Every organization wants people with answers. I prefer people with questions – specific questions like: What if? Why not? Then what?

Questions do more than seek response. They provide direction. A question well asked is half answered. Ask “Then what?” and you’re exploring beyond tactics to the strategic potential of the solution.

Some solutions only postpone the problem. Some offload the problem without really solving it. Some  solve one problem but create another downstream.
Then what?

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After months of cutbacks, reductions and layoff, is your organization ready for an economic rebound? Emotionally? Probably yes.
Strategically? Probably no. Managing in a downturn requires the most from the least. Efficiency is king. Innovation, strategic visioning? Minimized or eliminated altogether. Your decision clock is ticking.

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The story of a resource in motion from the perspective of Miles the Can. It's something to think about in a world where everything travels great distances to satisfy our desires.

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Situation: Your organization is burdened by a series of new rules with which it must comply. All organizations in your industry are subject to the same rules. The simple solution is to identify the path of least resistance – the solution that creates minimal disruption. That solution will probably be predictable. It will meet the requirement and probably nothing more.

The path of least resistance is also the path of least responsibility for protecting long term stakeholder value. The predictable path is the one that trades short term compliance for future competitive advantage.

An innovative organization, however, will see the problem differently. Instead of a restriction, it will identify the emerging industry pattern and will find the path which creates differentiation. Exploiting this path leads to new opportunity.   

Bob Willard has authored numerous books on the business case for sustainability.

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Over the past few years, I’ve seen many excellent speakers on the topic of breakthrough innovation and creative problem solving. Among the more interesting were: Claudia Kotchka, Clayton Christensen, David Swift, Renee Mauborgne and Vijay Govindarajan. What intrigued me about these speakers was their focus on shifting the frame of reference in order to identify breakthrough innovations. Innovation and strategy are not separate steps, but create a dynamic platform

I see it this way: If innovation is not strategic, it’s not innovative enough. If strategy is not innovative, it’s not an effective strategy. It’s that simple.

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Bill McKibben, in his book, Deep Economy, illuminates several excellent perspectives on the state of the globe. More interestingly, he addresses the responsibility of innovation.
He begins with an analysis of “more and better.” These two foundation principles of progress part ways once a stable quality of life is achieved. Beyond that, he says, more is not necessarily better. More does not guarantee happiness, but at some point conflicts with it. The average home in the U.S. is double the size it was several decades ago. The number of occupants has dropped. The storage industry has grown and prospered because in spite of the vast amount of space we live in, we still don’t have enough room for all the stuff we have acquired.
That hunger for more is driven globally by media images promoting lifestyles that worship more. More is at the root of a growing imbalance.
He cites numerous innovations

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In sculpture, it’s the negative space – what isn’t there – that makes what IS there so powerful. Negative space, also known as white space, is where nothing appears to be. In an object focused society, we see what is, and rarely take the time to consider what isn’t. We focus on the solid and tangible, forgetting that it is the intangible compliment that completes the whole picture. Think yin yang. Positive and negative are rarely equal in size and shape, but always equal in importance.

In bonsai, it’s the space between the branches that creates a sense of movement. The mass of positive areas (the branches) define the negative areas. It’s this dynamic relationship that attracts and holds a viewer’s attention.  

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