Snow, An "Idea" Opportunity for the UK & Ireland ("SID" Initiative)

The UK and Ireland are caught in a web of snow, cold weather, and lack of preparation. Let’s face it this kind of snow is not supposed to happen and the UK/Ireland are simply not prepared to deal with the kind of snow that Chicago and Buffalo routinely get — and handle. Not enough salt, not enough trucks, not enough knowledge of how to cope are the culprits. Government officials and corporations should learn from this awful experience, but for now, 45% of the countries workers are at home sitting on their hands. Most of them would really prefer to be working.

The loss of productivity is massive and will put a dent in the fragile recovery — if action isn’t taken.

Here’s the idea: In every snow cloud there is a silver lining, maybe a gold lining.  Here’s the gold for the UK and Ireland: when people have time on their hands the one thing they can do, anywhere, is think.  They can come up with ideas.  In the next few days, millions of ideas to improve productivity, service, and develop new products could be generated by British and Irish workers. Let’s call this effort SID (Snow emergency IDea generation).

CEO’s and Managers should take a look at the big problems on their plate and assign their workers the task of coming up with ideas to solve them. Lots of ideas.

Don’t put  out a call for ideas for just anything. Make a specific request for your SID, send it via email, or set up a phone chain, and get the message out to workers they should come back to work with 50 ideas written down to solve a problem.  Designate someone as creator and keeper of an idea database (could be as simple as Word document). They could also rent or lease usage of an idea management system like Imaginatik (and please tell them Gregg Fraley sent you…).  This would allow workers to post their ideas where everyone can see them and the ideas would be automatically data-based. Or use a legal pad.  The point is, get people going on generating ideas to solve problems and exploit opportunities.

Acting right now on this idea could make all the difference in 2010 results.

It’s a simple idea, this idea generation during the storm SID thing. And there is no reason at all why it couldn’t work. Imagine a year from now introducing a new product based on an idea from a line worker.  Imagine a year from now a 20% improvement in customer satisfaction.  Imagine six months from now an increase in earnings based on better sales strategy ideas. Imagine a whole new service you can offer your customers…

What’s your SID challenge? Make it specific, such as “In what ways might Acme Corp. address the challenge of tougher competition in its circuit board product line?” — give people a question that asks for ideas.  Use that phrase “In What Ways Might We…” to start your question.

Give them a specific goal in terms of the number of ideas.  If you think 10 is a stretch, ask for 15.  If you think 20 would be great, ask for 30.  Quantity will get you quality.

Get the word out now.  You’ve got nothing to lose. Take Action Now.

Promise to do something with the ideas, and promise to report back by a certain date, like say, March 1. Then do it!

Put the best ideas into action as soon as possible.

Track results.

Okay UK and Ireland,  don’t just sit on your hands watching the snow fall.  Get out a pencil, a pad, a laptop, and crank out some ideas.  If your boss isn’t into this idea, crank them out anyway. You’ve got nothing to lose, be proactive.  Heck you could even do a SID just for yourself.

Let’s turn this snow to gold.

    8 responses to “Snow, An "Idea" Opportunity for the UK & Ireland ("SID" Initiative)”

    1. Reeta Luthra says:

      This post reminds me of a company I worked for once. Every morning we were obliged to get into our teams and brainstorm the jobs we were doing, why we were doing them and how we could change them to be better.

      Everyone from the humblest position to the most senior was expected to contribute and be listened to.

      These meeting were a maximum of 10-15 minutes but they were compulsory every morning. It started nervously as people got used to actually having their thoughts and ideas heard!

      But in just three months the entire department had been transformed into a slick, HAPPY, efficient organisation.

      The best ideas come from the people doing the job and I love that your post picks up on this.

      • GREGG FRALEY says:

        It’s a cultural shift that needs to happen, that is, that workers are obliged to provide ideas. It’s not extra, it’s part of your job. The good news is it makes work a lot more interesting. Thanks so much for your insightful comment.

    2. Michel LECOQ says:

      If all what you read and hear is about the climate warming, why would you think about snow.

      Just wait….

      I am 70
      When I was at school we had a lot of snow and the rods were sanded for the cars and trucks (lorries)
      We walked to school in summer and winter.
      My father tought me to drive a car on snow and ice, what I do today.
      There is no difficulties to use a car on snow, just be careful and start early.

      But some days there is 2 meter snow on the road and you have to wait the army to clean it.
      You have then plenty of time to work on your computer at home and to chat with Gregg 🙂

      • GREGG FRALEY says:

        It’s different in the UK because they are used to mild weather. Car tires here perform very poorly even in minimal snow. And people have got out of the habit of longs walks. With a bit of better planning, and a few tools like tire belts, this would be no big deal. However, it is a big deal when you are unprepared. I’m just trying to suggest a way for people to be productive in spite of this turn of events…thanks for your comment Michel.

    3. Reeta Luthra says:

      Hi Gregg – regarding your comment on twitter about good ideas being ignored.

      Do you think it’s not so much that they’re being ignored, but that it takes personal effort to assume the responsibility of making a change?

      Also, perhaps the cultural shift you mentioned in your comment above needs to be instigated and encouraged by those in an influential position.

      I’d imagine it could get quite demoralising for the normal Joe Blog to see his ideas fall into a bottomless black hole caused by managerial apathy.

      Just a couple of thoughts that needed more than 140 characters 🙂

    4. Mark Abrahams says:

      Great stuff – how do we get the word out to the greater audience? People are gripped by panic mode and need brain re-tuning – SIDs would at least kick off that particular action plan.
      As for me, I’ve definitely done my individual SID…and all CPS comes down to individual people-power, combined or as a one-off.
      Cheers

      • GREGG FRALEY says:

        Good question, I’ve sent it to The Independent, but no response as of yet. Does anyone have personal contacts with traditional UK media people? Thanks for your comment Mark.

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