Cities, Innovation, and the Future
Innovation is intimately linked with cities. This occurs for many reasons, many of which are entirely obvious. People congregate in cities, and through experiencing problems and sharing ideas for how…
Driven to Death by the Rate of Innovation
We recently had a fascinating meeting with a prominent venture capitalist based in Palo Alto, and during the course of our conversation about the pressures that his portfolio companies are…
Arrogance, Risk, and Resources (Or, How to Avoid Unpleasant Surprises)
There was recently a small article in The Economist highlighting the growth of Airbnb, the residential room-sharing service, that like Lyft and Uber, is disrupting a traditional industry. The short…
Innovation Around the World: Palau, China, Brazil & Kenya
Innovation is happening everywhere, and there's a lot to admire about some of the insights behind these excellent ideas: Palau: Sharks, Better Alive than Dead The southwestern Pacific nation of…
Sustaining Success and Coping with Fundamental Change
The acceleration of change and its impact on business and society is a theme that we touch on constantly here in this blog. This post covers four recent events that…
Warren Buffet’s Money Problems, and the Future of Energy
Warren Buffet has a money problem. It's not the sort of problem that an average person like you or I might have, but it is a problem nonetheless: He has…
A Great Learning Opportunity in London
Science, technology, and medicine are shaping our individual and collective futures. So are cities, and robots, and data analytics. So is your own creativity. These are vitally important themes that…
A Visionary’s Despair Creates Hope for a Better Future
While many of us admire the unconventional thoughts and unexpected ideas created by innovative and visionary members of society, and sometimes we envy their great intellect or deep insights, the…
The Decades Ahead: Planning Innovation through Insight and Foresight
As innovation practitioners, we pay a lot of attention to the way society is changing, as innovations are generally developed in pursuit of specific strategic objectives that will certainly be…
High Risk Innovation: Risked Big, Lost Bigger
Ron Johnson, the former head of Apple's magnificent and uber-profitable retail empire, left Apple to take over as CEO of JCPenney in late 2011. Johnson was brought in to transform…