How To Nurture Your Company's Rebels, And Unlock Their Innovative Might

"Choose your enemies carefully, 'cause they will define you Make them interesting 'cause in some ways they will mind you They're not there in the beginning but when your story ends Gonna last with you longer than your friends. -- U2, "Cedars of Lebanon"

We know that opposition is an integral part of the creative process. But sometimes opposition itself can be a creative act. Beyond common tactics it can manifest itself as craftsmanship and art--whether it be street art by Shepard Fairey or satire like these recent Mitt Romney campaign spoofs Venn diagrams.

Case studies ranging from Occupy Wall Street to neighborhood activism in Port-au-Prince illustrate that a combination of social technology and street-level ingenuity is producing new tools, techniques, practices, and skills for vocalizing opposition. And these in turn drive boycotts, counter-movements, and insurgencies, as well as opposition at a more mundane level, in day-to-day interactions.

Companies are beginning to realize that opposition is vital and a certain amount of conflict healthy. Some have even launched internal disruption units that can drive radical innovation from left field (e.g., Anheuser-Busch's Beer Garage or Google X). As an alternative, companies may also bring in agencies and consultancies--hired opposition--with the mandate to disrupt conventional thinking and overcome groupthink and organizational myopia. The caveat here is that these outside interventions can lead to changes that fail to become a part of a company's cultural fabric for the long term.

Read on for more...

All The Website's A Stage

And all the men and women merely visitors. Or are they?

There's a reason why I've chosen to open with a word play on Shakespeare. If you've followed the history of theatre and the stage, much of the changes have been driven by the form of entertainment, the need of the audience and the technical capabilities across the ages. The history of the stage can be traced back to ancient Greece with its central space in round amphitheaters that hosted tragic dramas and also to the Roman Colosseum for war enactments and gladiator shows.

With the advent of Elizabethan theatre and the most famous Globe playhouse came stages that were propped up against a wall towards one half of a round theatre, supposedly to enable different levels of view­ing com­fort and also to provide actors an easy entry on to the stage from the preparatory space. And in the modern theatre we find the shape to be nearly semi-circular, the stage floor and walls vividly equipped with experience enhancing technology.

Now with that slightly long historical introduction out of the way, let's jump directly into the thick of things. Consider your website as a modern day business Colosseum, catering to the will of its audience. Is your audience merely a visitor? Do you know what they want to see and do you provide it? What makes a website successful and how do you measure your success?

Create Content that Effectively Crosses Cultural and Linguistic Borders

Strategy Killers: Positive Thinking Over Critical Thinking

"The essence of Strategy is choosing what not to do" (emphasis my own)

Yet, if your experience has been anything like mine, some worrying signs mark most "strategies" that I read. One, they lack any sign that the authors made any choice whatsoever. I've written about this previously in a post about Kitchen Sink strategies.

Secondly, they are brimful of positive, life-affirming blue-sky objectives versus solid coherent strategic direction.

Do any of these "strategies" sound familiar?

"We want to become the leader in hyper-personalized delivery of relevant content for today's connected 18-year old male"

"We'll deliver enhanced stakeholder, employee and shareholder value by a committed focus on retail growth"

"We aim to increase volume share by 4% in all sectors we compete in"

The issue is that they aren't really strategies.

They are a wonderfully positive articulation of the future. They are a list of hopes, dreams and desires - not an action plan for actually achieving those stated objectives.

Job Listings on Paul Writer

Watch this space for new job listings on Paulwriter.com every week for mid to senior level marketers. Or post a job here...

Marcom Manager - Drona Mobile - Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

Drona Mobile is a VC backed, product tech start-up, currently serving countless enterprise customers, including Wipro, Essar, Genpact, SBI, UltraTech.

They are looking for a performance-oriented all-around player who can manage relationships, define messages, plan events, produce content and engage online. An independent, accountable, team player, a leader with strong project management skills who knows how to make things happen will thrive in this role!

The Marcom Manager will lead all marketing communication activities including tradeshows, online events, online social activity, marketing material and PR with the objective of generating enterprise leads, improve the company's positioning in the market and support sales. 

Apply Now...