Shake up your Thinking with Dr Ken Hudson

Well almost!
I am amazed sometimes when I work in large companies how seriously management teams take their idea generation efforts. They earnestly discuss, argue, analyse and present piles and piles of information. It seems as though they are conducting a debate which might be more at home in Ancient Greek times but not in the 21st […]

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Just read about James Dyson who invented the revolutionary (and expensive) dyson vacuum cleaner. He is very proud of the fact that it took him over 5000 prototypes to get it right! Imagine the vision and dedication of the man.
There is a lesson in this for all would be inventors and innovators. You have to […]

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It is interesting that  recent three major consulting companies report on innovation in such a unified way. But they remain spectators seemingly watching a game they don’t seem to understand nor which to play. Innovation at its heart is about creating and testing ideas in any activity. It is not something isolated  from the business–it […]

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In my doctoral research one of my findings was that many people have different spaces for different types of thinking.     In their office or workstation managers tended to do the process type thinking eg emails, filing, etc. But for the more generative type thinking they often moved to a more comfortable place. It […]

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I met with a leader recently who had been given the newly created position of innovation and sustainability manager.   What a wonderful combination. I believe that this could be a trend that is followed by other organisations. What better area to apply new ideas and concepts than in the sustainability space.   What’s more […]

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In the Sydney Morning Herald yesterday Kristen Le Mesurier laments the lask of innovation by the Australian Government compared to their Japanese conterpoints. Perhaps with a change on government this will change. My suspicion will be that it will not. Innovation and creativity generally requires a diversity of perspectives which this new government does not […]

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My wife and I recently were invited to a top class restaurant in the city. As part of this experience we were also given the opportunity to go behind the scenes and see how the kitchen operates under the instruction of the leading chef.  
The kitchen is a wonderful metaphor for a creative business. There is […]

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One of the most redeeming features of the culture of Amazon according to its CEO Jeff Bezos is the fact that it values experimentation. He says ‘we are willing to plant seeds and wait a long time for them to turn into trees.’  His criteria for these seeds is that they have to be meaningful […]

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I just read a conversation with Gary Hamel and Lowell Bryon published in the latest McKinsey newsletter and they have both reached the same conclusion that i have reached–organisations are built for specialisation, certainty,analysis but not built for creativity or innovation. This has a number of implications because the need for innovation is greater than ever […]

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According to our survey on our web site, it is not surprising that most people consider the under 25’s to be the most creative age group. There is something about the fact that they might be more open and not scarred from the trials and tribulations of life.
My experience however, is that being creative is […]

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