8 Things Innovation Experts Ignore

There are things you just don't say in the Innovation field because they are not PC.

There are things you just don’t say in the Innovation field because they are not PC.

This is a deliberately provocative talk. You may find that it raises the level of debate about what, why, and how innovation is done. If you want to raise awareness, and have a bit of fun in the process, this is a perfect choice.

Many innovation experts and speakers avoid these topics — they are not politically correct. When they are mentioned they are couched in academic language or MBA-jargon. That’s why the original blog post this keynote is based upon exploded on the web — it states the obvious in a straight forward way. Privately, many experts communicated their agreement in spite of the controversy raised.

Innovation is complex and difficult, and it’s made more difficult by ignoring basic facts and prevalent mindsets. The unseen elephants in the room can corrupt an organizations best efforts to succeed with innovation. Opening the Pandora’s box might be just what’s needed to take your efforts to the next level.

This talk has a tough love edge, but for every curmudgeonly statement, Gregg Fraley provides a positive solution.

The Eight Things:

  1. Top Management doesn’t understand creativity
  2. Innovation in your title doesn’t mean you do innovation
  3. Best practices are stupid
  4. Everybody says they want a breakthrough idea, they don’t
  5. Risk aversion rules
  6. Everybody says they want big thinkers, they don’t
  7. Lip service is paid to “fun at work”
  8. Market research is usually a waste of money

This talk is edgy but laced with humour, hard facts, great stories, solutions, and fun. Not for the faint of heart, but if you want to raise awareness, face fears, and move your innovation efforts to the front burner, this is the keynote you need.