BiF-4 Insights – David Yaun – IBM

IBM’s new core values:

• Dedication to every client’s success
• Innovation that matters, for our company and for the world
• Trust and personal responsibility in all relationships

Global Innovation Outlook (GIO) program (similar to an innovation jam):

• Brainstorming around big societal issues
• 2-3 times per year at sites around the world
• Ideas were going global
• Innovation was becoming more open
• Have now run about 50 GIO’s in 36 countries

Started with the question of:

What would happen if we took the five best scientists (IBM fellows) and five of the top, connected people from the consulting business and brought them together?

• Problem was that it wasn’t open
• So we started inviting external people and opened it up
• We opened up our planning process
• Videos posted on the web
• Shame on us if we can’t execute first

We took it to the Chairman:

• We estimated it would take 18-24 months to implement the idea
• The chairman asked if we could do it in five months
• Of course we stupidly said yes
• Chariman said that if we ever get comfortable while implementing it then we are probably doing it wrong

Executive response:

• “We already do this”
• “What you’re proposing is very dangerous…”
• “Your guys are taking drugs”
• “I forbid you from talking to my customers”
• “If you must go ahead with this folly, my job will be to prevent you from embarassing the Chairman”

“Don’t let your job desription define who you are or what you do.”

For more information on the talk, go here.