand for ideas, the competition for mental shelf space, creativity ("this is a

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1166105151858564372006-12-14T06:03:00.000-08:002006-12-14T06:05:51.866-08:00

(adam) Managed to work out how to post now, which is exciting.This is an interesting site http://www.chacha.com/ basically it is user assisted search, turning the traditional search model on its head and getting experts to recommend places.Interesting yes, not sure how they are going to make money out of this has they have to pay the experts.Depends on your view as to whether or not 1 view is

Adam Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07111670952160464747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1165437782585101612006-12-06T12:39:00.000-08:002006-12-06T12:43:02.586-08:00

This survey is fuel for my last post: http://reveries.com/reverb/research/innovation_engine/It covers businesspeople's (200 responses) views of their company's success with innovation. Based on the number of truly innovative products I see in the marketplace, either the respondents work for an elite set of companies, or our bar for innovation "success" is falling.Gosh - I feel so pessimistic

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1165437538277091812006-12-06T12:28:00.000-08:002006-12-06T12:38:58.310-08:00

(Scott) This is something that has been eating at me for a while... is there value left in the term "innovation"? You can find the word innovation in just about every Fortune 500 mission statement, website, CEO interview, etc out there these days. Companies and people tout their breakthrough innovations... but often these "innovations" involve squeezing an extra cup-holder into a minivan or

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1165005954589671122006-12-01T12:37:00.000-08:002006-12-01T12:47:39.243-08:00

(Pam) at the conference this week I also saw a great presentation by this guy called Tom Wujec on the importance of using the visual medium in innovation. He's an author on several books on innovation, and works in the graphic field producing graphic images for movies like Spiderman, Lord of the Rings, etc.He explained how the brain processes verbal messages and aural messages very differently

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1165005437389377502006-12-01T12:31:00.000-08:002006-12-01T12:37:17.390-08:00

(Pam) I was at the Fortune Innovation conference this week in New York. Gary Hamel was the best speaker by far. He talked about the need for us to focus innovation around how we run companies, not just on creating new prducts and services. In the heirarchy of what is truly going to transform companies, the innovation of ideas and services can only go so far - it's the innovation of how you

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1164947553137212112006-11-30T20:27:00.000-08:002006-11-30T20:32:33.373-08:00

I had an idea I wanted to pass along to General Mills, so I went to their website to email it in. At the top of the suggestions page it says, "We welcome your comments". Below the comments submission box though, is this text:All comments, suggestions, ideas, notes, drawings, concepts, recipes or other information disclosed or offered to General Mills by this site or in response to solicitations

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1164819705765836872006-11-29T08:58:00.000-08:002006-11-29T09:01:45.776-08:00

Thought I would send around a heads-up about a new contest... a search for the next great small business idea: http://www.ideawins.comThe top idea wins $100,000 seed money, a storefront in New York, and guidance / resources to get you up and running. The contest is being sponsored by Microsoft and is being judged by among others, Carolyn Kepcher, of the Apprentice (Trump's former VP).If you've

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1164819507928298802006-11-29T08:48:00.000-08:002006-11-29T08:58:27.996-08:00

(Scott) I'm currently in resume review mode, and every single one that crosses my desk (or inbox) looks absolutely identical. Times New Roman, 11-point font, line after line of bulleted achievements, black and white. Is this uniformity in fact an opportunity to stand out from the crowd? Or, is breaking from the status quo too high risk?For those of us in the world of creativity / innovation,

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1164322455329270112006-11-23T14:50:00.000-08:002006-11-23T14:54:15.356-08:00

Professor Robert I. Sutton's (Stanford Engineering School) "Eight Rules for Brilliant Brainstorming":1. Use brainstorming to combine and extend ideas, not just harvest them2. Don't bother brainstorming if people live in fear3. Do individual brainstorming before and after group sessions4. Brainstorming sessions are worthless unless ideas lead to action5. Brainstorming requires skill and experience

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1164056272892538422006-11-20T12:54:00.000-08:002006-11-22T02:24:26.203-08:00

(Scott) Perhaps you've already seen this in the media... I just find it fascinating: http://www.wearesmarter.org/In a nutshell, professors from MIT and Wharton are writing the first "networked book on business"... an exploration of the role of social networks in business. The book is being written by wiki; so, essentially the professors have written the chapter titles and they are relying on the

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1163969997593553732006-11-19T12:50:00.000-08:002006-11-22T02:23:17.953-08:00

(Pam) Meeting this weekend with some older relatives of mine, the conversation went to how technology has changed the way we interact with each other. There was criticism of the new ways of communicating - through email intead of letters, through text not voice, etc. One particular point was that people are able to publish their own, unedited thoughts and feelings on the internet via blogs - and

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1163903137448948762006-11-18T18:21:00.000-08:002006-11-22T02:23:34.633-08:00

(Scott) How do you use music to inspire ideas? Do you have a fail-safe genre that you turn to in order to get your mental gears turning? Are you a jazz person? Classical? Rock 'n' roll?Or, even better, is there a particular song that you have come to rely on to get you thinking? If yes, please share!And finally, do you think it is easier to create ideas when listening to music with or without

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1163274450230242732006-11-11T11:20:00.000-08:002006-11-22T02:23:48.566-08:00

(Scott) I was thinking about a golf drill this morning and thought it might be a great metaphor for an ideation exercise. For those of you who golf, this will sound familiar. For others, well, indulge me.When I'm practicing putting, I like to put a ring of 4 golf balls around the hole - all of them one foot from the hole. It's like the hole is the center of a clock, and the balls are positioned 1

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1163244621977635742006-11-11T03:20:00.000-08:002006-11-11T03:31:18.906-08:00

(Pam) I believe there is a huge dilemma facing us in the business world and I don't know how we'll get to grips with it - but surely we will need to start acting soon. It's the expectation that every minute needs to be accounted for or we're not being productive (filling out timesheets for every hour of the day) without allowing us time for inspiration, learning, knowledge gathering, socialising,

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1162921054767934642006-11-07T09:29:00.000-08:002006-11-07T09:37:35.170-08:00

This is just a little reminder to make sure you always take the time to look at things from the audience's perspective...My wife and I are expecting our first child in January. So, yesterday we were baby shopping and I zeroed in on the mobiles. From my perspective they looked beautiful. Floating, multi-colored zebras, origami swans, dancing alphabet letters... but they're all two-dimensional (or

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1162862546427593572006-11-06T17:17:00.000-08:002006-11-06T17:22:26.433-08:00

(Scott) I need to design a presentation for a group of 100 very important people... and I've been told to make it creative and interactive.To help me get the ball rolling, I wanted to reach out and ask, "What is the most creative and engaging presentation you ever saw?" What made it so engaging? Was it the presenter, the props, the content, the flow... or all of the above in some unique

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1162445537524063412006-11-01T21:24:00.000-08:002006-11-01T21:32:17.526-08:00

(Scott) In the movie, "Thank You for Not Smoking" (which I highly recommend), the main character is a tobacco lobbyist. Every month he gets together for dinner with the head lobbyists for firearms and alcohol... they call their little gathering the MODsquad, for Merchants Of Death.When they rendez-vous, they share their "business" problems and bounce around ideas. Essentially, jamming with peers

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1162304051445973412006-10-31T06:06:00.000-08:002006-10-31T06:16:58.330-08:00

(Pam) We've all got those creative exercises that work every time. Okay so we need to find new ones (partly the purpose of this blog), but what are the ones that you always use? One person's tried and trusted might be someone else's new technique.Here's one: Related worlds: To get people to think about a problem from a new angle. Get people into teams of 3. They should each choose a completely

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1162089798182497092006-10-28T19:32:00.000-07:002006-10-28T19:43:18.193-07:00

Today I asked a colleague a question about how our partner network operates. He paused for a moment, and then began what felt like a never-ending monologue response. I tried to re-direct a couple of times, re-asking the question with different angles, but always the same wandering, generic response.It was obvious that he did not know the answer to my question. But rather than say, "I don't know",

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1161946625798077972006-10-27T03:55:00.000-07:002006-10-27T03:57:05.800-07:00

this is a picture of me at a Super Group in Brazil, eating as usual!

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1161946022777363932006-10-27T03:40:00.000-07:002006-10-27T03:53:37.700-07:00

(Pam) My friend Jackie works in project management for qualitative research. This morning she told me she had a client phone in to complain about the recruitment of the advertising testing groups last night. The group used advertising boards for various options of communicating about earth movers. Unfortunately one of the respondents that the recruiter sent was blind, and had a dog with him, so

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1161894883731284552006-10-26T13:29:00.000-07:002006-10-27T03:54:03.936-07:00

(Pam) one of the best ways to encourage people to take part in an idea generation process is to offer real rewards to the individuals who come up with the best ideas.however, the best ideas are often created by a group of people who build on each other's ideas. a good creative process should make everyone feel like they created the ideas, and make it hard to attribute a good idea to just one

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1161891241734485752006-10-26T12:27:00.000-07:002006-10-27T03:54:30.233-07:00

(Scott) Thought provoking question of the day: How would you market your product if the competition was giving theirs away for free? How would you capture consumer attention? How would you convince your customers that your product was worth the investment?Or, just for kicks, you can also flip the question on its head: How would you market your product if the competition was charging ten times

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36509046.post-1161815565785967292006-10-25T15:26:00.000-07:002006-10-26T13:37:02.073-07:00

Hello there! Welcome to the "Return On Innovation" blog. If you're here it's probably because we share a similar philosophy on creativity. There's so much room to improve our return on innovation!Too many great ideas go undiscovered. Too many killer concepts are left on the drawing board. Too few connections are made amongst people and ideas. The trouble is, we often don't know what techniques to

ROInnovationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01409449701199347581noreply@blogger.com1