One of the biggest roadblocks to innovation at a lot of organisations is a lack of flexibility and risk-taking. Organisations have historically avoided taking risks, instead focusing on ‘safe’ opportunities for growth where the risk of failure is lower. But in an age of disruption, organisations are beginning to encourage employees to take more risksRead more
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It seems logical to think that the more resources you have available for creativity (be that time, money, people, scope etc.) that the more creative you will be. I mean, why wouldn’t you be more creative without limitations? That’s what blue-sky thinking is all about, right?! Interestingly, research tells us that the opposite is actuallyRead more
If you have ever sat in on a meeting about innovation, chances are you probably heard a lot of jargon and buzzwords being thrown around. If you want to talk buzzwords with the best of them, use this article as a cheat sheet to help you out. Alternatively, if you find the buzzwords boring, takeRead more
Last week, I was on the phone with one of my clients who works in the not-for-profit industry. Some of her biggest challenges are working with a restricted budget, communicating to a diverse and geographically dispersed employee base and involving employees in the organisation’s innovation strategy. After sharing her challenges with me she asked: “CanRead more
(Originally published in the Australian Financial Review, March 13, 2018) I spoke at an innovation conference recently that had some big name speakers and companies. A leader from Airbnb talked about how his team had applied design principles to improve the inclusiveness of their innovations. An ex-Apple executive discussed the big mistakes innovators make. AndRead more
If you have ever learnt to ski, surf or swim as an adult you will know the frustration of watching kids effortlessly shred the slopes, hang ten or dive in the pool. If you’re anything like me, you might be thinking to yourself: “Surely I can do better than those darn kids?!”. But unfortunately, thisRead more
I’m a big fan of innovation. This seems fitting given my job title has the word ‘innovation’ in it. If you are reading this, then chances are that you are a fan of innovation too! However, chances are also quite high that you know at least one person within your organisation who is not a fan ofRead more
Andy Grove, Former President of Intel, used to arrive at work at 8am and left by 6pm every day. Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, leaves the office by 5.30pm everyday so she can have dinner with her kids at 6pm. If you are struggling to fit in a productive day’s work and shut down yourRead more
How good is an overseas holiday?! Personally, I find there’s something so completely life-affirming and enlivening about immersing myself in a new culture; exploring new architecture, food and landscapes and seeing first-hand how other people live in different parts of the world. Maybe I’m just nosey, but I’m always fascinated to engross myself in aRead more
Eighteen months ago, I made the decision to fire all of my company’s managers. By “fire,” I mean remove their management responsibilities and instead, have them focus their efforts on actually doing the work they were originally hired to do (which in Inventium‘s case, is innovation consulting) rather than spend countless hours managing people. Many companiesRead more