Ideas to Innovations ... the SolutionPeople Way

I returned from SolutionPeople’s one-day Accelerated Innovation seminar and found it very worthwhile.

You see, I fancy myself as a Marketing IdeaSlinger who lives by the motto of: HAVE IDEAS. WILL SHARE. My challenge has never been generating ideas but rather implementing ideas.

My biggest “Ah-Ha” moment from the seminar came when I learned SolutionPeople’s definition for innovation.

in-no-va-tion (n.): an idea in action

Another way to look at this is:

Idea + Action = INNOVATION
Idea + no action = IMAGINATION

So … for all these years, I’ve been imaginative but not innovative. (Aye Caramba! My creative world was just rocked. Ouch.)

Jodee Bock, our facilitator for the day, introduced me and the thirteen other seminar attendees to the KnowBrainer innovation|creativity tool from SolutionPeople.

Using this KnowBrainer tool, SolutionPeople teaches a four-step process for making innovation happen from identifying needs to generating ideas to assessing solutions, and to putting plans into action.

The beauty of the KnowBrainer tool is at every innovation stage, the tool asks you focused questions designed to better create, shape, evaluate, and activate the idea(s) for implementation.

The KnowBrainer is more than an innovation tool, its a catalyst to zoom ideas into action.

As a project manager, I’ve never had problems identifying needs and ideating potential solutions. However, I, along with my project team, will inevitably get stalled in the evaluation and action stages of a project. I’m looking forward to using what I learned from the seminar to help my project teams get past those mid-project hiccup phases.

All seminar attendees began the day with a goal/problem. And through using the KnowBrainer tool, we each left with specific action steps to implement the best ideas to help us achieve/solve our beginning goal/problem. Leaving with specific action steps made for a highly productive day at the Thinkubator.

With this knowledge and tool in hand … maybe, just maybe ... this Marketing IdeaSlinger will become a Marketing InnovationSlinger living by the motto of:

HAVE IDEAS.
WILL SHARE.
AND IMPLEMENT.

***************************** For a list of upcoming SolutionPeople seminars, click here.

Comments

[Heath Row]

Thanks for the report! Jodee is coordinator of the Fargo, ND, Company of Friends group and is extremely energetic and bright. It was good to see her name in Brand Autopsy!

[Rich...!]

Is that innovation-slinger or innovations-linger? ;)

[johnmoore (from Brand Autopsy)]

Yo Rich…! you are stirring up some controversy. But since you brought it up, adding a capitalized ‘S’ seems to work better -- IdeaSlinger and InnovationSlinger.

(On a tangential note, adding a capitalized ‘S’ to GunSlinger makes gunslinger out to be a long-forgotten heavy metal hair band from the late 80s. Ugh, not good.)

[Rich...!]

One day (soon, I hope), a genius is going to invent a drug that erases the 80's from the collective memories of all mankind to ensure that none of the fashion/music/hair makes a comeback.

On another note altogether; dude, Heath Row comments on your blog. I'm jealous! That guy coined my favourite quote on presentations ever, "If you need PowerPoint to get your message across, you're sending the wrong message." I still use it whenever I present on the topic.

IdeaSlinger - I've never been one for titles, but that badboy may just make it onto my next business card...!

[johnmoore (from Brand Autopsy)]

IdeaSlinger(TM)

Rich...! you put IdeaSlinger on your business card and I'll put my army of lawyers on your a** so fast you'll wish you earned the money the lead singer from GunSlinger earned cause you will be paying out your a**.

Dig?