Aussie Rules

I love surfing websites like StuffWhitePeopleLike to get a pulse on current trends and shifts in thinking. Here is a tongue-in-cheek Top Ten of Stuff Australians Like.

1. Football — Aussie Rules football of course (it even inspired the name of this BNET blogspace!)
2. Football — Rugby League or Rugby Union (depending on where you went to school)
3. Football (please don’t call it “Soccer”) — Particularly if David Beckham visits downunder with LA Galaxy
4. Travelling — Particularly if you are a good footballer you can play for other countries
5. Travelling — A right of passage to travel around Europe/Asia before settling down in a career
6. Travelling around Australia in a caravan/RV
7. Beer, beer, more beer, and the occasional glass of “card-on-ay” (Chardonnay that comes in a box)
8. Coffee — make mine a decaf grande latte, full strength, double shot, extra hot milk, shaken but not stirred
9. Three Fs – family, fools and friends (also the prime source for start-up capital)
10. Top 10 lists, filling out surveys and responding to blog questions.

Ok, so my approach is not scientific! I’m open to suggestions …

What have I missed?

What is a must inclusion in the Top Ten?

Having the ability to be innovative is one thing. Having the time to do it is another. We like the idea of being more creative and organisations are always after more innovative — just as long as it doesn’t create extra work.

Innovation is normally seen as an “initiative” or “project” rather than part of normal day-to-day business.

Just like Al Gore’s message in An Inconvenient Truth (that we can do little things every day — at an individual, organisational, regional and government level — that will have a positive impact on the environment), spending some time every day on developing your creativity and putting in place systems and attitudes that support innovation will take you a few steps more to success — however you define it.

How much time to you spend on the road? At airports? On planes? How can you best utilise the time to be more innovative?

There are some real opportunities while sitting on a plane. Take it from me — this month I travelled to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, South Africa, Bahrain and am currently in New Zealand running workshops. This non-stop travel has brought to mind some great ways to make use of all that transit time:

• Read widely and see how other cities/countries approach things. External stimulation and awareness will help you develop new and interesting ideas.
• While on the plane, focus on one key project and/or take stock of what you have achieved and what you need to do in the short term.
• Work on the way to your destination, relax on the way back — you deserve it.
• Meditate/close your eyes and relax during take off and landing to centre yourself and prepare for what’s up ahead.

An while I’m at it, here are some practical tips:

• Buy an extra battery for your laptop to give you double the power.
• Keep your power cords and skype headphones in a laundry bag for delicates — the white one with  large holes works well. No tangled cords: magic!
• And finally, when you can, switch off the technology, close your eyes and just chill.

What travel tips would you recommend?

Will your Christmas card this year  be one of many and thrown out early January? Or, if you are thinking of sending a bottle of wine or an email with an animated message? Then you desperately need to think again.

In addition to sending seasons greetings, many people send Christmas cards as a way to keep top of mind with clients, colleagues, family and friends. But how can you really get your message heard?

Take time out to stop and deliberately think of something relevant to your business, that fits inside an envelope, costs less than printing a personalised card and is tangible enough to last 12 months. It is actually quite easy.

Four years ago I realised that we could do something more meaningful and memorable for the same price as a customised Christmas card. So in:

• 2004 - we sent a foam puzzle that could be made into a 3D cube
• 2005 - we sent a set of post-it notes with our company logo and website
• 2006 - we sent a mini whiteboard/magnet to capture creative ideas (size of a DL envelope)
• 2007 - we sent a fold out puzzle card to “be more creative over the holidays”

These were well received, with people emailing me to say how much they enjoyed it — when is the last time you got emails from your Christmas card?

So what have you got planned for Christmas?

This question, posed at the recent 14th Annual International Creativity Conference in Africa,  seems simple to answer at first. Creativity is generally defined as coming up with new and useful ideas and innovation is implementing those ideas. However, we all know it is not that simple.

Kobus Neethling, President of the South African Creativity Foundation cited an international survey (March 2008) which concluded that the factors that are the greatest hindrance to organisation creativity are:

• Time
• Personal authority to initiate new ideas
• An organisational culture that does not support creativity
• Leadership (that is not passionate about creativity)
• Lack of creativity purpose

What do the world’s leading experts recommend we do?

Here some of the key recommendations from the international speakers:

• Build a strategy and culture for sustainable innovation by creating an “Innovation Ecosystem” that includes your leadership, your culture, your partners and your people and their creativity. —Cheryl Perkins, Former Chief Information Officer for Kimberly-Clark
• S.P.R.E.A.D. (Support, Promote, Recognise, Encourage, Apply and Develop) creative thinking by developing creative communities. —Dr Robert Alan Black, USA
• Do more productive thinking (understand challenges, create possibilities and spark action). —Tim Hurson, USA
• Innovation gives a business a price and performance that can be measured: an “Innovation Premium” ––Bill Jarrard, Australia

Let me know if you are interested in more details from the conference.

Innovation is normally classed as incremental or radical, new to the world and much has been written about them. While driving through the streets of Abu Dhabi today, I couldn’t help but wonder how people cope when innovation is thrust upon them.

Abu Dhabi, the capital of United Arab Emirates, has undergone tremendous change since the relatively recent discovery of oil and, in many areas, has had to play catch-up innovation.

One of the interesting challenges for countries and companies around the world is how to keep hold of your culture while embracing new ways and technologies.

Another is do you develop knowledge internally or import expertise? In Abu Dhabi, 70 percent of the population are expatriates, bringing in knowledge, expertise and experience.

What can you do to help your organisation catch-up on innovation?

• Conduct training in developing creativity and innovation
• Hire consultants to diagnose, advise and support innovation initiatives
• Employ a Chief Innovation Officer
• Look for opportunities for joint ventures or collaboration

What else has worked in your experience?

Innovation is not just about brand new products. There are many places where you can be innovative and often the context helps define innovation.

The six focus areas for innovation are:

• Product — what we produce and sell
• Service — exceeding customer expectations
• Process — continuous improvement of how we do things
• Management — business strategies, systems and structures
• Open — working beyond boundaries and collaborating globally
• Value —  creating unique value that eliminates the cost to compete

Looking through this list, consider where you need to focus your innovative efforts right now and write down a couple of project ideas/potential focus areas. Is there anything you would add to the list?

You are standing there, watching the sea of black suitcases go around the baggage carousel. Then suddenly you spot it.

Tied in a multitude of knots, around the handle, is the yellow ribbon, signifying “my suitcase”. You instantly pick it up, knowing that you have the right bag.

Often it is just the way it is tied or located. It could be the type of ribbon or, in my case, one of my husband’s neckties, ceremoniously cut up. It is amazing how one little point of difference can stand out and instantly help you claim your luggage.

Alternatively, to stand out in an ocean of black suitcases, you could always buy a hot pink or bright orange suitcase — take yourself out of the black ocean completely!

You can apply the same strategy to help your business stand out.

Kim and Mauborgne, in their book Blue Ocean Strategy, recommend that you get out of the red ocean (the known market space, where cutthroat competition turns the ocean blood red) and enter the blue ocean of deeper, clearer water — where demand is created rather than fought over.

The key is value innovation — something that creates simultaneous value for you and the company.

Take 30 seconds to ponder “What point of difference can I apply in my life/business?”

“Where can I use the old ‘ribbon on the suitcase’ trick?”

Think that we in Australia are not doing enough of our own innovation? Well, a review of the Australian National Innovation System has just been released.

“This report stands for the proposition that we [Australia] should arrest the slide in our performance and seize the opportunity that our recent prosperity gives us to begin building a more innovative productive world in which our children will live, to which they will contribute and which they will pass on in their turn.”

Some might find the 224-page report, “Venturous Australia — building strength in innovation”, a quick cure for insomia (the above sentence has 53 words in it!), but it does make for some interesting reading.

Apart from the predictable recommendations to support research in universities and establishment of various committees, the report recommends that the R&D Tax concession be changed from a tax deduction to a 40 percent tax credit for large firms and 50 percent credit for companies with an annual turnover of less than $50 million.

Interestingly, it also recommends that the government create an advisory committee of web 2.0 practitioners to propose directions as they experiment with web 2.0 technologies and ideas.

You can download the full report or just the recommendations and individual chapters here.

Are you struggling to get your innovative project approved? Been chopped off at the knees halfway through a project with all funds withdrawn? It may be that you are missing a core piece in the puzzle.

The top 8 capabilities critical to innovation success are:

1. Developing a deep understanding of customers and their preferences
2. Partnering effectively with suppliers and others for new ideas
3. Ensuring executive-level sponsorship of projects
4. Enforcing timelines and milestones
5. Earmarking sufficient funds for projects
6. Moving quickly from idea generation to initial market entry
7. Balancing risks, time frames and returns across an entire portfolio of projects
8. Fostering a corporate culture that promotes innovation

Interestingly, from senior executives’ perspective, speed and discipline are the most commonly identified weaknesses, where deep customer understanding and executive support are the most commonly identified strengths (of course they would say that).

From my experience working with innovation change agents around the world, the feeling is that the biggest weaknesses are (1) lack of executive support and (2) insufficient funding.

This creates a huge gulf and can undermine the success and support of innovation projects and perceived Return on Innovation.

Take time out to think these through and address these issues as part of your planning and/or next project review — you will be surprised at how a shift in perception can make or break a project.

Source: BCG 2008 Senior Executive Innovation Survey