Business: Innovation

Because of the time, energy, and money that product-development projects require, product design and UX design carry tremendous levels of risk. Most organizations are perpetually seeking ways to innovate more quickly, while at the same time, mitigating the risk that is inherent in taking chances on new products and design solutions. The need to balance the speed and the risks of product innovation is not new. What is new is how many organizations of all sizes are embracing design thinking and prototyping to reduce the risk of product design.

By adopting a design-thinking approach—and fostering a culture that embraces prototyping and rapid iteration—you can improve time to market while reducing the capital and human costs of product development. Read More

“Hibernation is a covert preparation for a more overt action.”—Ralph Ellison.

In his 1953 book The Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison explores a number of social and intellectual issues of the African-American community of that time period. The book is as relevant today as it was in 1953. The quotation at the beginning of this column has transfixed me for a long time now—especially given that we are coming up on almost a year of relative hibernation because of the global pandemic. How can you write something that is interesting and compelling in a time when people just want to hibernate until it is all over? Read More

Normal is an odd word, one that has taken on new meaning in these days of a global pandemic. As I write this column, there are some parts of the world that are seeing light at the end of the tunnel, while other parts are firmly entrenched in the darkness. Many of us are currently engaging in introspection about what we want to do with our life, our career, and what challenges we need to face. At such a time as this, the topics of risk and innovation are coming up more than usual. Plus, I’m seeing massive confusion about what innovation actually is.

Innovation is a differentiator, a way to make great things happen. But how can we go about innovating as we crawl out of the pandemic we’ve faced over the last 18 months and will continue to deal with for some months into the future? How can we apply and scale all the innovating we have actually done during these past long months? What lessons have we learned? How can we ensure that innovation is still the main driver of our success? Read More