Michael Plishka
Ramifications in Innovation (Lessons from Bonsai)
When people say, “There will be ramifications if you do that,” most people interpret that to mean that there will secondary, negative consequences to an action. In the world of Bonsai, ramification is good; it means (often artist assisted) branching, and a healthy tree branches, and branches,...
How Creative Dialogues With the Past Can Inform Design – Lessons Inspired by...
Great piece on the value of creative traditions over at Lateral Action – about how understanding them can lead to greater creative output. Mark McGuinness talks about the 400+ year old, Japanese form of theater known as, Kabuki, how it’s a vital part of the Arts’ tradition, and...
Looking for Disruptive Technologies? VentureRadar is the place for you
Every once in a while I come across a phenomenal resource that I want to share, and VentureRadar is just such a site. If you want to find out which companies are leading the way in disruptive and innovative technologies, VentureRadar will crawl through publicly...
Design Better Products Using These Seven Tips From SongWriting
You know how much I like music. You also know how I like using parallels from other industries to supplement what I do. I came across a great article from BMI (that happen to be the Performing Rights Organization that I belong to) that discusses 7 things to...
Use This Simple Innovation Technique to Create Better Pizza….er, Products!
We’ve all had this experience: You order a pizza for pickup. You get home and open the box and find the cardboard under the pizza is wet and soggy. You dig into the pizza but find out that, unfortunately, the flavor of the wet cardboard...
Dear RadioShack, It didn’t have to end this way…
It’s official. RadioShack has filed for bankruptcy. Call me naïve, but I really don’t think this had to happen. I realize I’m ‘Monday Morning quarterbacking’ (Why DID Seattle throw that pass on the one yard line?!?! I digress….) but RadioShack had made some bad choices. RadioShack’s…
Cannoli – Designing a Great Experience
A cannolo (singular of cannoli) Courtesy of Wikipedia Today I was savoring one of the two cannoli I bought (it looked just like the picture above.) It suddenly dawned on me that this food perfectly represents the ideal product experience. Bite one: Chocolate chips (or…
Designing Patient Experience at RSNA14
Today was my first day at the Annual Radiology Society of North America (RSNA) Meeting. It’s a great conference to see what’s new in minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment. What was especially evident was the emphasis on patient experience, on making the healthcare experience less...
Designing Delighting Moments – Sing “Hello” to Dr. Carey Andrew-Jaja
This video is the definition of delighting customers. It’s no secret that delighting customers is extremely profitable. But it can also have another side effect. It can create a better world. Enter Dr. Carey Andrew-Jaja. This “Singing Doctor” has sung to more than 8000 babies…
When a Company Won’t Give What it Clearly Has – Designing Customer Experience
Have you ever asked for a side of Apple Chips at Panera Bread? These are the responses I usually get: “Sure” (He/She then types in a special instruction on the screen and I get apple chips) “Sure” (He/She can’t find the button on the register…
Swimming in Wonderful Robin Williams Streams of Consciousness
When I conduct brainstormings (and even when I’m looking for ideas) I find that one of the biggest enemies is the internal censor that each of us has. I’m sure you’ve succumbed to that voice. You come up with an idea and before you’ve even...
Thinking of the Ideal will Design the Beautiful (Happy Birthday, “Bucky”!)
When I am working on a problem, I never think about beauty. I only think about how to solve the problem. But when I have finished, if the solution isn’t beautiful, I know it is wrong. — Richard Buckminster Fuller Today is the birthday of…
Three Guidelines For Enabling Innovation (Via a 7 Year Old Crossing the Street)
The crossing guard waved her arms and held up the stop sign. On my way to a prototype shop to pick up some parts, I slowed, and stopped, and watched. Behind the yellow vested guard, thirty to forty seven year olds began crossing the street...
Inspiration from “The Rebbe” into Redesigning Healthcare, Starting with the Word We Use
While driving to a 24 hour Walgreens in the wee hours of the night, I was listening to the radio and heard an interview with Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, author of Rebbe: The Life and Teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the Most Influential Rabbi in Modern History. Rebbi Telushkin pointed out that...
Going to Work With a KOL? Don’t Forget the Intangibles
Over the past couple of decades I’ve had the opportunity to work with many Key Opinion Leaders (KOL’s) during the course of developing medical products***. KOL’s can be a vital part of a product development team. In my experience, some were a pleasure to work with,...
Acclaimed Author and Home Chef, Anupy Singla, on Innovation
Every time I get the opportunity, I ask great chefs this simple question: What does innovation mean to you? This year at the International Home and Housewares Show, I had the great pleasure of chatting with Anupy Singla. While her website says she is a ‘journalist turned foodie…
Chef Guy Fieri on Innovation
Every time I get the opportunity, I ask great chefs this simple question: What does innovation mean to you? This year at the International Home and Housewares Show, I caught up (quite literally as you see from the video,) with Chef Guy Fieri. His response to the…
Thoughts on Innovation From Chef Aaron Sanchez
Every time I get the opportunity, I ask great chefs this simple question: What does innovation mean to you? This year at the International Home and Housewares Show, I was able to watch Chef Aarón Sanchez at work, and then chat briefly with him. His response to the…
Innovations and More from the 2014 International Home + Housewares Show
Was at one of my favorite shows earlier this week, looking for new materials and products, innovative and whimsical products, basically things that catch my fancy. What follows are some pics and vids from the show. I also had a chance to get some...
Fostering Organically Grown Innovation – Insights From the Art of Bonsai
I just got done trimming some of my bonsai trees. What always fascinates me is how branches seem to show up in the most unlikely places. Yet, while the origin of a particular branch baffles me, to the branch growing out of the tree, it made...