Companies That Are Innovating for the Greater Good

The world is a different place than it was just a few weeks ago. Coronavirus has touched nearly every country on earth, and for most, has brought life and business to a screeching halt. Not surprisingly, this has created a perpetual state of uneasiness. People are tired. People are scared. And if you spend any time at all watching the news, it seems to be getting worse by the day. Sure, much of the spotlight remains on all the negative effects of the virus around [...]

2020-12-01T14:12:16+00:0015 April, 2020|Consumer Experience, Creativity, Design Thinking, Innovation, Think Different|
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Why Richard Branson Just Gave $250 Million to his Employees – A Lesson in Employee-First Mentality

What if every executive gave up this year’s annual bonus and shares to help keep their people employed? Iconic entrepreneur Richard Branson made headlines this week with the announcement of a $250 million package aimed at saving his employees. With major revenue streams coming from air travel, cruise lines, hotels, travel bookings, and aligned industries, Branson’s Virgin Group and its 70,000 global employees have already been greatly affected by the chaos caused by the coronavirus. To stop the bleeding, Branson unveiled his plan to save [...]

2020-04-08T14:47:18+00:0025 March, 2020|Consumer Experience|
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How Adopting a Consumer-Centric Mindset Can Save You Millions

When was the last time you spent the day with one of your customers? If the answer is “I don’t know” or “never,” you’re missing out. Interacting directly with those who buy your products or services is an invaluable opportunity. An incredible chance to come face-to-face with a human being and better understand their wants, needs, desires, and everything else that ultimately affects their decision to buy from you. Spending the day with your customers is like receiving a treasure map. They’ll show you where [...]

2020-04-08T14:47:28+00:0018 March, 2020|Consumer Experience|
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Goodbye Marketing. Welcome to the world of the Experience Economy

Artificial Intelligence will likely eliminate fifteen percent of the global jobs market in the next decade, according to an extensive study on the future of work by McKinsey and Company. You may shake your head in disbelief, but this is not an exaggeration. It may well be an understatement. We're about to face the most disruptive decade yet. Technology like blockchain will lead to more transparency, and Artificial Intelligence is getting smarter by the day. We all want to make the most of the technology [...]

2020-04-08T17:35:40+00:0015 January, 2020|Consumer Experience|
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Why Your Business MUST Adopt a “Purpose-Driven Strategy”

“The goal is to do business with people who believe what you believe.” – Simon Sinek The next decade will perhaps be the most disruptive of our lives. Artificial Intelligence will be able to think thousands of times faster than the human brain. Blockchain will make the world more transparent than ever before. And big data will enable all of us to provide individualized, custom experiences at scale. But there is one other disruptor in the marketplace that I believe will have as much impact [...]

2020-04-08T14:49:43+00:0017 December, 2019|Consumer Experience, Innovation|
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Reimagining the Conference Industry

What business conferences can learn from Comic Con “How did I come to this?” This is one of the very first lines in the 1999 cult classic film Galaxy Quest. It’s uttered by one of the movie’s main characters, Alexander Dane, an esteemed British Stage Actor who – much to his dismay – is best known for his role playing the alien Dr. Lazarus on the popular, kitschy sci-fi television show Galaxy Quest. In this scene Mr. Dane, along with the rest of his castmates, [...]

2020-04-08T14:50:38+00:0025 September, 2019|Consumer Experience, Innovation|
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Why Marketing Will Be Dead in Less Than 10 Years

Why is Mickey Mouse still alive? While I start off with the title "Why Marketing Will Be Dead In Less Than 10 Years" let's skip back to one of the worlds most iconic successes in marketing... Mickey Mouse. Sure, as a fictional character his life is much more resilient than us flesh and blood mortals. But still, how is it possible that 91 years after his introduction to the world in Walt Disney’s Steamboat Willie, that Mickey Mouse remains as popular as ever? Snoopy? He [...]

2020-04-08T14:50:49+00:0017 July, 2019|Consumer Experience, Innovation, Think Different|
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Focus on Purpose, Not Profit

Last year, one of the world’s leading tool brands asked me to come to train their teams on innovation. While I have a robust history of teaching innovation across a variety of industries, I am the first to admit that my knowledge of tools is a bit underwhelming. With my work and travels, I’ve just never found the time to be one of those DIY-types. Wanting to understand the tool market a little bit better before I gave my talk, I decided to spend a [...]

2020-04-08T14:52:02+00:0001 April, 2019|Consumer Experience, Design Thinking, Innovation|
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Real-Life Superheroes

A Real-Life Superhero During my time at Disney, I spent a lot of hours working with the Parks team. With six worldwide resorts and a dozen unique parks between them, it’s one of the most complex systems I have ever encountered in my entire career. But while the system is complex, the mission was simple: bring fantasies to life. This was especially true after Disney’s acquisition of Marvel in 2009. With a universe full of amazing stories and characters, we were tasked with not only [...]

2020-04-08T14:52:39+00:0003 December, 2018|Consumer Experience, Creativity, Design Thinking, Innovation, Think Different|
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Let’s Make Some Magic

Let’s Make Some Magic Magic, by definition, cannot be explained. It’s a sequence of events that, even when followed with a close eye, still leaves audiences mystified and mesmerized. Now, when we think of magic, we think of dark theatres, capes, and rabbits in oversized top hats. But the truth is, magic can be found nearly everywhere. Any time there is a staggering gap between what’s expected and what’s delivered – a gap so wide that it can’t be explained – you’re experiencing magic. That [...]

2019-08-09T17:46:55+00:0026 November, 2018|Consumer Experience, Creativity, Crowdsourcing, Design Thinking, Innovation, Rapid Prototyping, Re-Expression, Think Different|
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