Sometimes when looking at problems or searching for innovation, it is a handicap to have too much knowledge of the context of the problem. For example, if you give the problem of spanning a river to a bridge-builder, you will get a bridge as the solution. It might be a great-looking bridge and/or one with little
When firms are looking at automation (or AI) to find other ways of changing and improving what they do), the approach should always be to look at what you do now and how you do it. You can then automate an already-improved version of your processes and working methods. Those who don’t do this end
Most of us have been in a situation at work where rules have been enforced which are clearly stupid to anyone with common sense. If you doubt this, you need to read ‘Dilbert’ more. Do you want your employees to obey rules which, to them, are ridiculous …. or do you want them to challenge those
Occasionally we see an organisation that has pulled itself back from the brink of extinction. There are two main routes to such survival - one is to find a different product/service (product innovation) ; the other is to drastically change how you do things, reducing time/costs of production/delivery (process innovation). (Doing different things and doing things
Too many executive teams are focused on this quarter’s results - the results that will be pored over by stakeholders and analysts, eager for some sign of development, of improving fortunes, of higher profit potential. The problem is that this narrow, short-term view tends to drive out the longer-term thinking that true strategic planning needs.
The Zeigarnik effect describes the way unfinished tasks remain active in our mind, intruding into our thoughts and our sleep until they are dealt with, much like a hungry person will notice every restaurant and appetising smell on their way home and then lose all interest when they’ve had their dinner. You may have noticed
Many people - and especially pundits - are predicting significant productivity gains from the use of AI (Artificial Intelligence). However few will say exactly how this transformation will happen. My view is that gains will come in all sorts of places that we do not yet know about - as adopters realise just what AI can
Some people praise the potential of AI (Artificial Intelligence). Some are scared by it. Who is right? All of them. We know that all new technologies tend to be misused by unscrupulous and unprincipled actors. The nature of AI technology makes this potential very high. Yet, AI also does have great potential to assist us in
Lots of countries that expanded their productivity through the 1980s and 1990s have slowed to a crawl. Their 'growth engines' seem to have disappeared or been dismantled. COVID-19 may have been the final nail in the coffin (or the puncture in the tyre). Many of these companies are still trying to restart their engines -
I remember once walking past an office and the staff in there were obviously enjoying themselves. They were laughing - at what, I know not. My first thought was ‘How odd. Shouldn’t they be taking their work more seriously? We pay them to work, not to play. “ But, of course, first thoughts are quite often wrong thoughts. This