Idea To Value - Creativity And Innovation

In today's episode, we speak with Rodd Chant, who describes himself as a Creative Something. Rodd started out in music, before leading Advertising companies in Australia, Singapore, New York, Tokyo and now back in Australia. We talk about what it takes to succeed in the creative industries, and how to lead creative individuals. See the full original episode at: https://wp.me/p6pllj-1pJ  Topics discussed in today's episode: 00:03:00 - What actually does a Creative Director do? It is about guiding your team to produce their best work 00:05:30 - What myths people misunderstand about what it is like working in advertising. It is lot like being an artist, it is a business. 00:08:00 - Coaching people on their creative journey 00:10:00 - There is no stereotypical "type" of creative person, they come in all different people, and they all have their own types of challenges 00:13:00 - Is everyone creative? The creative adult is the child that survives.  00:15:30 - Creative jobs are going to become more important in th

In today's episode, we speak with Ray Fleming, the Higher Education Director for Microsoft Australia. We speak about how Microsoft went from losing its status as a worldwide innovator to rediscovering what it takes for innovation to succeed at a large, well-established company. See the full original episode at https://wp.me/p6pllj-1pI Topics discussed in this episode: 00:01:30 - How to connect technology to business purpose 00:02:30 - How Satya Nadella joining as Microsoft's CEO completely changed the company culture in the past 5 years 00:04:15 - Why having someone from engineering and product development leading the company changed their outlook towards solving new problems 00:06:00 - Moving from a company of Know-it-Alls to an organisation of Learn-it-Alls, which allowed Microsoft's team members to take more risks and move faster 00:08:15 - When you were an Enterprise Service provider, you couldn't afford to Move Fast and Break Things. However, now Microsoft has changed the way they iteratively release p

In today's episode, we speak with Bem Le Hunte about her interesting new university curriculum designed to enhance the creativity and innovativeness of her students. See the full original episode at https://wp.me/p6pllj-1pD  Bem is the founding course director for the Bachelors of Creative Intelligence and Innovation at the University of Technology Sydney. Topics discussed in this episode: 00:01:15 - Why education of tomorrow must work across disciplines to prepare students for the future of work 00:04:30 - How you can study creativity and some of the struggles which students initially have, and the real-world applications of this education 00:08:00 - Why industry partners are looking for these skills of the future 00:09:00 - Creativity is not just for the arts, it is an important skill in all fields and can be taught 00:11:30 - Getting students away from perfectionism, which is what most students have been taught. We need to teach collaboration rather than competition 00:14:0 - the need to practice thinking

In today's episode, I speak with Duleesha Kulasoorya about how exponential technologies are already changing the way business is done, and how companies will need to adapt in order to survive. Duleesha leads Deloitte's Centre for the Edge practice in Asia, which tries to anticipate what will be important in the future for several industries. We talk about not only about several case studies of changes have been happening recently, but also how large companies can change their mindset to embrace exponential thinking. See the full episode at https://wp.me/p6pllj-1px  Topics discussed in this episode: 00:01:30 - What should be keeping your clients up at night? 00:02:45 - How the speed of change is increasing 00:04:00 - The future is already here, it is just unevenly distributed 00:06:00 - How "exponential" is misunderstood 00:08:00 - Companies are saying they want to embrace exponential technology, but are not doing enough to change their behavior 00:10:15 - Conviction and Courage, and why digital-first compani

Today, we are speaking with the former Head of Innovation and Creativity at Disney, Duncan Wardle. Can you imagine a job title more closely related to creativity than that? Read the full article at https://www.ideatovalue.com/podc/nickskillicorn/2019/06/podcast-s2e37-duncan-wardle-the-former-head-of-innovation-and-creativity-at-disney/  We speak about what it takes for companies to become more innovative, how ideas are developed at Disney and Pixar, and why companies need to embrace creativity to prevent themselves from becoming disrupted in the coming decade. Topics covered in today's episode: 00:01:15 - How Duncan got started at Disney, working on public relations and sending Buzz Lightyear into space 00:04:30 - Why "lack of time to think" was listed as the biggest barrier to innovation at Disney 00:05:30 - The four models they tried to bring innovation into the company 00:07:30 - Creating a toolkit for innovation 00:09:00 - Why "purpose" will be more important than "product" in the coming generations 00:1

In today's episode of the Idea to Value Podcast, we speak with Harvard Business School's Professor Amy Edmondson about her concept of Psychological Safety. To read the full article, go to https://www.ideatovalue.com/podc/nickskillicorn/2019/05/podcast-s2e36-amy-edmondson-creating-a-culture-of-psychological-safety/  She is the author of The Fearless Organisation, is the Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at the Harvard Business School, a chair established to support the study of human interactions, and today we talk to her about what makes teams perform at their highest potential, what causes fear of sharing ideas within teams, and how psychological safety can prevent your teams (and company) being disrupted in the marketplace. Topics covered in today's episode: 00:01:30 - How the concept of psychological safety came out of an accident in her original research 00:02:30 - Trying to understand why "better" teams would be making MORE mistakes 00:04:30 - The misguided concept of what should make one

In today's episode of the idea to value podcast, we speak with Taylor Ryan, CMO of Valuer.ai, about the benefits that both corporations and startups can get from collaborating. We discuss what it takes for startups to succeed with their innovation efforts and the danger of large established corporations from assuming that they won't be disrupted. Read the full article at https://www.ideatovalue.com/podc/nickskillicorn/2019/05/podcast-s2e35-taylor-ryan-how-corporations-and-start-ups-benefit-from-collaboration/  Topics covered in this episode: 00:01:00 - Why corporations are starting to see the value in working with startups 00:03:00 - The problem with projects in large companies to build capabilities, compared to founders who have already established how to solve a problem 00:05:30 - What happens within Google X: People are given bonuses for killing projects 00:06:45 - Why startup founders are often worried about collaborating with corporations 00:08:15 - How to find out what would bring major benefits within

In today's episode of the Idea to Value Podcast, we speak with Catherine Orer about what it takes for artists to raise the value of their work. See the full episode here: https://www.ideatovalue.com/podc/nickskillicorn/2019/05/podcast-s2e34-catherine-orer-how-artists-can-raise-the-value-of-their-work/  We cover several areas, including what sort of research artists need to undertake to understand what the market is willing to pay, determining their own vision of what they want their art to be, and overcoming the fear of the "business side" of things to be able to actually make their art into a sustainable, profitable business. Topics covered in today's episode: 00:02:00 - What working at one of the world's largest auction houses taught her about selling fine art 00:04:00 - The secrets of why "perception is reality" in getting millions of dollars for art 00:06:15 - The challenge of transparency in determining art value 00:07:30 - How artists need to ask themselves where they want to position themselves 00:09:

In today's episode of the Idea to Value Podcast, we speak with Efosa Ojomo, co-author of the new book The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty, along with Professor Clayton Christensen and Karen Dillon. Check out the full episode at https://www.ideatovalue.com/podc/nickskillicorn/2019/03/podcast-s2e33-efosa-ojomo-how-to-fix-the-prosperity-paradox/  We speak about why charity isn't the most effective way to help countries develop, what most governments and policymakers get wrong about how to help drive prosperity in developing nations, and how these lessons can be applied to your business. Topics covered in today's episode: 00:01:15 - How Efosa got started with innovation, and how a single book changed his life 00:03:30 - Why charity donations aren't effective at helping drive people out of poverty, and how these are called "Push Strategies" of development 00:05:00 - How entrepreneurs in developing nations innovate and create markets, called the "Pull Strategies" of innovation 0

In this episode of the Idea to Value Podcast, we speak with Deloitte Product and Service Design Director Bryan Hoedemaeckers, about one of Deloitte's newest initiatives the foster an innovative spirit in the company: the Dreamatorium. See the full article at https://www.ideatovalue.com/podc/nickskillicorn/2019/03/podcast-s2e32-bryan-hoedemaeckers-what-is-a-dreamatorium/  Rather than being a place of fantasy, the Dreamatorium is a place to connect, tinker, and dream big, with innovation as a consequence. We discuss the reason so many innovation labs fail in companies, and how your company could set up its own Dreamatorium using the innovative skills already within your staff. Topics discussed in this episode: 00:01:45 - The history of getting people to connect with new technologies like (3D Printers) at the Dreamatorium 00:03:30 - The problem with innovation labs where the only people who are allowed to touch the machines are the cleaners 00:04:45 - The only investment required to run a Dreamatorium session i

In today's episode of the Idea to Value Podcast, we speak with Founder and CEO of SomethingNew, a company which is revolutionising the recruitment industry and which has recently won their fourth consecutive American Business Awards for innovation. See the full episode at https://wp.me/p6pllj-1nx  We talk about why the recruitment industry was in such need of innovation, and the benefits of everyone in a team working towards a common corporate purpose Topics discussed in the episode: 00:01:30 - The history of SomethingNew and how it got started 00:02:45 - The problem facing the recruitment industry 00:05:30 - How their company won awards for innovation in the recruitment industry by using a "Moneyball" method 00:08:30 - Innovation needs to be linked to delivery of real value 00:09:45 - Why it's important for a company to have a purpose, a reason for existing 00:10:30 - The positive impact of being in the right job, and the problems caused by being in the wrong job 00:12:45 - How to get staff aligned with a c

Many people are scared of doing things which they used to love, but stopped doing when things got in the way. They are worried that they won't be as good as they used to be, that it will be harder than it used to be, that their performance won't be good anymore, that it will make them feel bad, or even worse, embarrass themselves in front of others (especially those who are already better than them). Here, I tell my embarrassing story about when this most recently happened to me (when I was hit in the face by a volleyball). And then I share my advice on how to overcome this fear of restarting something, in order to continue developing your creativity. Original article and in-depth advice: https://www.ideatovalue.com/crea/nickskillicorn/2019/02/what-getting-hit-in-the-face-by-a-volleyball-taught-me-about-creativity/ Bonus: This episode was made possible by our premium innovation and creativity training. Take your innovation and creativity capabilities to the next level by investing in yourself now, at https:/

Samsung just announced the Galaxy Fold, their first phone with a folding screen coming on April 26th 2019. And yes, it is full of cutting edge technology. Prices will start at $1980, but more powerful models will be much more than $2000. The most expensive iPhone right now is about $1449 and prices are rising.

More and more research shows that people spend most of their working lives being unproductive. According to a survey of 1,989 workers in the UK, less than 3 hours per day was the amount of time that workers were actually productive. To find out more about the research and how some companies are trying to be more productive, check out the full article here: https://www.ideatovalue.com/lead/nickskillicorn/2019/02/this-is-how-unproductive-most-people-are/  Bonus: This episode was made possible by our premium innovation and creativity training. Take your innovation and creativity capabilities to the next level by investing in yourself now, at https://www.ideatovalue.com/  * Subscribe on iTunes to the Idea to Value Podcast: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/idea-to-value-creativity-innovation/id1199964981?mt=2  * Subscribe on Stitcher to the Idea to Value Podcast: http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=129437&refid=stpr  * Subscribe on Google Play to the Idea to Value Podcast: https://playmusic.app.goo.gl/?ibi=c

Have you ever struggled to come up with an idea while you were at your desk? Then later on getting an amazing idea when you were doing something relaxing? It is something that happens to millions of people every day. Check out the video above to find out why. But why does it happen? There are two types of creativity which the brain cycles through: Convergent thinking: Where the brain has to improve and refine ideas through a series of small conscious steps Divergent thinking: Where the brain forms random connections between pieces of existing knowledge to come up with highly original new ideas For more insights on the science and research sources on why this happens, check out the original article here: https://www.ideatovalue.com/crea/nickskillicorn/2019/02/why-do-you-get-your-best-ideas-in-the-shower/ Bonus: This episode was made possible by our premium innovation and creativity training. Take your innovation and creativity capabilities to the next level by investing in yourself now, at https://www.ideat

On today's episode of the Idea to Value Podcast, I speak with innovation leader Scott Kirsner. For the full episode article, visit: https://www.ideatovalue.com/inno/nickskillicorn/2019/02/podcast-s2e30-scott-kirsner-turning-innovation-management-in-to-a-real-career-path/  Scott is the founder of Innovation leader, and today we talk about some of the research his company has found about how innovation works in large companies, and what innovation specialists do. Topics covered in today's episode: 03:00 - what innovation managers do after they leave their position in corporations, and how long they stay in their positions 06:00 - the pressure on innovation teams to produce outcomes and results 08:30 - the new research on the makeup of innovation portfolios and time spent on innovations in corporations (core, adjacent, transformational innovations) 10:45 - the traditional 70-20-10 split of innovation resources, and how this is different between industries 11:45 - does a slowdown in the economy shift focus to sh

See all the research sources as well as tips on how to improve brainstorming effectiveness in the full article here: https://www.ideatovalue.com/inno/nickskillicorn/2019/02/the-single-best-way-to-improve-your-brainstorming-sessions/  You may have seen the four basic rules of brainstorming, taken from Alex Osborn's Applied Imagination: The Four Rules of Brainstorming: Go for Quantity Withhold criticism Welcome wild ideas Combine and improve ideas These rules themselves are not bad. In fact, in the hands of an effective facilitator, they can be very productive. However, the issue lies with the way that brainstorming sessions are usually structured: as a group activity. Significant amounts of research have proven that individuals working alone will produce a larger quantity of ideas, which are also of a higher quality. As I outline in the episode here, the one thing you can do in order to quickly improve your brainstorming session performance is to give individuals time to write down their ideas first, befor

In today's episode of the Idea to Value Podcast, we speak with Daniel Lock. See the full episode at: https://www.ideatovalue.com/podc/nickskillicorn/2019/02/podcast-s2e29-daniel-lock-how-to-effectively-run-change-management-programs/  Daniel is a Change Management expert from Sydney, and we speak about what it takes for an organisation to effectively implement large-scale change programs. Topics covered in today's episode: [02:30] - Getting involved in the Change Management Institute [03:30] - What is Change Management: Implementing the People side of Change [05:30] - Why there is often resistance to change [07:15] - The impact of not doing Change Management properly [08:30] - How to deal with roadblocks to change [11:30] - How to lead change in large workshop groups of 30+ people [13:30] - Why people fear change: They feel a loss of control and decisions are made without them Links from Today's Episode: Daniel Lock's website: https://daniellock.com/  Daniel Lock's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/da

In this short episode, I outline my simple daily strategy (backed by science) on how I use a vending machine to become more creative. See the full article, including the video, with more examples and the source research by Dr. Simone Ritter, at https://www.ideatovalue.com/crea/nickskillicorn/2019/02/how-to-use-a-vending-machine-to-improve-your-creativity-instantly/  Bonus: This episode was made possible by our premium innovation and creativity training. Take your innovation and creativity capabilities to the next level by investing in yourself now, at https://www.ideatovalue.com/  * Subscribe on iTunes to the Idea to Value Podcast: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/idea-to-value-creativity-innovation/id1199964981?mt=2  * Subscribe on Stitcher to the Idea to Value Podcast: http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=129437&refid=stpr  * Subscribe on Google Play to the Idea to Value Podcast: https://playmusic.app.goo.gl/?ibi=com.google.PlayMusic&isi=691797987&ius=googleplaymusic&apn=com.google.android.

Innovation theatre refers to any innovation work which is done to show people that innovation is happening, but which doesn't result in a tangible outcome. This is one of the reasons why approximately 96% of innovation attempts fail. Unfortunately, many companies won't even realise that they have this problem. In some cases though, they are very aware of it, and consider the activity good for marketing and branding, even if they know it will not produce any results. To learn about how to prevent Innovation Theatre from ruining your chances of success, read the full blog article on the subject here: https://www.ideatovalue.com/inno/nickskillicorn/2019/02/is-your-company-just-performing-innovation-theatre/  Bonus: This episode was made possible by our premium innovation and creativity training. Take your innovation and creativity capabilities to the next level by investing in yourself now, at https://www.ideatovalue.com/  * Subscribe on iTunes to the Idea to Value Podcast: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/