FireFly Facilitation » Collaboration http://www.fireflyfacilitation.com/blog The Whiteboard Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:42:58 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Operation FireFly: Nine Ways to Ignite Innovation Inside Your! Company… and Light Your Way out of the Recession http://www.fireflyfacilitation.com/blog/2009/12/operation-firefly-nine-ways-to-ignite-innovation-inside-your-company-and-light-your-way-out-of-the-recession/ http://www.fireflyfacilitation.com/blog/2009/12/operation-firefly-nine-ways-to-ignite-innovation-inside-your-company-and-light-your-way-out-of-the-recession/#comments Tue, 08 Dec 2009 20:41:55 +0000 Kimberly http://www.fireflyfacilitation.com/blog/?p=180 The recession is in full swing and companies everywhere are feeling the pain. Yours is likely no exception. Shrinking budgets, sweeping layoffs, and a smothering malaise that’s settled over your workforce make it hard to see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes, even the most optimistic leader finds him or herself wondering, Is there an end to this particular tunnel? Sure there is, but you’re going to have to excavate it yourself—and you’re going to have to light your own way.

Innovation is the only ticket out of this recession.  I’m not just talking about product development.  I’m talking about new services, business processes, means of communication, and methods of collaboration. Innovation is everyone’s job. It’s no longer the purview of R&D or marketing.  And it’s not one big initiative. It’s a lot of small changes and improvements that, together, make a big difference.

Ultimately, companies that can churn out innovative ideas—good, workable, innovative ideas—will be able to adapt to the new realities we face. Those that can’t, won’t.

The heart of innovation, of course, is people working together eagerly, intelligently, and productively. When this synergy happens, ideas pour forth like water from a newly tapped underground spring—or, as I like to say – fireflies showing up en masse at dusk.

I like to use the firefly metaphor—the image of children working together to catch these glowing creatures—to illustrate how successful teams use their individual talents collectively to focus on critical business challenges. (It fact, it’s the topic of my new book The Firefly Effect.)

So how can you deliberately create a more innovative culture—call it “Operation FireFly”— within your team or company?   Stay tuned – in the coming blogs, I will be sharing 9 targeted tips for lighting your way out of the recession.

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