The Box

col·lab·o·rate

erb \kə-ˈla-bə-ˌrāt\

col·lab·o·rat·edcol·lab·o·rat·ing

Definition of COLLABORATEintransitive verb1

: to work jointly with others or together especially in an intellectual endeavor

Merriam-Webster.com/dictionary/collaboration

Many times success comes from thinking outside the “box”.  A few questions; what is the “box”? Why are we in the “box”?  How can we get rid of the “box”? To answer the questions you must understand business structure, what it is and what it is not. It is not about tall or wide but it is about leadership! Group think is the “box” and is the stumbling block to success of any organization. Please understand that when finances are limited so are options. It is now common place in the business world to stay the course. What is missing is the promotion of innovation among members of the organization. Collaboration is innovation’s fuel for success and our escape from the “box”. Can leadership’s failure to recognize the power of the intellect be the one thing standing in the way of our recovery?  American business’ ability to overcome adversity has always given us overwhelming advantage. We will not find this type achievement in a bail-out or a public program.  Our recovery will come from the ingenuity and creativity of the organization’s best. Collaboration will bring us the innovation that will bring us back to prosperity.

For nearly a century, when people have sought a relationship with IBM—whether as a client, employee, partner or neighbor—what have they been seeking?

Perhaps it was deep expertise in science and technology. Or a partner with broad understanding of their industry or sector of society. It might have been long-standing presence in their market, their community or around the world. Or perhaps they hoped to learn from a company that itself had undergone continual change.

There are, however, certain kinds of aspirations that can't be achieved through organizational capabilities, global reach or technology—or by applying the lessons of the past. To capture the biggest economic opportunities or to tackle society's most daunting problems—to imagine what the world might be, and actually to build it—people have sought something more fundamental: a unique ability to conceptualize opportunities, to analyze developments, to tackle and overcome grand challenges.

In my view, the defining value that IBM has provided over the years has been the way we think. Today, as in the past, when people turn to our company, I believe they are looking for how IBMers approach problems, as well as for the types of problems we choose to approach. They seek a kind of relationship, in addition to the outcomes of that relationship. And they are drawn to a set of values that reflect their own.

Most companies aim to satisfy their customers. Some go farther, dedicating themselves to their clients' success. A few define success as bringing to the world innovations that make a lasting difference. A handful build trusted, long-term relationships with their owners, employees, partners, neighbors and the world at large.

For nearly a century, IBM has chosen to live at the intersection of these values. This choice has enabled our company to prosper, to create value for our clients and owners, to provide rewarding careers for millions of people, and to be a progressive force in the societies in which we do our work.

Samuel J. Palmisano
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer IBM

Innovation link

http://youtu.be/NugRZGDbPFU

Innovation

Innovation is the life blood of the entrepreneur. Seeing current trends is a great ability but to see past the current trends is vision. Innovation cannot be planned or directed but must be part of every organization. Those who are striving to see more than what is obvious to everyone may just catch a glimpse of the next big thing!

Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes... the ones who see things differently -- they're not fond of rules... You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things... they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Steve Jobs

Nothing New

“You should pass this jobs plan right away,” the president declared over and over in his 32-minute speech, in which he eschewed his trademark soaring oratory in favor of a plainspoken appeal for action, stiffened by a few sarcastic political jabs.   President Barack Obama address to Congress    

Why must this law be passed? I find it very hard to believe that the economic situation we find our nation in can be fixed by the legislature.  We suffer from a trade deficit of $550,000,000. One billion dollars in exports is equal to 20,000 jobs!

 To widen the market and to narrow the competition, is always the interest of the dealers…The proposal of any new law or regulation of commerce which comes from this order, ought always to be listened to with great precaution, and ought never to be adopted till after having been long and carefully examined, not only with the most scrupulous, but with the most suspicious attention. It comes from an order of men, whose interest is never exactly the same with that of the public, who have generally an interest to deceive and even oppress the public, and who accordingly have, upon many occasions, both deceived and oppressed it.

The Wealth Of Nations, Book I, (Adam Smith 1776)