It is important for companies and individuals to know what they are about. I have written before about the importance of being responsive to customers or clients and that is absolutely true, but it does have to balanced by a discipline of deciding to do some things well.

I had an illustration of this a few weeks ago. I had contacted the support group at 37Signals whose produce Basecamp I have used to manage a variety of projects for myself, my employer, and clients. I highly recommend this tool and I know they are always develping new offerings. I suggested to them that they develop a new interactive, collaborative scheduling service. The idea would be that it would allow a person to set up a calendar of events and allow people to RSVP. However, it would be more than an Evite (which is another tool I love and use all the time). The innovation that I was suggesting was that the tool would allow multiple events to be managed from one interface and that it would include an element of capacity planning. Let's say, a hair studio wanted to use a tool like this to accept online appointments. They could enter the number of stylists available throughout the day and the software would prevent people from overbooking, perhaps suggesting alternates that might work or managing a waiting list. I thought this would be cool for a variety of their small business customers and I knew that I could use it right away for a project I am working on for the Westside MOPS.

But, I digress. I sent the idea to them in some detail. I received a response back that surprised me. I thought that I would get a "thank you and we appreciate your ideas" email that would be that. Instead, I got a personal email back from Jason at 37Signals that read "We will not be building the software you suggested. We only build things we can use and we wouldn't use this."

Needless to say, I was a little taken back. I send them back an equally curt response saying how unfortunate it was that they would not be taking action on this and that I would have scheduled time to talk with them in more detail about the idea, but sadly they don't use scheduling software. But, the whole thing got me thinking.

Here is a company that is very well-respected and builds great tools. They got a suggestion for what would be a great product (in my humble opinion) and they said, "no." No, because it wasn't something they were passionate about. No, because, perhaps, it didn't fit into their vision of who uses their tools and why.

Although their response to me could have been a bit more respectful, I can see and appreciate their point. If they pour their resources into making Basecamp and other tools I use better, then I can't really complain.

So, my "collaborative scheduling" idea is out there. Somebody should develop this tool! If you know of any offerings like this on the market, I am very interested in learning about them. To learn of other product ideas or offerings that I have put on the curb to recycle, see Invention Recycling.

As I have said before, it is critical for companies to understand what customers are paying for. Are they paying for a product with a particular warranty period or are they paying for up-time during their capitalized product life? Are they paying for software that rids their computer of viruses or are they paying for the assurance of a safe computing environment? It could be that customers value a portion of a company's offering and by streamlining the features, removing complexity, and focusing on the things that matter, companies can deliver a higher perceived value with less effort and expense.

This approach has huge implications for marketing. While facts and figures can be captured on datasheets and product copy on a Website, solutions are hard to contain in these mechanisms. When emotions (ie, trust, confidence, safety) need to be communicated, it is best done through stories. Sometimes the story is about a product and other times it is about a company. Who, in your opinion, tells the best stories?

Stories are also critical within the organization, to build alignment and motivate stakeholders. More on that later.

There is a principle that is so simple it is easy to miss when we are designing or marketing products: customers define the value of the goods or services that they pay for. Thinking about our business from their perspective is absolutely critical. This leads to better resource utiliziation (for example, anything that doesn't add value that customers' perceive and would pay for, is one definition of waste). It can also lead to radical thinking and innovation for new products and services. This is especially evident in the new world we live in, where outsourced manufacturing, Internet services, and the like allow us to respond immediately to customer suggestions.

Interestingly, I have been proud, as a customer, to have some of my suggestions integrated rapidly into products (I have seen it happen on LinkedIn and Basecamp by 37Signals). I can only assume I am not the only one asking for the enhancement that was implemented, but it does demonstrate to me that they care. From their perspective, however, they just received free market research to drive new development and built a little more loyalty with me in the process.

For a while, I have subscribed to a newsletter put out by the InnovationNetwork. You can sign up or view archives at www.thinksmart.com. The InnovationNetwork guru, Joyce Wycoff also has a blog.

Several months ago they had a discussion about what "simple rules" would create sustainable innovation for companies which is a great example of the kind of topics that are featured. Here is a summary of a few of my favorites that kicked the discussion off.

A. Four Simple Rules
Contributor: Paul Hindes, president of Watcher Technologies as quoted
in Fortune Magazine's article "Making Decisions in Real Time"
(6/26/2000).
1. You can't be a jerk with clients.
2. Tell me if I have spinach in my teeth
3. Be responsive, but not dumb.
4. It's really, really okay to make mistakes.
Note: I have edited some of the potentially-offensive language from
the original, but I hope captured the essence (jd)

B. Everything I needed to learn, I learned in Junior High
Contributor: Unknown Junior High, as quoted in Margaret Wheatley's book
Finding Our Way: Leadership for an Uncertain Time (February 2005).
1. Take care of yourself.
2. Take care of each other.
3. Take care of this place.

C. Innovation and Progress
Contributor: Brian Barron as attributed to William Kingston's book Innovation: The Creative Impluse in Human Progress (1977).
1. Develop only the bare minimum to prove an idea
2. Prove only one idea at a time
3. Never develop what can be bought or modified
4. Minimize the time to demonstration
5. Insist on the highest standards of workmanship
6. Do all of this with the smallest team possible.

D. Google's 9 Rules
Contributor: Marissa Mayer (their innovation guru) 45-minute presentation on the Stanford University Website
1. Ideas come from everywhere
2. Cheer everything you can
3. You're brilliant, we're hiring
4. A license to pursue dreams
5. Innovation, not instant perfection
6. Data is apolitical
7. Creativity loves constraints
8. It's users, not money
9. Don't kill projects, morph them


If you could create a few "rules" (or guidelines or principles) that could create sustainable innovation within your company or organization, what would they be?

Whether or not you are actively looking to buy or sell a home, it is interesting to keep tabs on the rea estate market. There are a variety of tools that are fun to explore to this end.

I love Zillow. This company out of Seattle was founded by a few Expedia alums that sought to provide better visibility to real estate pricing. The result is a website where you can map a property address and see the valuation of it and the surrounding properties. They literally provide an estimate (or a Zestimate, as they call it) for over 65 million homes. Essentially, this site is not only a fun interface, but is allows you to do your own real estate comparables and market research. They are adding metropolitan areas all the time and they claim a high accuracy rate. Check it out!

Another tool that is useful is one offered by a local real estate agent in Portland, Oregon powered by PDXHomeQuest and is now offered also in Seattle and San Diego. It is an email service that will provide you with the new listings in any price range or neighborhood that you specify, allowing you to keep tabs on MLS activity in your area. To sign up for the service in Portland, visit Donna Erickson's website.

Now these are useful tools and show the power of using data to create useful decision-driving information. I am always on the look-out for tools of this type.

In Patrick Lencioni's book The Five Temptations of a CEO (which is a great one, by the way), he warns business leaders to never confuse clarity with certainty. There are always things that are uncertain. Facts that require validation. Assumptions that need to be checked out. Assumptions that must be researched.

That uncertainty can't stop people from being clear in their communications. Better to say "here is what I know and here is what I don't know" and "here is what we are going to do," than say "I think we should do this." It is important in all of our communications that we model clarity, even if there are things about which we are uncertain. Better yet, if you feel like you can't be clear or certain in your communications, stop and take action immediately to resolve the issue. Once you find the answer or have taken appropriate action, then respond.

Note: sometimes this approach will require you to respond with a "I have heard you and will respond when I have a chance to give it proper attention". Especially if the request came via email, where people expect responses.

If you want to purchase a copy of Patrick's book--which is an easy, but insightful read-- click below.
The Five Temptations of a CEO: A Leadership Fable

Over the years, I have used a variety of tools to manage contact information for friends, family, and colleagues. I kept little address books, I maintained a Rolodex (perhaps dating myself, I know), addresses in various email programs, and the like. I wanted to tell you about two tools I am using now that you might be interested in trying yourself.

The first is Plaxo. It is an online address book, essentially with a couple of twists. The first is that if I enter an address (triggered by a unique email address) of someone who is also a Plaxo user, we are "connected" and I am alerted to any updates or changes in their contact information. Second, I can send me own information (professional or personal or both) to selected contacts and have them update their own information. This is a useful way to make sure your address book has the latest information. I use the free online version, which requires nothing to be downloaded on my computer and alllows me to access it anywhere. The premium version has some features that are nice as well. I understand that some people do not like Plaxo's model and would rather use a more permission-based system, but for my work information which isn't so sensitive, I have Plaxo to be a useful tool.

The other tool that I enjoy using is LinkedIn. It is a social network that many of my professional contacts turned me onto. In essense, I can invite people to join my "network" and in return, they can access my network, allowing me to help them make introductions to others I know (and visa versa). The network affect takes hold, when you link these networks together by degreees of separation. My 200 (or so) contacts, actually connect me to nearly 7,000 people within 2 degrees of separation. Wild! I have used it to make contact into companies that I would have otherwise had to cold call. I use the free online version.

I'd encourage you to check these out. If you use either of these systems and know me personally, invite you to send me an invitation!