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Deliverables in Professional Service Businesses - Part 1
While in traditional contract work (outsourced labour) we talk about tangible deliverables, that is, number of labouring hours, number of lbs or pages of reports or workbooks, number of Mbytes of files, etc., in consulting most of the deliverables...
Innovation Management – Famous Failures!
However, commercial success is not the only measure of success. One other method of gauging success is the effect on culture and the market – is it significant or not? Examples include:
Creativity can be defined as problem...
Innovation Management – radical innovation
One of the common concepts in innovation is the idea of radical creativity. That innovation is only truly innovative if it is radical. But how do we define radical?
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation...
Mirror Reality thru Full Color Rush Postcards
Nothing compares to seeing and feeling reality in front of you.
The sight can be enchanting and moving. You can be moved by the
sight or flabbergasted by its beauty. Feel it, sense it, there
is no way you can seize it other than having it that...
The Steps from Product Idea to Product Success
Michelangelo once said that his statue of David was embedded in the block of marble and he merely chipped away the edges to reveal it. Is your product idea inside your mind just waiting to come alive? Or, is your product already formed and you...
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Lessons From Inspirational Businesses In Rural Australia
I've just been reading "Good Enough Never Is" an inspirational
new book about rural business success.
Written by Peter Kenyon, it comprises 20 case studies of
ordinary rural people who dared to be different and have become
out-of-the-ordinary rural entrepreneurs. The author examines the
attitudes, behaviours and skills that set them apart from most
business operators in rural and outback Australia.
Not only is this book an inspiring and entertaining read, it is
a tool for self-analysis of yourself, your business and your
local community. Not just for rural dwellers either. There is
much that city folk can learn from the amazingly resourceful
people in our regional areas.
Let me give you a glimpse of the contents.
Elvis Parsley My favourite is the story about a fruit and
vegetable store in the small town of Woodford 60 kilometres
north of Brisbane. Like many greengrocers it was losing business
to the big supermarkets and owner Nick Comino realised he had to
do something big and bold.
And that he did, combining his passions for fresh food, fun
and....Elvis Pressley to recreate his store as Grapeland.
In 1994 Nick decked out his store with his extensive range of
Elvis memorabilia, changed his name by deed poll to Elvis
Parsley and "... opted for the looks, the voice, the jumpsuits
and the moves of the King...He gyrates, swivels his hips, bends
the knee and croons into the mike (banana!) with the same
brooding intensity as the King."
Has it worked? Nick has become an icon, recognised for his
innovation and his fantastic contribution to tourism and
business life in his region. To quote again from this wonderful
story:
"Ever since the transformation of the business the joint's been
jumping. Take a jailhouse rockmelon, add some suspicious limes,
love me tender tomatoes, blue swede shoes, and artichoke hotel,
and you're making music at Elvis Parsley's. Nobody has given
Nick the raspberry and the cash register's been raisin hell."
Jah Roc Then there is the story of Jah Roc. Gary Bennett and
David Paris shared a love of surfing and a love of wood. They
developed a business making creative furniture pieces from old
bits of jarrah salvaged from business sites and moved into a
workshop and showroom on a major Perth suburban road. Then in
1993 they made a bold move, many people said a crazy move, and
purchased an old derelict flour mill in the small Wheatbelt town
of York for their workshops and showroom. As Gary puts it,
overnight they went from 70,000 people a day passing who didn't
have the time to stop, to
York with a total population of 3,000.
Today, Jah Roc is a multi-award winning business, attracts
50,000 visitors a year and now has a second gallery in Margaret
River, co-incidentally very close to some top surfing spots!
Jah Roc has had many decisive moments over the years and these
are analysed in this compelling case study. Perhaps the most
important was when they stopped making kitchen cabinets, at the
time 80% of their business, and focussed on their passion - fine
furniture. Their vision statement is 'to create objects of
desire that withstand the passage of time.'
The Bush Hilton The third and final 'taster' I have for you from
this remarkable book is about an amazing couple Jane and Ross
Fargher. Faced with an uncertain future on their fourth
generation pastoral property, they bought their 'local', a run
down pub in the small town of Parachilna 470 kilometres north of
Adelaide in South Australia's Flinders Ranges. Today the Prairie
Hotel is the most awarded outback hotel in Australia and a
national tourism icon. All the more remarkable when you realise
that Parachilna had an official population of 7!
Today the hotel's accommodation, 'feral food' cuisine and
hospitality are famous. They have blended excellent food,
quality and comfort with old fashioned outback hospitality. In
doing so they have turned perceived disadvantages, such as
isolation, into advantages. As an example here is an extract
from Jane's welcome note to guests:
"Welcome to the remote bush Hilton. We offer more stars than any
swanky city hotel. Shake off your conventional city values and
indulge yourself in the relaxed style that the Prairie has
become so renowned for..."
"We apologise for the lack of TV and phones in the rooms, but
it's a Prairie tactic to flush you out of your rooms to soak up
the environment. A setting sun is worth more than the evening
news! And guess what? The paper is delivered at 7.00am anyway..."
'Good Enough Never Is' and Peter's earlier book, the excellent
'Kit For Small Town Renewal' can be ordered via the Resources
section at www.terrifictrading.com. Look under 'Marketing'.
The author, Peter Kenyon, is a true enthusiast who makes things
happen at the community level throughout Australia, New Zealand
and another 30 countries. I recently heard him present a 'Good
Enough Never Is' session based on the case studies in this book.
It was energising and inspirational. I thoroughly recommend
Peter as a speaker and change agent. He can be contacted at
pk@bankofideas.com.au.
About the author:
None
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| DTI - Welcome to the DTI's Innovation Home Page |
| The DTI is working to stimulate a significant increase in innovation throughout ... It covers Living Innovation, web streaming of a series of high profile ... |
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| Innovation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
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| en.wikipedia.org |
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| National Innovation Website |
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| www.innovation.gov.au |
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| Innovation, creativity and brainstorming resources from ... |
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| www.innovationtools.com |
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| Innovation Weblog - Trends, resources, viewpoints from Chuck Frey ... |
| The Innovation Weblog - Valuable trends, resources and viewpoints in innovation, creativity and brainstorming from Chuck Frey at InnovationTools. |
| www.innovationtools.com |
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| CORDIS: Innovation Portal: Home |
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| cordis.europa.eu |
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| CORDIS: Promotion of Innovation: Home |
| This programme stands at the cross-roads of the Community's policies on Research, Innovation and SMEs. |
| cordis.europa.eu |
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| Innovation Network... leveraging innovation, creativity and ... |
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| www.thinksmart.com |
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| If your in need of great Online Gaming material, we carry up to the minute news and reviews for all of your favorite games and gaming systems. |
| www.businessweek.com |
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| Innovation - Life, Inspired | PBS |
| Learn about fascinating innovations, explore interactive features, submit questions to our experts, investigate resources and lesson plans, and more. |
| www.pbs.org |
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| Innovation.org - Welcome |
| Impact of Innovation Saving & Improving Lives Controlling Healthcare Costs Strengthening ... Future of Innovation New Medicines in Development Next Wave of ... |
| www.innovation.org |
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| Innovation: See what people are saying right now on Technorati |
| See all blog posts tagged with innovation on Technorati. |
| www.technorati.com |
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| Innovation Relay Centres - The World Largest Network for ... |
| Innovation Relay Centres giving advice on Innovation, Technology Transfer and Exploitation. Major European source for innovative technologies or new ... |
| irc.cordis.lu |
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| The Tech Museum of Innovation | Welcome |
| The Tech Museum of Innovation - Welcome! The Tech Museum inspires and educates the innovators of the future. |
| www.thetech.org |
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| Pages tagged with "innovation" on del.icio.us |
| CoDev 2007 - Co-Development for Business Growth: Open Innovation and Alternatives ... PDMA & IIR's 5th Annual Front End of Innovation ... |
| del.icio.us |
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| innovation |
| Publication highlighting the research activities of NUS. The site provides snippets of selected articles online, and provides a subscription form online. |
| www.innovationmagazine.com |
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| Canadian Innovation Centre |
| Services includes invention evaluation, technology due diligence, market research, and education programs. |
| www.innovationcentre.ca |
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| London INNOVATION :: Home |
| Maximise your business potential through innovation. Learn the secrets of successful business innovation in London. |
| www.london-innovation.org.uk |
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| Eric Von Hippel's Homepage |
| Downloadable Books. Democratizing Innovation (2005) ... The Sources of Innovation (1988). Free download of the complete book. Permission granted by Oxford ... |
| web.mit.edu |
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| Intel Innovation in Education |
| www.intel.com/education/ - 3k - Cached - Similar pages |
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