There are many definitions of innovation but, as always, business is ultimately about making sales.  So, let’s get to the point.  To be successful on a continuous basis, you need new ideas; one’s that can be commercialized.  What does that mean?  Your idea is relevant to your current or next-great customer group, and that you have the means to bring it to market in a timely and profitable manner.

Where do the ideas come from? (more…)

At a recent keynote address, I found myself asking attendees if they noticed the one thing that all of the athletes at the winter Olympics had in common, “ A coach.”

It is amazing how many growing companies do not have a support system (formal or informal) in place to support the founders, owners and C-suite. Why is it that we expect ourselves to have all of the answers when world leaders in performance (athletes and businesspeople) regularly have advisors to turn to in the form of individual coaches or formalized boards of advisors or directors.
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The conflict between time and time to think always brings us to the eternal balancing act in business … balancing the short and long-term needs of the organization.

At Spyder Works, whether it’s working one-to-one to solve a client’s immediate problem or making enough time to write a book, the process we use is geared to achieving a balance that meets the immediate demands of running the day-to-day business and the need to work towards our longer-term plans.

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