ROI: Return On Imagination

REAL ROI ( R eturn O n I magination) © Idea Champions, 800-755-IDEA

We dedicate this show to all top-of-the line managers whose job it is to watch the bottom line.

We know your job isn’t easy, having to balance short-term needs with long-term development efforts.

We know you are operating under a lot of constraints and everyone seems to be competing for the same resources.

The innovators think you’re too conservative and the conservative folks think you’re too innovative.

You can’t afford to fail and – at the same time – you can’t afford not to try something different.

Clearly, you need a breakthrough, but you also need to make sure things don’t break down as you proceed.

It is in these rough waters that you find yourself repeating the same 3 letters whenever approached by a starry-eyed innovator.

R O I

In French, it means “King.” In your world, it has become king. It is the criteria you use to decide on what projects to fund.

But ROI is a funny thing – a guess at best, an attempt to foresee the future (based on the past) and your own gut feel.

What business leader doesn’t want a good return on investment? Anyone in their right mind (or is it right brain?) would.

The problem is this: even the savviest of business leaders don’t always know what projects will result in a good ROI.

And the challenge becomes even stickier when you are aiming for game-changing ventures.

Who could have foretold Chester Carlston’s ROI when he invented xerography?

Who could have guaranteed 3M’s ROI when Art Fry came forward with the idea for the post-it?

Who could have predicted Dell’s ROI when Michael Dell conceived the notion of going direct to the customer?

And of course, the opposite is true, as well. “Sure things” don’t always result in a profitable ROI.

Petco bombed in its attempt to go direct to the customer. And Enron’s creative partnership scheme? Polaroid’s attempt to reinvent itself?

No one can deny the fact that ROI is a useful tool when it comes to easily measurable projects.

But it is far less useful when it comes to evaluating the viability of an innovative new product or service.

Well then, what is a forward-thinking, bottom-line oriented business leader to do? Is there any hope?

Yes, there is . (And in the words of nobel-prize winning physicist, Niels Bohr, the hope lies in the basic paradox of it all).

“ Now that we have met with paradox ,” said Dr. Bohr, we have some hope of making progress.”

And the paradox for YOU , as a key decision-maker with the challenge of growing your business during these tough times?

How to take a risk without seeming to take a risk that will be risky for you to explain to your risk-averse peers.

HINT #1: Small companies do this better than big companies and start-ups do this better than small companies.

HINT #2:

(from Albert Einstein) “Imagination is more important than knowledge.”

AND SO...

If you are trying to decide whether or not to fund any organizational efforts to spark innovation.

ASK YOURSELF:

1. Will it open minds? 2. Spark new ideas? 3. Challenge old assumptions? 4. Teach new tools? 5. Increase collaboration? 6. Catalyze commitment? 7. Quicken communication? 8. Energize the workforce? 9. Get results?

Yes, ROI is important.

All we’re asking you to do is expand your definition of it to include a new, perspective…

R eturn O n I magination

The results won’t show up overnight, but then again how long did it take for vulcanized rubber to go from concept to execution? The PDA? The post-it? The ball point pen?