Is most of your revenue from products, services, or business models more than three years old? If so, and even if your revenue is growing, that should be a warning signal that you’re not innovating effectively. All industries are competitive and, by not moving forward, you’re falling behind. There are numerous examples of former market […]
It’s taken me most of my career to get comfortable with the idea that I’m an introverted business leader. Like many, I expect business leaders to be gregarious and charismatic. Through experience, though, I’ve learned reserved colleagues make significant contributions even when they’re not holding the attention of a room. I’m an introvert, but I […]
I happened to find a blog post on the website for CRS Automotive entitled, “Bertha Benz: The First Driver in the World”. Bertha was the wife of Karl Benz, who’s credited with building the first car with an internal combustion engine (among other things.) I was probably no more than moderately engaged by the post […]
There are countless examples of solidly established companies that reinvented themselves. They developed successful new products or business models. Most times, they were seeking new ways to solve customer problems. Many times, their reinventions were seemingly unnecessary. Many of these companies held enviable industry positions with cash-cow products or services. Some examples are: Corning Glass […]
In an earlier post, I paralleled learning the skills of mountain biking to the satisfaction I derive from helping our customers to innovate, to experience similar skill progressions. In this post, I share the fact that — like the rewarding journeys of innovation — there is nothing like the joy of discovering a new trail. While […]
I’m not a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, nor am I a particular fan of Jerome Bettis. But I am a fan of keeping commitments (especially to oneself) and finishing the job. In 1992, Jerome Bettis left the University of Notre Dame, following his junior season, to enter the NFL draft. He was selected 10th overall in […]
My colleagues and I have written on occasion about innovation theater. But I had a different thought this morning. Here’s what happened: Like many people, I now work from home almost exclusively. I have occasional in-person meetings with colleagues and customers, but they’re rare and usually considered special events. Even before the pandemic, I was […]
This past Christmas, my wife, Tracey, got me a Ring doorbell. It’s more useful than I expected. It has a camera, a speaker, and a microphone. It’s connected to our Wi-Fi. We can see who’s at the door and even converse with visitors remotely using our smartphones. Since we already had a doorbell, the installation […]
My father, who never wrote a line of code, taught me everything I ever needed to know about debugging when I was a teenager. It went something like this: Me: Dad, my car won’t start. Dad: Does the engine not crank, or not fire? Me: It doesn’t crank at all. It’s probably the battery. I can go […]
Don’t tell me what you’re going to do. Do it. And let the market determine the value of what you’ve done. Now that we have that out of the way … Innovation isn’t a short-term act. It’s a long-term strategic commitment. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) started publishing a list of innovative companies in 2005. When […]