Powerful Concepts: Valentino’s Secret Weapon

Lynda Curtin

Imagine lasting 45 years in your business. What would it take? How would you adjust to dramatically changing business needs? Could you create a loyal following of dedicated customers that span generations?

Seventy-five year old Italian fashion designer … Read More

About Commentator: Lynda Curtin, The Opportunity Thinker

Lynda Curtin

“By the end of this year we will have doubled our business since our creative thinking session with you, and we are 60% of the way to the goal. It’s almost time to raise the bar!“  – Dan Weare, … Read More

Making it Faster

Cass PursellNot long ago, Nicolas Carr made a provocative assertion in the title of his now-famous article “IT Doesn’t Matter.” In asking whether IT mattered, Carr was being intentionally provocative as a way of getting the reader’s immediate attention. He … Read More

Lean Six Sigma Forum 2007 in Malaysia

Katie Barry

This year’s Lean Six Sigma Forum takes place November 27-28 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

This forum will focus on how Lean and Six Sigma interact and reinforce one another to help better manage business processes. Fourteen world-class businesses will … Read More

Remember, It’s Just a Tool

Cass PursellSometimes in our enthusiasm for a program we can lose perspective on why the program is important. I’ve seen it time and again in organizations seeking to gain ISO certification or those adopting Six Sigma principles. The point of … Read More

Report from the Process of Innovation, Wednesday afternoon

Ellen Domb

Cheryl Perkins from Kimberly-Clark fascinated the audience with her data on the lack of clear metrics in the innovation “space.”    She gave characteristics of good metrics, particularly the advantages of leading (vs. lagging) metrics.   The continuum of innovation requires … Read More

Report from the Process of Innovation – Wednesday Morning

Ellen Domb

Wednesday morning started with Harry Flotemersch conducting a “Management Think Tank” workshop—he used the conference participants’ questions to pair them up and structure sessions for mutual help. Real Innovation Commentators Praveen Gupta and I had the most international table—people … Read More

Report from the Process of Innovation, Tuesday afternoon

Ellen Domb

Lev Buslovich spoke about his experiences at both GE and Carlson Hotels Worldwide, as a black belt, MBB, and innovation advocate.   He talked about the communication and cultural differences between public and private companies, and showed the distribution of … Read More

Report from the Process of Innovation -Tuesday Morning

Ellen Domb

The chairman’s opening address set the theme for the conference:   Joe Ficalora from SBTI used Steve Jobs’ quote, “Innovation is the difference between followers and leaders” as the kickoff message for the conference.   His Six Sigma background showed through … Read More

Report from the Process of Innovation Conference

Ellen Domb

I’m in Chicago IL USA this week at the conference organized by IQPC on the Process of Innovation.  I’ll be reporting progressively throughout the week on the highlights of the conference.  (If anyone is reading this in the Chicago … Read More

Theories of Innovation

Praveen Gupta

There has been much discussion lately about various innovation methodologies. As innovation is becoming an imperative for any for-profit organization, there is confusion about how to go about innovating. Many companies have been innovating for decades, so there must … Read More

Race Cars and Corporations

Michael S. Slocum

Race cars have to perform three functions to be successful. One, they have to accelerate. Two, they have to brake. Three, they have to corner. If a car has any chance of winning, it has to perform all … Read More

Innovation is Different and So Are People

Jack Hipple

When we are “innovating,” it is seldom that all the people we work with and interface with are the same as us from virtually any perspective. They have different backgrounds, experiences, motivations, and styles of behavior. These different type … Read More

Creativity@Work

Praveen Gupta

I am always surprised at people being amazed of innovation and ignorant of creativity in the work place. Innovation is a buzzword in the business world today, while creativity is perceived to be of some nuisance. It is perceived that … Read More

News from TRIZ-fest in Moscow

Ellen Domb

Mark Barkan, President of Matriz and a freqent author for The TRIZ Journal, has just sent a report on the “TRIZ-fest” hosted by MATRIZ in Moscow.   The event combined a business meeting, a technical conference, and graduate school, with election of … Read More

The Economics of Innovation

Michael S. Slocum

You know from the field of psychology that behavior is a function of values, so an organization has to value innovation if it is to consistently engage in innovative behaviors. But what if your organization doesn’t value innovation … Read More

Innovation From a Six Sigma View

Katie Barry

Over at the iSixSigma Blogosphere, blogger Robin Barnwell recently wrote about innovation.

Robin states that “innovation is a very personal endeavour rather than a group endeavour. What I have seen a number of times is innovation happening like a … Read More

Predictable Futures: Using Patterns of System Evolution

James Todhunter

Recently, a colleague asked me if the Patterns of System Evolution from TRIZ could be used by non-TRIZ practitioners.  At first the question struck me as being rather odd; it seemed sort of like asking if a map could … Read More

The People Side of Innovation

Jack Hipple

Comments at meetings by senior executives such as “now that the cutbacks are over, we can get on with innovation” really concern me. Research and Technology magazine’s recent annual surveys show innovation as a #1 issue, but five years … Read More

Growing Tomatoes in the Desert

Cass Pursell

In late June, the Committee for Economic Development issued the latest in a series of reports by business think tanks illustrating a growing change in the way American business is thinking about value. “Built to Last: Focusing Corporations on … Read More