futurethink

Scott Laningham, Producer and Host of IBM's developerWorks podcast show, interviewed futurethink CEO Lisa Bodell at SXSWi this past weekend.

Like many of you, I’m preparing for my annual trip to Austin for SXSW. In addition to delivering a session on my forthcoming book, Kill the Company, this year’s conference is packed with innovative topics from the nation’s most future-thinking minds. After evaluating the 2012 schedule of events, we’ve created this guide of 10 must-see panels for innovators. See you in Texas!

1. The ‘Accidental Creative’ Book Reading Friday, March 9^th, 4PM – 4:20PM, Presenter: Todd Henry

Similar to the concept of little BIGS in Kill the Company, author Todd Henry advocates making small changes in a few key areas to increase opportunities of generating brilliant ideas. By addressing the dynamics (and assassins) of workplace creativity, and the five key practices for creatives, this session offers a new formula for maintaining creativity in life and work. #sxsw #creative

The annual SXSW conference in Austin, Texas brings together the most innovative minds in music, film, and the Web. In the 24 years since its inception, SXSW has evolved from a weekend concert in March to a 10-day power party of networking, talent scouting, and think-tanking for the Next Big Thing. The conference is credited with launching everything from Twitter and Foursquare to John Mayer’s career. This year’s SXSW Interactive Book Reading program—past authors include Malcolm Gladwell—features futurethink’s own CEO, Lisa Bodell, who will speak from her forthcoming book, Kill the Company.

During her session, Lisa will present a call to arms on how we think and work. Instead of forcing more one-size-fits-all initiatives upon employees, she provides tips on how to change everyday things in small ways. These Little BIGS create large-scale ripple effects throughout the organization to reignite critical aptitudes like inquiry, curiosity, and innovation. Catch Lisa’s session at 12:30pm on Mon., March 12 in Ballroom G.

At futurethink, we are passionate about the concepts and trends that will shape the next generation of businesses.

In a fascinating case study, our CEO Lisa Bodell, has identified how corporate culture will play a transformative role in tomorrow’s organizations. Lisa is currently in the running to present this topic at the annual SXSW conference, which brings together the most innovative minds in music, film, and the Web. A vote from you can make it happen!

Little Bigs: How Small Changes Ignite Innovation

To remain relevant in turbulent times, companies must build and sustain positive corporate culture. Often, we respond to unpredictability by implementing processes that can trump culture. In fact, the same mechanisms meant to promote productivity can rob us of the ability and time to be creative and add value.

This experiential case-study session is a call to arms: it’s time to hit the reset button on how we think and work. Instead of forcing one-size-fits-all initiatives upon employees, learn how small adjustments to everyday things can create big ripple effects. Discover how one prominent organization created a new breed of employee that helped reset the corporate culture, not from the top down or bottom up, but from the middle out. Master the small steps needed to shake up standard practices—from unproductive meetings to ineffective strategy sessions—and bring about big breakthroughs in innovation.

Find the little-bigs that will reinvent your organization—and awaken your ability to think, and ultimately, take control of the future.

Session Questions

1. Given the thousands of strategy books available, why aren't more businesses reaching their potential?
2. Why do large cultural-change initiatives often fail?
3. How can organizations reignite critical skills such as inquiry, curiosity, creative problem solving, storytelling, independence, etc.?
4. What little things can we change to create big ripples in our organization's culture?
5. What practical tools for positive culture change can we implement immediately?

Vote now to bring futurethink to Austin in 2012!

A solid foundation is the key to any great structure, program, or process, including innovation. The front end of an innovation process is comprised of visualization and communication, brainstorming and thinking through the implications of your innovation, and looking outside your organization or network for inspiration.

Every year inspirational leaders, influential minds, and noteworthy entrepreneurs come together at the Front End of Innovation (FEI) Conference to share ideas and learn from one another, in the hopes that they can reach out of their comfort zones to ignite innovation. Now in its 9^th year, the team at FEI has once again reinvented the conference’s format to better meet the needs of its participants.

This year’s conference is organized around the outcomes and experiences attendees seek to achieve. The conference will begin with several keynote addresses based around innovation themes. Attendees are then offered a choice of four “Value Rooms” each touting its own focus. The intention is that participants will choose the focus that best suits their organization’s innovation needs.  From there, each “Value Room” is subdivided into eight “Learning Formats” - further personalizing the conference experience.