Think For A Change

PDMA "Early Bird" Registration Discounts Extended!!!

Paul Williams — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 08:55:07 GMT

The PDMA International Conference team released some very important information this week:

If you missed the July 31st deadline to take advantage of the "early bird" registration rates, you are in luck! The "early bird" rate deadline has been extended to August 22nd.

Some even better news...you can still add a 20% discount on top of that by using our special "Media Partner" discount code, MP08IC, during your registration checkout process!!!

The block of rooms at Disney's Contemporary Resort that PDMA negotiated with Disney are almost SOLD OUT!!! Please book your room as soon as possible to take advantage of this great rate!!!

According to my countdown clock...we are now under 50 days until the conference. I am really looking forward to meeting all of you who are planning to attend!

How Cool Is This???

Paul Williams — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 16:29:00 GMT

We've been added to the Innovation Category over at Alltop!!! Can you say "COOL!?!?!?!?!"

Alltop is the brainchild of the Blogger King, Guy Kawasaki, who describes Alltop this way:

You can think of an Alltop site as a “digital magazine rack” of the Internet. To be clear, Alltop sites are starting points—they are not destinations per se. The bottom line is that we are trying to enhance your online reading by both displaying stories from the sites that you’re already visiting and helping you discover sites that you didn’t know existed. In other words, our goal is the “cessation of Internet stagnation” by providing “aggregation without aggravation.”

For more information about Alltop, click HERE

A special thanks to Guy Kawasaki, Jeff De Cagna and Katie Konrath for helping to get the Innovation category included on the Alltop site!!!

We are definitely proud to display the Alltop banner here and the badge over on the left sidebar!!!

Thinking Spaces...

Paul Williams — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 06:38:56 GMT

"No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking." - Voltaire

We've discussed the concept of dedicated thinking spaces before, but there is a recent revival of this concept within the Lean/Six Sigma Community that is also worth exploring for the innovator and creative thinker...the Obeya Room. See...I'm not a hardcore LSS hater.

Obeya in Japanese means simply “big room.” The purpose is to ensure project success and shorten the plan-do-check-act cycle. Similar in concept to traditional “war rooms,” an Obeya Room contains highly visual charts and graphs depicting program timing, milestones and progress to date and countermeasures to existing timing or technical problems.

The concept was put into action within Toyota and it has become a major project management tool, used especially in product development, to enhance effective and timely communication. Project Managers, Project Coordinators, Creativity/Innovation Consultants and Lean Consultants all have desks in the Obeya Room. Along appropriate points on the program timeline, other key roles and resources will also be co-located with the Obeya Room.

For those of you attending the PDMA International Conference in September at Disney's Contemporary Resort, you'll be able to see a full-scale working Obeya Room up close and personal.

If you've been on the fence about heading to the PDMA International Conference, or just haven't gotten around to making registration arrangements, would a 20% discount help your decision making process? Well, you're in luck!!! As a Media Partner for the 2008 PDMA International Conference, we are proud to offer a 20% discount by using the following priority code (MP08IC) when registering for the conference.

See you in the Obeya Room!

Innovation Dashboard...

Paul Williams — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 14:30:08 GMT

What does an Innovation Management Dashboard look like???

Here is a "scrubbed" example (ie. real data & categories removed) of a dashboard I designed for a client last week:

Its simple...but that was the point. They can be very simple...yet explain a lot about where your innovation management program currently stands. Need some help with your innovation metrics or scorecard development? HIRE US!!!

Apologies To My Blog Readers...

Paul Williams — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 05:58:42 GMT

When I decided to include advertising in the sidebar of the blog, I promised myself (and my readers) that I would screen and filter out any banner ads that included the annoying and questionable "YOU'VE WON A FREE LAPTOP" style of marketing.

Somehow, over the weekend, two of these ads slipped past my review. I have removed, and tagged for future rejection, the offending ads.

Please accept my apology for subjecting you to these ridiculous marketing tactics.

And Now...A Word From Our Sponsor...

Paul Williams — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 07:42:23 GMT

Shortly after my presentation last week at the ProjectWorld Regional conference, a business analyst pulled me aside and mentioned that when I was speaking about the concept/role of an "Idea Champion" within the innovation management context, she couldn't help but think of the definition/role of a "Project Sponsor."

Great point!

The roles of Project Sponsor and Idea Champion are indeed very similar:

PROJECT SPONSOR	IDEA CHAMPION
Secures funding for projects	Seeks funding sources for ideas
Secures key resources for project delivery	Establishes a skilled resource pool for creativity and innovation
Represents the project at key communication/status meetings	"Owns" the lifecycle of the idea
Provides strategic alignment	Ensures strategic alignment
Approves plans, schedules and budgets	Ensures the idea moves through the appropriate idea/innovation management processes
Clears roadblocks to success	Identifies and clears roadblocks
Communicates project benefits	Ensures the idea has tangible business benefit or kills/shelves the idea

In addition to the responsibilities/similarities listed above, the Idea Champion is usually also responsible for the following:

Fostering a climate of innovation (risk taking, fast failure, etc.)
Serving as the "Chief Collaboration Officer" and "Chief Innovation Cheerleader" inside the organization
Breaks down silos and internal barriers
Serves as a key change agent within the organization
Supports, recognizes and rewards any behavior that leads to the successful generation (and implementation) of ideas

Find people willing to serve as Idea Champions inside your organization and set them free to discover, adopt, support, manage and breathe life into new ideas today!!!

Disney's Innovation In Action...

Paul Williams — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 16:41:42 GMT

I was just browsing through the PDMA International Conference website and realized that they are offering a fantastic learning opportunity during the pre-conference activities...Disney's Innovation In Action Tour!!!
____________________________________________

WHAT:
Innovation in Action: Disney's Behind the Scenes Tour

Please sign up for this tour during the registration process. You do not need to e-mail to sign up.

WHEN:
Sunday, September 14, 2008 from 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm

WHERE:
Busses will depart the Contemporary at promptly at 3:30, so we recommend that you are at least 10 minutes early. Pick up and drop off locations to be announced.
____________________________________________

Okay, so I have to fully admit up front that I am a certifiable Disney Nut! I actually discovered my passion for organizational creativity and innovation in 2000 at the week-long Disney Institute Program on Managing for Innovation.

Since then, I have attended numerous other Disney Institute programs including this specific behind the scenes opportunity, the "Innovation In Action" Tour.

If you can get to Orlando early and get yourself on this fantastic tour, PLEASE do so!!! It will be very informative, very entertaining and very eye-opening!!!

Even better news...Think For A Change has been named a 2008 PDMA International Conference Media Partner and is offering a 20% Discount to the conference! Just use priority code MP08IC and save yourself some cash!

ProjectWorld Regional...

Paul Williams — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 08:29:22 GMT

"A project is nothing more than a problem, scheduled for a solution." - J.M. Juran

The 2008 ProjectWorld Regional Conference has come and gone.

It was a wonderful week in San Diego and the accommodations/conference facilities were top notch at the Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines.

The keynotes were especially good this year. The "Day One" keynote was presented by Arthur Shelley and focused on his unique "animalistic" view of effective team members and collaboration. Are you a Lion? Eagle? Mouse? Nematode?

The "Day Two" keynotes were presented by Susan Powers and Mark Dronzek and both were heavily flavored with organizational change management and transformation advice. Both speakers brought these topics home for the project managers and business analysts in the room.

There were a number of pre-conference workshops again that took very deep dives into such weighty topics as PMP Exam Prep, Lean, BA Centers of Excellence and Use Cases.

While the main conference again served up great presentations and speakers along six unique tracks: Practical Applications for the PM, Trends & Advancements for the PM, Practical Applications for the BA, Trends & Advancements for the BA, The People Side and Tools & Techniques.

My presentation was in the Practical Applications for the PM and was well received. The audience members asked awesome questions and I was afraid the Q&A was going to last longer than the presentation itself.

Thanks to everyone who attended, presented and shared. I learned a lot and made a number of great new connections. Again, the true hallmark of a great conference experience!!!

Think For A Change, LLC. Selected As PDMA International Conference Media Partner!!!

Paul Williams — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:46:03 GMT

Think For A Change, LLC. and PDMA have formed a media partnership to promote the 2008 PDMA International Conference in Orlando, FL. As part of this partnership, Think For A Change, LLC. and their media outlet, The Think For A Change Blog, will serve as a key information resource leading up to this year's conference, as well as provide "Live" Blog updates during the conference!!!

More importantly, Think For A Change, LLC. has secured the ability to offer a 20% DISCOUNT off of the normal registration fee simply by using the following Media Partner Discount Code: MP08IC

To Download A Copy of the Conference Brochure...Click HERE

To Download a PDF Version of Conference Flyer Below...Click HERE

________________________________________

32nd Annual International Conference

September 15-17, 2008

Disney’s Contemporary Resort ● Orlando, FL

www.pdma.org

The 32nd Product Development & Management Association’s Annual International Conference brings the product development community together to exchange ideas and discuss what “best practice” means today. PDMA delivers the most exciting and interactive environment to connect with your peers, debate hot product development and management topics, introduce new tools and techniques, experience new ways to uncover creativity in yourself and your project teams, improve your skills through relevant workshops, try new vendor tools and meet gurus and outstanding corporate innovators in intimate roundtable discussions.

This is the ONLY conference in the USA and abroad that is fully aligned and integrated with the six core PDMA Body of Knowledge Areas.

It’s More Than a Conference… join us and the PDMA community for peer-to-peer knowledge sharing tailored to meet your professional development and company needs whether you are experienced in new product development or new to the field.

To find out more or to register, please visit www.pdma.org and mention priority code MP08IC to receive your special discount.

Book Review..."Grabbing Lightning"

Paul Williams — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 08:46:42 GMT

In the second of our two book reviews this week, we look at "Grabbing Lightning" by Gina O'Connor, Richard Leifer, Albert Paulson and Lois Peters, all from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

One of the things I really like about this book right off of the top is the feeling of energy and personal passion that comes through each of the writers on the subject of ideas and innovation. They describe themselves in the preface as "innovation enthusiasts" and it really does show. They are not just academics, who pontificate theory without having actually done the work. They are innovators themselves, who have gotten their hands dirty in this business of innovation.

In this book, the focus is on building innovation capabilities. Each chapter covers a different capability or capacity, that added together, forms a solid innovation system that you can use within your organizations.

Key concepts of organizational creativity such as discovery, incubation and acceleration are explored. Innovation management systems and maturity progression (my key niche) are also covered in great detail.

The book is rooted in a Breakthrough Innovation Research Study that the team of authors conducted and that is expertly laced throughout the book as proof of their system and process recommendations.

While I would probably classify this book as more advanced and technical for those of us in the innovation management field, I still definitely recommend it to all of my blog readers and something you should use in developing your core innovation-related knowledgebase.

Book Review..."Game Changer"

Paul Williams — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 08:30:55 GMT

In the first of two book reviews this week, we are going to take a look at "Game Changer" by A.G. Lafley and Ram Charan.

I read a TON of innovation and organizational creativity books...witness my library...

So now you understand that when I take the time to do a book review, it is because I think it is important that others read, understand and share. Game Changer is one of those books.

You all know my feelings on best practices vs. next practices, but this book really is a playbook or manual of setting up and managing a successful innovation management program. From its primary focus on the customer/consumer, to defining what innovation means to you, the book reveals key steps...actionable steps...in the formation of successful innovation discipline.

Additionally, the book shares organizational structures, leadership traits, and key processes that will help to embed innovation in any organizational culture. You have to admit, to get a corporation as large as Proctor & Gamble to become a leader in innovation, it takes courage and laser-like focus. That courage and laser-like focus is extremely evident in the stories and vignettes presented by Mr. Lafley within this book.

My recommendation...buy it...read it...sticky note the hell out of it...learn from it...

Off to San Diego...

Paul Williams — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 08:48:07 GMT

Off to San Diego in a couple of days for the 2008 ProjectWorld/World Congress for Business Analysts Regional Conference.

I am going to try and provide daily blog updates on some of the key presentations/concepts/discussions of the conference so stay tuned...

Innovation...Everyday...All Day...

Paul Williams — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 12:38:39 GMT

I recently had a prospective client ask me, "How can I make my employees just "do" innovation?"

Well...it took a few back and forth discussions to clarify that statement, but what she was essentially asking was, "How long until my employees innovate without even thinking about it?"

Whew...that's a tough one!

I actually get asked this question a lot when presenting at conferences and other speaking opportunities, so I thought I would give out my Top Ten of Making Innovation Happen Every Day:

1.     Innovation MUST be tied to the organizational strategy

2.     Innovation MUST be on the leadership agenda and discussed at every leadership meeting

3.     Innovation MUST be led by at least one C-Level or SVP-Level person

4.     Ideas (from ANY source) MUST have a path/process to follow

5.     Customers/Consumer MUST have a voice

6.     Resources (People, Money & Time) MUST be made available for innovation

7.     A culture of risk taking, fast failure, experimentation and imagination MUST exist and be supported/protected

8.     The organization MUST be made up of skilled and diverse individuals who are set "free"

9.     The organization MUST seek to be a leader of "next practices" not a follower of "best practices"

10.     The organization MUST have the courage to KILL projects, ideas, lines of business, etc. that don't work

Once you have these ten "MUST's" in place, I think you will find that your employees, front-line managers, middle managers and senior leaders will be innovating...everyday...all day...

Reaction to CNBC's "Business of Innovation - Innovate or Die" Episode

Paul Williams — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 12:19:23 GMT

Not too bad of an episode on CNBC last night...with the obvious exception being Mel Kamarzin. Mel double-talked his way through comments like "I don't tolerate risk" and "If someone takes a risk, we don't punish people for that." Mel may know a good business bet when he sees one, but he clearly isn't part of the dirty machinery that makes innovation really happen.

I understand that CNBC gets a boost by having Fortune 500 CEOs and Chairpersons on the show, but this is what bothered me about last year's "Business of Innovation" series...too much top leadership and too little of the people that go forth and actually make innovation happen.

Innovation needs strong leaders who understand the benefits of risk, set the tone for an organizational innovation culture, provide resources (financial, human and time) and set the organizational agenda/mission. And while you see that demonstrated via the many C-Level leaders on this program, very little time is spent on the "how" or the "who" of getting the innovations actually out the door.

Yeah, I am picky because I am intimately close to the systems and dynamics of innovation management, and I am probably overly sensitive to the buzzwords being bantered about. The audience of programs like this are business leaders and management-types who are looking for ways to make innovation real for their organizations...and again, I think they are left wanting more.

Still, lots of great points last night and I encourage you to watch it either online or during the regular CNBC broadcast.

06/10 - Great Article Alert!!!

Paul Williams — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 06:12:56 GMT

Sometimes you want to share a concept but cannot put the words together. Sometimes you find someone who not only puts the right words together, but does it EXCEPTIONALLY well.

I've been wanting to do a blog article about the power of inspiration for some time now, but Lois Knight of the Freelance Folder did such a great job that I am going to link you to her instead. Enjoy!!!

Conference Presentation Key Points...

Paul Williams — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 15:58:51 GMT

I am just about finished with the final presentation walk-throughs for the upcoming ProjectWorld/World Congress for Business Analysts Regional Conference in San Diego.

Since most of you won't be there...here are the key points that I will reiterate at the end:

'Integrating Innovation in Project Portfolio Management' Presentation Key Points:

Each step along the overall organizational creativity and innovation process requires management of a set of tasks, resource availability/time, issues and risks, decision points, etc.

In essence, project/program/portfolio management skills

By combining the skills of a project manager with the skills of an idea generator, we have the ingredients for successful innovation

A dreamer...matched with a doer

By combining the discipline of project management with the free-wheeling excitement of idea generation, we have increased the odds of innovative success

Unbridled enthusiasm...matched with a set of tasks leading to an end

If there are some of you out there who would like to attend the conference the week of June 23rd...please contact me ASAP as I can still get you a 20% discount off of the conference rates.

Why Do You Still Follow A Losing Strategy?

Paul Williams — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 15:42:11 GMT

“Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them.” - Paul Hawken

Innovation is about playing to win, while cost containment is about playing not to lose. Ergo...when you play not to lose, you are not purposefully playing to win. Think about it...there is a huge difference in strategy.

As I have stated before, I have nothing against organizations who deploy effective Lean, Six Sigma or other similar process improvement and cost containment initiatives. Nor do I have any particular complaint with organizations that follow "best practices" to get caught up with the competition. Some organizations need to play follow the leader to get themselves back in the game. Some truly do have bloated and wasteful systems.

The one thing that I have a HUGE problem with however, is when the leadership of those organizations say that they are utilizing these programs as tools for growth, competitive advantage or other similar nonsense. Unfortunately, they get away with it in most organizations. By continually showing numbers that seem to trend in the right direction in the short term, they are given a free pass.

But is all a fallacy...and if you've been in business long enough, you'll see the "growth shell game" that continuous improvement initiatives play. In the short term, the focus on processes and cutting costs will drive some improvement in the bottom line. The trend line on the graphs will all head in the right direction. Following the "projected" trend line up into positive growth territory, these "value engineers" will promise a rosy future. Unfortunately, you can only squeeze so much out of wasteful or inefficient processes. Over time, hard dollar savings are replaced by soft dollar savings calculations in order to demonstrate continued benefits of the program long after the real value has been realized. In the end though, the trend line reaches a point where it goes flat...far short of the promised land of growth.

When this happens, the organization has nothing to fall back upon. No targeted growth strategy. No innovation pipeline filled with ideas. No processes to move ideas to market. No culture of vision, risk taking or learned failure. And so, they find themselves far behind the competition again. They need to follow best practices to catch up...and the cycle starts all over again.

Instead, what if that same organization spent as much time and effort on an innovation management program as they did on their operational excellence program? What if employees, while they were looking for wasteful processes to attack, were also allowed time to collaborate and experiment with new products/services/business models? What if fast failure was just as important as lean operations? What if risky exploration was as valued as controlling unwanted variance? What if each employee, each manager and each senior leader had one eye focused on operational excellence while the other eye was on the horizon?

Then, and only then, will the organization escape from the best practices loop and jump to the next practices leadership position. Then, and only then, will the organization truly be playing to win.

05/22 - Great Article Alert!!!

Paul Williams — Thu, 22 May 2008 11:43:32 GMT

For those of you, like myself, who carry the innovation torch in and around IT shops, read this absolutely fantastic review of a talk from the 2008 Forrester IT Forum!!! Brilliant stuff...but is anyone (hello?) listening?!?!?

Innovation Portfolio Management...

Paul Williams — Tue, 20 May 2008 12:50:41 GMT

"A little risk management saves a lot of fan cleaning" - Unknown

I've been busy the last few weeks preparing my presentation for the 2008 ProjectWorld/World Congress for Business Analysts Regional Conference in San Diego.

My topic is "Integrating Innovation Strategy & Project Portfolio Management."

As a blend of seasoned project management professional and innovation management consultant, I have a unique view of the importance of project management discipline within the innovation/idea process. They really do co-exist to each other's benefit.

Its the Dreamer/Doer concept I've talked about before. Put a creative mind together with a project manager and you've got ideas that have a chance of becoming an innovation. Remember, ideas alone are not innovative. In fact, ideas don't "exist" until they are made "real."

Whew...perhaps I need to pull out my old college Philosophy text again!

So what is it that I am going to share with my primarily Project/Program/Portfolio Manager and Business Analyst audience? Here's a high-level agenda:

Innovation & Portfolio Management 101
Idea Management/Innovation Process Steps:

Problem Identification

Root Cause Analysis & Definition
Application of Existing Knowledge

Idea Generation

Application of Idea Generation Technique

Idea Management

Idea Input Mechanism
Idea Filtering/Criteria
Idea Selection

Implementation

Idea Prototyping
Idea Implementation
Feedback/Change Management

Innovation Project Portfolio (IPP) Concept:

Approach
Strategy Alignment
Blend
Commitment
Engagement
Balance
Extraordinary People

Why It Matters
Q&A

It's only a 60 minute presentation (45 min. really...to allow for 15 min. of Q&A). I don't want to "boil the ocean" but it should give the primarily project-focused audience some exposure on how to blend innovation management concepts into the portfolio management processes.

Here's the bottom line...and its not just for the conference...its for everyone, all the time...

Innovation needs project management and project management needs innovation.

Yep...that's it...short, sweet and true!!!