where ideas come from

Developing and leveraging

a creative culture
Whats the most important
leadership quality?
2010 Study of 1500 CEOs
Creativity
So go make your company creative!
Why is creativity so important?
Its becoming a key competitive edge
And why are creatives so hard to find?
We are all born artist. The problem is
to remain an artist as we grow up
Pablo Picasso
Think of people you would consider
creative
Think of people you would consider
creative
Do these words describe your
organization? Should it?
Creative thinkers observe, experiment,
take risks, communicate
they are connected
Creativity requires the courage
to let go of certainties
Eric Fromm
seeks to acquire
I am valuable because
of what I KNOW
HAVING
BEING
focuses on the
experience
derives meaning from
exchanging, engaging
and sharing
I am valuable because
of what I SHARE
So how do you define and develop a
creative culture in your organization?
Its not about technology
Its about the culture
Technology is important,
but its not the focus
Where Good Ideas Come From
A Natural History
of Innovation
The slow hunch
Where Good Ideas
Come From
by Steven Johnson
Credit graphics to RSA Animate
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NugRZGDbPFU
The slow hunch
sometimes lays dormant
Credit graphics to RSA Animate
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NugRZGDbPFU
Where Good Ideas
Come From
by Steven Johnson
When hunches collide
Credit graphics to RSA Animate
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NugRZGDbPFU
Where Good Ideas
Come From
by Steven Johnson
When hunches collide
you often get breakthroughs
Credit graphics to RSA Animate
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NugRZGDbPFU
Where Good Ideas
Come From
by Steven Johnson
Sowho are the people in your
organization that have these hunches?
Dont assume you know where they are They arent obvious
So if you want their hunches (ideas)
how do you enlist them?
Are they the type to fill out surveys?
I dont think so
Mass mailings or email distribution lists?
Wrong again
Knowledge Accidents
You can spark
the collisions
Creating Knowledge Incidents
Open up the
conversation
in the context
of everyday
work and then
listen and
learn
develop a creative culture
1) Open up the conversation
When you have a question and
someone gives you the answer
only the two of you benefit
Coffee houses and water coolers
The birth of Global
Positioning Systems
Open conversations require you to hear
and be heard
So how can you create
virtual coffee houses?
People need to have an identity
Profiles
People need to have an identity
Tags
People need to belong
Communities
People need to belong
Teams
People have opinions and ideas
Wikis
People have opinions and ideas
Ideation Blogs
People have opinions and ideas
Discussion Forums
People have opinions and ideas
Blogs
People have opinions and ideas
Micro Blogs
People find things to share
Social Bookmarks
People find things to share
Social Bookmarks
People create things to share
Files
People create things to share
Media
This creates an environment where
knowledge accidents can happen
Social solutions are great for sharing, but
you need to also consider the next part
2) in the context of everyday work
Many vendors have social apps
You may even have some
of these in your
organization today
but these can be distracting
Specific social
applications for specific
social needs
Some business application vendors are
attempting to make their apps more social
Social has become the
new e word
but this can create social silos around
your business applications
Social needs to be integrated in the
context of your daily work
It has to be part of your
culture
So how do you do that?
Lets look at some examples
Where do I start?
You talking to me?
Email and
Collaboration Client
You talking to me?
Email and
Collaboration Client
Where is my stuff?
Enterprise Content and
SharePoint Repositories
Where is my stuff?
Enterprise Content and
SharePoint Repositories
Whats up?
Social Analytics
3) and then listen and learn
Innovation and good ideas
often doesnt call attention to itself
Innovation and good ideas
often doesnt call attention to itself
The Candle Problem
The Candle Problem
The Candle Problem
The Candle Problem
In open conversations you
may not know where the valuable
insight is going to come from
You need insight
You need to tap into the social
conversations
Cognos Consumer Insight
What are the connections?
Atlas
And back on the subject
of your people with hunches
This is an area where HR
may need some new
approaches
Weve always recognized the value
of the salespersons rolodex
Customer contacts,
relationships,
conversations and trust
Now we need to recognize the business
value of your active social users
Social network, customer
contacts, relationships,
conversations and trust
So remember:
If you have an apple and I have
an apple and we exchange
these apples then you and I will
still each have one apple.
But if you have an idea and I
have an idea and we exchange
these ideas, then each of us will
have two ideas.

George Bernard Shaw

So if you want your organization to grow
youre going to need a creative culture
So if you want your organization to grow
youre going to need a creative culture
Does this sound like your leadership?
There go my people.
I must catch them
for I am their leader.

Gandhi
IBMs culture is one that appreciates and
encourages innovation and new ideas
We can help you!
www.ibm.com/social
Anything less would bejust anti-social
ideas?
questions?
comments?
thank you
its been my pleasure
Louis Richardson
Social Business Evangelist
IBM
www.creativitycrisis.com
www.twitter.com/inter_vivos
www.linkedin.com/in/louisrichardson
www.youtube.com/louisrichardsonjr
www.slideshare.net/louisrichardson
about.me/louisrichardson
RichardL@us.ibm.com
disclaimer
they make me do it
IBM Corporation 2012. All Rights Reserved.
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