Tag Archives: Inder Sidhu
Kotter’s buy*in & Pfeffer’s Power – Coming next month (January 2011) for the First Friday Fook Synopsis
Last Friday, we ended 2010 at the First Friday Book Synopsis with synopses of Doing Both by Inder Sidhu and Where Good Ideas Come From by Steven Johnson. Attendance was terrific. And special thanks to Cathy Groos for filling in for Karl Krayer. (Cathy presented the synopsis of Doing Both).
As we near the completion of twelve complete years of the First Friday Book Synopsis, we begin 2011 with our January 7 meeting.
Karl Krayer will present the synopsis of buy*in — saving your good idea from getting shot down by John P. Kotter.
I (Randy Mayeux) will present the synopsis of Power: Why Some People Have It and Others Don’t by Jeffrey Pfeffer.
If you are near the DFW area on January 7, come join us!
“Sustaining Innovation” contrasted with “Disruptive Innovation” – Insight from Inder Sidhu’s Doing Both
“Of course – I knew that. But I did not realize that I knew that, and/or I did not know how to say it that clearly.”
I have that reaction frequently when I read a book, or hear a good presentation. It’s not that I “learn” anything new (although, of course I do) — it is that I understand what I “knew” much more clearly. This post is about one of those epiphanies.
This morning, I heard Cathy Groos deliver her synopsis of Doing Both by Inder Sidhu. (Cathy is presenting her synopsis again tomorrow at the December First Friday Book Synopsis). She did a terrific job providing the key content of the book (which is always our goal). The book is filled with insights that prompt further thought. (You can read Bob Morris’ review of the book here).
I thought this was especially valuable. From Cathy’s synopsis handout:
- Sustaining Innovation — “…the relentless improvements necessary to build on past successes. They make existing products better, faster or cheaper in the eyes of the customer by offering new features and functions. Examples of sustaining innovations: from Cheerios to Honey Nut Cheerios; from the Honda Accord to the all new Honda Accord.
- Disruptive Innovation — “…inventions that enable companies to create new markets or significantly alter existing ones…consider: from records to tapes to CD’s to the real disruptive innovations: iPod and iTunes…”
Sustaining Innovation – making what is better, or different, contrasted with Disruptive Innovation, which is practically a whole new ball game. These are both needed, both valuable. But they are definitely different from each other.
There’s Still Time To Register For This Friday’s First Friday Book Synopsis – Where Good Ideas Come From & Doing Both
Our monthly event, the First Friday Book Synopsis, is this Friday.
We meet at the Park City Club at 7:00 am, close to the intersection of Northwest Highway and the Tollway. Great networking, great food – and both books are definitely worth your time. Both Bob Morris and I have multiple blog posts prompted by Steven Johnsons’s Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation. Bob Morris just posted his review of Doing Both. Read it here.
Just click here to register for Friday. I hope you can join us.
Where Good Ideas Come From By Johnson; Doing Both By Sidhu – Two Great Choices for the December 3 First Friday Book Synopsis
This morning, with nearly 90 people present, we presented our synopses of Derailed: Five Lessons Learned from Catastrophic Failures of Leadership by Tim Irwin and Macrowikinomics: Rebooting Business and the World by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams. It was a terrific morning! (Handouts, with audio, will be available on our companion web site, 15minutebusinessbooks.com, in about two weeks).
And special thanks to Kelly Lane and The Association for Women in Communications and the Dallas Freelance Alliance for their sponsorship this morning. Because of their sponsorship, we had five copies of each of the books to give away (we normally give away only one copy of each book). So, a big thank you to Kelly and both of these organizations.
Next month, December 3, we will present synopsis of these two books:
Doing Both: How Cisco Captures Today’s Profit and Drives Tomorrow’s Growth by Inder Sidhu, with guest presenter Cathy Groos (Karl Krayer will be out of town).
Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation by Steven Johnson, which I will present. I have already done a quick take of this book – it is profound!
I hope you will mark your calendar, and plan to join us on December 3.
