A missile strike? Well, that sounds a bit aggressive, doesn’t it? But consider the two targeting steps you’d take in the military, before firing those missiles: 1) survey all possible enemy positions, and then 2) isolate the high-value targets. You should do the same in the front-end of innovation, before the development stage: “Step 1” ... Read More
The “consumption job” may be the most important concept that you’ve never heard of. Consider this. We are all unique, or we think we are, with this problem: our products are becoming more and more like commodities. You know, gasoline, steel, topsoil. Our superior product dreams are trampled under the heavy feet of commoditization. Wouldn’t ... Read More
We call our bosses “leaders” out of respect for their organizational position. But do they drive B2B organic growth? How many would pass this one-question pop quiz: What is the foremost duty of a business leader? What’s your answer? I believe the correct answer is: Leave your business stronger than you found it. Some might ... Read More
How critical is it to target customer needs? Imagine three situations where you might face the question of a bigger payload vs. a better targeting system: missiles, cancer treatment and gold mining. A bigger payload would be a larger warhead, radiation dosage and backhoe shovel. Better targeting would be more precise hits on enemy positions, ... Read More
Everyone wants to use metrics to monitor their innovation. That's fine… but unless you’re using “intermediate” metrics, you could be missing 3 qualities of a good metric: 1) predictive, 2) insightful, and 3) actionable. Consider these 12 intermediate metrics for your business. ... Read More
Most B2B companies struggle with organic growth because they don't rationally deal with these 5 harsh realities. This article compares the futility of “penny pinching” in the front end of innovation… to the way DuPont invested in New Product Blueprinting training. ... Read More
Are you a business Builder… passionate about organic growth? Or just an Interior Decorator... Realtor… or Landlord? When you work on your “growth machine,” are you concerned with what is going into the feed hopper… or are you just paying attention to what’s coming out the extruder die (financial results)? ... Read More