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Category: Behavioral Economics, Innovation
Companies want innovation but do everything to stop it from happening. This paradox is one that puzzles everyone. We desire it so much for us and admire companies that are innovative, but our actions do the exact opposite. Why is that so? Behavioral Economist Richard Thaler gives some clues in his new book Misbehaving through …
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Category: Innovation, Intrapreneurship, R&D
Europe’s success with innovation has paled in comparison to what the Silicon Valley or even Asia is churning out. A recent Washington Post article states in the headline (and with many facts) that Europe’s innovation deficit isn’t disappearing any time soon. According to an annual report on Internet trends from Kleiner Perkins partner Mary Meeker, …
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Category: Culture, Intrapreneurship
Implementing a lasting intrapreneurship program requires more than just the opening of an R&D lab or labeling something as skunkwork project. Like you need a village to raise a child, companies need the whole organization to raise intrapreneurs. To accomplish this, a multi-tiered approach is required. The 5 Intrapreneurship Tiers Intrapreneurship sits on 4 tiers …
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Category: Intrapreneurship
Intrapreneurs are like an immune system for companies. They detect disruptions and innovations coming from outside that could endanger the organization and react to it. They make companies more resilient. An intrapreneur is a person within a corporation who takes or is given the freedom and resources to initiate projects, business ventures, and more. They …
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Category: Culture, Design, Self-driving
Is design important for innovation, and if not always, when is it not? A conversation about me spotting the Google self-driving mini-car for the first time in the wild lead to discussion about the right priorities and the importance of design for innovation. Worst car design ever … This was the gut reaction of one …
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Category: Self-driving
Today, I saw the future happening right now. There has been so much talk about the risks and dangers of autonomous cars, mostly from people who have never seen one live, but have an opinion. And then I drive down in Mountain View / Palo Alto along the San Antonio Road and right there is …
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Category: Culture
Jul 25
When I came to the Silicon Valley in 2001, I was this over-confident PhD from Austria, having worked in Germany, and just not having an all too positive view on the knowledge of my US colleagues. I was dismissive, negative, and just not receptive of input.Honestly, what can they teach me? Until one colleague just …
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Category: Automotive, Self-driving
This is a question that was asked some time ago on Quora and I gave the following answer: Why is Google’s self-driving cars project important? There are so many reasons. Here are some that I get just on top of my head: Saving lifes (and costs) Over 90% of all car accidents are due to …
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Imagine you spent quite some time on designing and crafting a lamp and want to sell it, but you don’t know how much you should charge. You decide to hire a market expert. The market expert tells you that you can get $1,000 for this lamp and if you want him to sell it for …
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Category: Automotive, Self-driving
When you live in Mountain View, Google’s self-driving cars are a common view. The white Lexus SUVs with ever changing sensors sticking out on both sides and a LIDAR-system – either a rotating “pot” or most recently a glass-covered half-dome – on the roof, keep roaming the city to gather experience in different traffic situations. …
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