The Change Dude’s Blog

The Next BiG Thing

Chaos and disruption are the breeding grounds for new and exciting ideas.  So in the midst of today’s economic quake which has caused incredible disruption to the lives of many I ask myself…What’s the next BiG Thing? 

In the early ‘80s as a young Air Force officer who’s job was to employ state of the art electronic warfare technology I experienced the birth of Silicon Valley.  Cold War strategies and tactics hinged on state-of-the-art  technology.  Engineers and scientists in San Jose and Santa Clara worked tirelessly to design the fastest, smallest integrated circuits.  Small at that time meant a highly classified piece of equipment I used every day aboard my aircraft wielding some serious computing power, 64K, weighed 50 pounds.

Over the next 20 years the core of that technology became the basis for today’s incredibly powerful personal electronics. So what really was the BiG Thing I’m talking about that drove true economic growth, miniaturization.

I’ve been struggling with what the next major innovation, in the human, known world, would be for some time now and really don’t have a clear answer to hang onto.  Although there are a few I’ve been noodling;

THE WORLD, LLC

An interesting idea.  The economic changes of the past two decades have made all of planet Earth’s inhabitants highly dependent on one another for everyday existence.  Monetary systems lever one another, natural resources are taken from Argentina to be manufactured into products for South Africa, US tax returns are processed in India.  So is the next step one giant conglomerate that has individual countries as divisions with clear roles and contributions made made to THE WORLD, LCC?  Could be?  Surely there’s some benefit to just having a single Board of Directors with one ginormous balance sheet, no taxes to pay since there’s no entity to pay them to, no debt, no credit, and of course lifetime employment as an employee of WORLD, LLC.  UH, OH – I think I’ve seen this movie.  Not a great ending.  I scratched that idea. Hopefully others have too.

Embedded Personal Multi-Media Communications

Now there’s an idea that has some legs.  Every human has embedded access to everyone else, music, video, news, navigation, and knowledge by just thinking about it.  WOW!  The economic opportunity in this is huge.  Servers to hold all the goodies, wireless technology everywhere, peripheral devices, subscriptions, maintenance fees.  It’s a bonanza of potential wealth not to mention the advantages of not having to carry around a bag full of electronics.  Much of this type of technology is in the works.  The disruptive and intrusive force of embedded personal communication would be incredible sci-fi.  Although with the introduction of smart-ID cards how far off is the next step?  Personally, I’m not thrilled with this BiG idea.  My preference is to keep the electronics bag around.  Big brother is intrusive enough for me today.  But the next generation might not feel the same connection to personal privacy.

Getting Personal

Replacing old-fashioned conversations is social networking activity.  Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn and the hundreds of other micro-networking sites along with mobile texting have overwhelmingly consumed the imaginations and time of millions.  The feeling of connection and place offered by a social network is comforting.  21st century’s ease of movement and pace of living have taken away the human, tactile sensation of the hometown.  Today’s hometown is the internet.  I contend that the next BiG thing is actually stepping back from the virtual hometown into a physical hometown.  Closer, more social living communities.  Clustering of people drawn together to live, learn, trade and share.  People clustering based on preferred activities, behaviors and beliefs versus industrial necessity.  Hometown’s popping up the way first generation immigrant communities form. 

As a professional idea generator/problem solver I get around, look around and work to stay ahead of my clients by a step or two.  2009 was pretty slim pickings for new ideas since most big thinkers were using their innovative ideas to keep from drowning.  It was a back to basics year for most of us with little time to look ahead. 

2010 offers renewed opportunity to work on the next BiG thing.  From my perspective 2010 will be focused on Getting Personal.  Renewing trust and rebuilding communities are at the core of BiG thinking for the near future. 

Here’s the bridge that connects innovation with renewal.  Developing the next BiG thing for your organization isn’t about an desert island  who’s only inhabitants are R&D/product development.  It’s about generating an environment of trust, experimentation and feedback where innovation can thrive. 

Begin 2010 by asking these 5 Key Questions;

1. Is my organization constantly questioning why things are the way they are?

2. Do associates feel safe in voicing opinions and ideas now matter the topic?

3. Are my customers involved in feeding the future agenda through an open dialogue with management and associates?

4. Are networking skills valued, nurtured and rewarded? 

5. Is your organization’s eco-system being levered to allow innovative ideas to blossom from every possible locus?

If you scored below a 3 on this quick test – I challenge you to find the time to remove nose from ledger and look around at the world.  You may have the next BiG thing right across the hall.

December 4, 2009 - Posted by thechangedude | Thinking About Change