Posts Tagged As Innovation

Driving Nonprofit Innovation – Part I – Managing the Process from Idea to Launch

I see patterns.  Fear not, this isn’t the introduction to a new M. Night Shyamalan movie but I do enjoy opportunities where I can connect the dots.  Maybe it is the linear, logical, left –brain, former programmer in me but I relish when I find patterns that emerge across different disciplines, groups, organizations, etc.  Five years ago I was part of a public policy group that mixed professionals from different worlds – for-profit, nonprofit, government, education, etc. The goal of the program was to advance public policy awareness and build public policy leadership.  What I quickly recognized was that many of the same issues that were challenging me in the “for-profit innovation arena” were also plaguing these other groups.  The challenges of funding, personal & organizational risk, managing expectations, and the fear or failure were consistent.  There were some nuances but there was far more similarity that difference.

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The Importance of Finding Your Tribe

Have you ever looked around a room and thought to yourself, “This is my tribe!”  I just had the good fortune of having that feeling last month when I attended my second Business Innovation Factory Summit, BIF for short.  This is the 11th year that host Saul Kaplan (@skap5) and his cadre of BIF-zites have hosted the two-day summit in Providence, Rhode Island.  Unlike most other conferences that host speakers with their canned presentation, BIF instead chooses to focus on unique storytellers.  These storytellers share their ideas, their insights and their personal journey in an attempt to change the world in their own way.

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Nonprofit Communicators Workshop: Using Failure to Your Advantage

The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits is hosting their 2015 Nonprofit Communicators Workshop Series and it is focused on a great topic: Risk, Innovation, and the Role of Failure!  The event is being held on October 20th, 2015 from 9:00 am – 11:00 am at the Wilder Center in St. Paul.  Join us!

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Risk & Innovation Panelist – Bush Foundation Community Innovation Prize

The Bush Foundation will be hosting their first event focused solely on supporting their past and present Community Innovation Prize grantees.

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Community Agency Executives Retreat – Greater Twin Cities United Way

I will be presenting “Innovation, Risk & the Role of Failure – Innovating the in Non-profit Community” at the upcoming Community Agency Executives Retreat for non-profits funded by the Greater Twin Cities United Way.

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When Should You Outsource Innovation?

We often hear about the importance of failure when driving new ideas or new businesses.  We’re given advice to Fail Early, Fail Often, and Fail Cheap.  While this well-meaning advice is accurate on the whole the reality is that failure in most organizations comes with pretty heavy consequences.  Within mature organizations a failed initiative can have a dramatic impact for both the individual and the long term success of organization itself.

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The Phoenix Rising Event – Join Us on May 20th, 2015 in Minneapolis, MN

We are excited to announce a truly unique one day conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota – The Phoenix Rising Event!  A day focused on strengthening our local community of entrepreneurs and innovators by addressing the fear, stigma, and shame of failure head on.  Please mark your calendars and join us on Wednesday, May 20th, 2015.

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