Do you recall the opening scene of the 2017 Superbowl when flying drones circled like stars over Lady Gaga’s head? If you missed the beginning go online and check out the video. Bill Mitchell and I termed these things “liberated pixels” back in 2008 at the MIT Media Lab. The concept is simple: imagine any point of light … Continue reading Liberated Pixels Take Flight
It seems almost surreal that the Edison Awards were initially introduced nearly three decades ago. But, as its founding father, I have as “proof devices” many fond memories from the association and a receding hairline. Over the past three decades of Edison Awards, the currents of time have given us significant and remarkable shifts in … Continue reading How Marketing Technology Devoured Our Culture
David Foster Wallace has this haunting line in his profound 2005 commencement speech, “This is Water.” He talks about “day in, day out.” He was addressing graduating seniors from Kenyon College and his reference of day in, day out refers to how adult life turns from spontaneity into going through the motions. When I heard the line, … Continue reading EMBED: The Company Force-Field that Impedes Innovation
Getting young women and men to develop their innate capacity to be innovative has been at the center of what I aim to accomplish. I did this as dean of undergraduate engineering at Northwestern University for over the past quarter century, and I am still doing it as Co-Director of the Master of Product Design … Continue reading Are You Driving Innovation Home Like A Champion?
On a business trip to the US, Honda’s CEO found fumbling for change at tollgates a problem, even an irritation when the cars behind impatiently started honking their horns. Coin trays in cars today are taken for granted, but Honda was the first, due to their CEO’s smart observation of an important, but undetected, problem … Continue reading Creativity and Product Innovation
Do you recall the 1994 book entitled Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras? In this book the authors asked: “What makes the truly exceptional companies different from the comparison companies and what were the common practices these enduringly great companies followed throughout their history?” One of their … Continue reading What makes the truly exceptional companies different ?
There is no such thing as a Smart City on Planet Earth. Ok – I said it. I’m a Chief Innovation Officer trying to build one, just like hundreds of my colleagues in government, industry, academia and the non-profit / think tank world. But as far advanced as Kansas City, Missouri is, we’re not there … Continue reading Do Smart Cities Really Exist?
It was my privilege to serve for over 30 years the customers, employees, and shareholders of one of the most respected Fortune 50 brands in the world, Caterpillar Inc. That association provided my family and me opportunities to live in Asia, Europe, and North America and … Continue reading What is the Foundation of Innovation?
I’ve been reflecting on process, creativity, and innovation. It’s a subject that is of great interest to me and to my graduate students at Northwestern University, where I am a professor and direct a program dedicated to graduate work in product design and development management. I don’t reflect on the subject necessarily from an academic … Continue reading Process, Creativity and Innovation – How do you fill the market white space?
