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"If companies want to innovate the way successful bold newcomers have, they have to unplug from the constraints of 'That's the way we've always done it' and recharge, starting with the mantra, 'Let's just not do that anymore.' They need to be willing to take market risks that more traditional companies are often unwilling or unable to take. Consider that Apple doesn't have a formal innovation 'funnel' process with established procedures, nor do Amazon or Facebook.
In this volatile world the old model of process innovation needs a new framework. It isn't in sync with the way our minds work, which brain research tells us is more serendipitous than linear. Innovation just doesn't lend itself to being predictable and risk free. Innovation demands looking at the world differently, and finding connections between seemingly disconnected things. Corporate protocol, management hierarchies, and rigid assumptions about customer needs often create anxiety and stifle freedom of thought and exploration."
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"Living in the digital media environment changes a whole lot more than the technologies through which we do business. It has changed our relationship to time—and this is having profound effects on our businesses, our economy, and our customers."
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"When people think like takers, they focus on getting as much as possible from others. When they operate like givers, on the other hand, their overarching emphasis is on contributing their knowledge and skills to benefit others."
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"The old, knee-jerk opposition between business and the environment is yesterday's way of thinking. Increasingly, top business leaders view nature as a foundational asset base and essential ally to their companies' productivity. If you want your company to thrive, you will need to be bold, think big, and be aggressive about pursuing business opportunities that work with the environment, not against it."
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"Customer Service is Not a Department
It's also not a complaint desk, or a website, or a phone number, or an option on a phone menu. Nor is it a task or a chore. It's the responsibility of everyone in the organization, from the CEO to the lowest-ranking front line employee. In effect, everyone in the company is a customer service rep, because each of them has some impact on the customer's experience.
As an executive, you may never see or speak to a customer, but you model how they should be treated with every interaction you have, with vendors, creditors, suppliers, and especially your employees. Treat everyone with sincerity and respect and it will trickle down to your customers."
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