The speeches were done, we enjoyed cake and coffee and finished passing out the checks. The hardware was on the table (a CEO award). But more importantly, we had sliced almost half of the time it took us to do custom product development, which was pushing up customer satisfaction and would lock us into designs […]
Getting organic growth projects done in medium and large firms is hard work. It’s even harder when you’re doing it in addition to your “day job.” These projects are often accomplished by setting up an internal incubator. This space is typically well removed from the main “cube farm,” which allows the product team member/ innovator […]
I recall it clearly: I was working with a small manufacturing team that was looking to break out of their current niche. We had begun doing work on the business model canvas and Growth Zone principles. We were looking for opportunities in Quadrant One (which is the core), but seeing their strengths and weaknesses effectively […]
The frustration was visible, “I just don’t get it,” she said, face flushed and jaw clenched. “We worked nights and weekends for the last 18 months getting this ready. And now not to see any orders in the pipeline? It’s too much.” I had three conversations with executives in the last 10 days – all […]
Every so often you get a clear glimpse into the future, as was the case at the recent On Ramp Manufacturing Conference in Milwaukee. The conference was organized as a unique platform for established firms and startups to come together with 1:1’s, panel sessions and keynotes. The meta takeaway was that large firms are counting […]
I was leading a session for a group last week and going over how to build a strong, impactful, cross-functional team. During this discussion, one of the group members asked why I recommended so strongly that highly-influential internal candidates be sought out. It was one of those questions that triggers a set of scenes in […]
It’s always energizing to work with company founders, and a recent gathering of Clean Tech Midwest firms was no exception. I was invited to participate in the event, which hosted more than 20 firms from the Midwest who are in the process of preparing their business plans for both regional and national competition. I shared […]
I was wrapping up a recent talk on doing growth programs in larger firms, when during the Q&A session, one of the up-and-coming innovation leaders expressed a common concern: “We sometimes build some interesting things in our product team, but we can never get our sales team even remotely interested in sharing them with a […]
I received some interesting notes back regarding the post (here) from SCPD, particularly on the 60 percent of IOT programs that don’t make it past proof of concept. For those of you coming from outside the tech world, IOT refers to the “Internet of Things.” I wasn’t surprised, as the Gartner Hype Cycle for IOT […]
Picture a group assembled under one mantra: accelerating innovation. It would be an eclectic group of industry leaders, thought leaders and others who make their living building value. Mix in equal parts of dialogue, interaction and new experiences. That’s what the SCPD (Society for Concurrent Product Development) conference is all about. Set each year at […]
