My heartfelt thanks to Dave Duarte: for the opportunity to guest lecture in his stead on main campus while he led the 3rd successful run of Nomadic Marketing at the Graduate School of Business. I’ve seen Dave present countless times - and trust me it’s NOT an easy act to follow - he speaks with ease and engagement on topics that straddle both traditional and the pioneering edges of business. [Though I guess that's what you would expect from someone who specialises in the economics of attention.]
Innovation is one of those spaces that has to bridge both. This often elusive strategic advantage that could catapult you into uncontested territory (with the benefits of time, little competition, easy PR and high desirability in the marketplace) is often seen as the “soft stuff” best left to the creatives/scientists/inventors to envision. Mistakenly.
Never more so has there been such an urgent need for clarity on how to initiate, manage & implement innovation with accelerated competition and tightening resources on a crowded planet.
Companies that realise that the birthing of innovation is induced through rigorous process rather than entrusting it to luck or epiphanies of genius; those who specialise in it, like Google, BMW, 3M, GE, NASA offer insight on how to apply this in our own lives, businesses and careers.
I’m going to be writing 2 posts on innovation from our lecture series to de-fuzz the fluffy concepts around this word so treasured by management consultants. Essentially just as a memory recall for the students, so forgive me if they seem a little disjointed. (though as always you’re welcome to comment and nudge me if something needs more clarity or really connects with you & you want more info) Continue reading ‘Practical Innovation: relentless problem.solving’
..this ad (genius of the local King James agency) is such a beautiful illustration of taking the long term view. Of course it’s an inclusion in the Endurance category. Well done Allan Gray.
Thank you loveliest Leoni for telling me about it [she is almost through the endurance of bringing a gorgeous little girl into the world & into our circle of friends. We have no doubt she'll grow up to be beautiful like her mama too ].
If you’ve been craving some purpose to tumble out of bed for, some fire in the belly, something to spark your passion again >>
Take a few minutes, stop what you’re doing & let the lucidity of Larry Lessig wash over you & clarify some of the nonsense that surrounds & shackles us.
You may be inspired to come join the worthy fight to free culture from the smothering stranglehold of fat.ass greed & imperviousness to LIFE and rich wild creativity or just watch it ;-), trust me it’s brilliant, a TED classic!
Speaking of brilliant, the dazzling Jimmy Wales is back in South Africa for an unmissable event in Jo’burg on the 13th November. Proceeds go to the Wikipedia Academies starting to flourish and enrich South Africans learning & co.creating in their OWN languages (heaven knows we have a few here!).
People with this man’s visionary genius and determination are rare gems in a world collapsing in on itself under the weight of ignorance, fear and indifference. Wikipedia is one of the most hopeful and practical projects to effect real change in the world right now. Treating the cause not just hacking impotently at the symptoms. Go find out why.
Pop onto the iCommons site & quickly grab a seat ..it’s worth getting the global perspective from someone who refreshingly isn’t just a consultant on innovation, but actually is a world.changing innovator (who knows it may even inspire some rocking revolutionary behaviour in you - we love that!)
Required reading alert: Business Week’s blogs tend to be of superb quality, but if you don’t have space for much else in your overstuffed reader at least wiggle Bruce Nussbaum’s column into your RSS. This from his “CEO’s must be designers not just hire them“..
the very old and very boring question is whether or not designers and their teachers have ended their distaste for commerce and business culture. I have nothing to say about this except that this debate about art and commerce is so last century. If you are even discussing the issue, you are way behind. If you haven’t fully integrated your design, engineering, business and marketing students and faculty into teams on a regular and systemic basis, you are behind.
.. There are two great barriers to innovation and design in the world today. Ignorant CEOs and ignorant designers. Both groups are well-intentioned and well-dressed—in their own ways—but both can be pretty dangerous characters.
I read that and cheered because I popped up a quick blog: Business Acumen for Artists and some online PR in support of a superb course that bridges the divide. The program will be run by the GSB’s visionary Executive Education director, Elaine Rumboll and all proceeds of the 13 week course go to strengthening the Observatory Community Centre. We’ve reached the point where we can’t afford to be lopsided in using our brains. Operating from both hemispheres is imperative to future success. Dan Pink’s “Whole New Mind” is a worthwhile read if you haven’t picked it up yet. Business leaders need to be visionaries and creative problem-solvers, and artists to be balanced with practical administrative skills for success.
David Bullard is consistently spared through style, the saving grace that will allow for otherwise vile or unpalatable expression. It’s the confounding quality of charisma that keeps Robert Mugabe rockin’ and Donald Trump well servedwith the best life has to offer despite a perennial badhair day of questionable ethics.
We just can’t get enough of the bad boys despite the trail of bushfires and enemy snipers in their wake. Rasputin-like the Bullard has defied the bullet, and comes back unrelenting.
That said it’s probably a whole lot safer to inflame a bunch of bloggers, than those with more than words in their weaponry.
Can’t remember where I read this but seemed apt :
People are more violently opposed to fur than leather, because it’s safer to pick on rich women than biker gangs.
Celebrating the genius*gals this week.. I am so stoked, two of the gorgeous and talented women of my crew have scooped big awards this week for their wordsmithing genius. Tertia first with SA Blog of the year, and best writing on a blog.
And NOW the Ritz! winning in style at the ICT Journalist of the Year awards last night:
(here in the company of the fine Groogle aka Gregor Rohrig� & Vince Maher >>)
Ms. Carly Ritz is a blazing talent & worth putting on your watchlist >> she has a certain success trajectory ahead of her not just by virtue of unmistakable talent;
but possibly more so because she is exceptional, hilarious, visionary and heroic at the core. (spot the fan)
She will change the world ..don’t say I didn’t warn you!
We all know by now the yummymummy Tertia has taken the award for Best South African Blog :) There is none more deserving than this brave, bright & beautiful blogger. Her blog is formidably successful; but the real prize is the hard-won success that spills over in all directions and powers up other’s courage to deal with life’s gritty and seriously crap bits with huge dollops of grace.
There’s a little more than the standard warm fuzzies in this story >> It’s been a wild ride for Tertia lately and instead of crashing, she chose to use the power of participation on her blog to change the fortunes of a family. She’s raised hopes and a house for Harrison in 12hours flat. Check it out, and see if you don’t get all inspired to craft a creative campaign to use YOUR powers for good!
Fortune favours the brave: her book So Close has also been shortlisted in the books-spawned-from-blogs Blooker Awards with the likes of Seth Godin’s “Small is the New Big” and powerblog Postsecret as running mates - and judges with the stature of Arianna Huffington. It’s no small honour.
Tertia’s blog and book have changed many lives in many different & unexpected ways.. it’s a Hero’s Journey in the classic sense and farking funny to boot. No infertility of talent in evidence. Good job T, we’re so proud of you.
The SA Free Culture Tour is incoming.. bringing with it the world-changing brilliance of Jimmy WalesandLawrence Lessig (little confession: I leapt around the office like a demented fool when I heard: hunters of genius evidently have different stars in their celebrity constellation.. this doesn’t make EVERYONE’S heart pound faster but for us online mainliners, it’s huge!) There are talks at the various universities and at the Internet Society of SA ..and then there’s a PARTY!!
Heather Ford & the iCommons crew with the crowdsourced creativity & logistics of the community’s event meisters, artists, musicians and more are slinging together a classic South African Bringn’Braai on the 20th of April 2007 at the Armchair Theatre in Obz right here in the little mothercity.
PS. If you’re a musician PLEASE consider contributing some beats to the Free Music Project - it’ll get into the ears of little ones around the world all wrapped up with the One Laptop per Child project
PPS. the braai aspect of this event is the burning of some of the Commons’ music feast with the Freedom Toasters supplied. The spirit of sharingback from the (Grateful) Dead still rocking it hard
Easy to smirk at this, but I had many moments of disturbing recognition (my fave part is the MC Escher bit.. Weird Al is utter nutter genius without a doubt). I know we’ve all seen it 10^3 of times already, but I had to: in celebration of all things geeky to get in the mood for tonight’s geekmeet.
… I think I’m in trouble. GeekDinner tonight and I am suffering the effects of overclocking my processor - bioware not keeping up. It’s ridiculously easy to go into a temporal warp in front of a screen and unless you have a spouse who keeps you in check (LOL for Stii!! Belinda told me about YOU bru)
.. you too could become a sleepcamel.
I learnt the term a few years ago from an ex-Micro(not-so)softie from the heavyduty coding coalface. It’s not well, I think I have a problem. I’m currently on a sleepless stretch of 63.5 hours, and starting to get a little deranged & experiencing major data.loss. The fact that geekdinner is tonight, and I’m speaking (supposedly lucidly) is a concern.
Not sure that I’m going to be a safe driver. Don’t want to be the poster child of stern warnings that humans are NOT MACHINES. No matter how well you think you can override the default settings. I’m not feeling too well at all. ooops 8-/
If you woke up, without responsibilities, anyone/anything else to support (remember this is just hypothetical of course), no heavy mortgages, company to run, job to go to. You had resources and time and the refresh button had just been pressed - you somehow stepped elegantly into another parallel life where you’d made different choices. You are completely free to invest your time & energy where you please:
Would you still choose to do what you’re doing today?
.. just out of curiosity. Hunters of genius are curious by nature..
Innovation is one of those spaces that has to bridge both. This often elusive strategic advantage that could catapult you into uncontested territory (with the benefits of time, little competition, easy PR and high desirability in the marketplace) is often seen as the “soft stuff” best left to the creatives/scientists/inventors to envision. Mistakenly.
Celebrating the genius*gals this week.. I am so stoked, two of the gorgeous and talented women of my crew have scooped big awards this week for their wordsmithing genius. Tertia first with 
