The Blog is a collection of experiences, told in narrative form.
They’re a little long so feel free to check out the 'TLDR’ version if you’re not sure whether to commit to a read or not.
TLDR, or ‘Too long, didn’t read’ is a summary for those looking for one (click here for a history of the expression).
The opportunity canvas
Opportunity Canvases have replaced traditional business cases in environments where investors have realised that their portfolio is wracked with uncertainty that results in claimed benefits not being realised years after an investment decision has been made to deliver a monolithic project. This article explores the origin of the opportunity canvas and what you should consider as you try out this tool as a facilitator for transformation of a portfolio of opportunities.
Atomic Habits
My Fiancé and I took a long drive to the south-west of Australia and discovered James Clear’s Atomic Habits on Audible. We got out of the car at 10pm after a 4 hour drive with more energy, not less, buoyed by the ideas we had debated along the way. My take away was that while my past habits of annual goal setting had been adequate, the practice could be improved.
Cleaning up at the end of 2020
While taking a break over the new year, there was a perfect opportunity to reflect on the year gone by with my Fiancé and our friends. We talked about the year past, our achievements, disappointments and our hopes for the following year. I thought I’d take a moment to share the outcome of those conversations and the thinking that followed up to set myself up for 2021. This is also a commitment device for myself, splitting it out in to three segments as a framework you might want to use too.
Setting a personal mission
We set corporate strategy but how often do we set our own personal strategies or purpose statements?
Mining electrification workshop
I worked with State of Play to devise three workshops for 40+ participants over 3 weeks to unpick how industry could lead electrification of mines in Australia and beyond. We rapidly tested platforms and iterated on the agenda to find the sweet spot where participants could effortlessly share insights and focus on aligning on priority areas for industry action. Read more to find out how.
Closing down an online innovation platform
I wrote a post, some communications to the business some months ago announcing the closure of an innovation platform I helped to birth. It was a baby that had a challenging persona in it’s teens and was often neglected by it’s relatives but it was my baby and I loved it all the same. Like any loving parent, it was sad, after plenty of trips to the hospital, to go see the doctor and to choose for it to be put to sleep for the last time. I’m thankful I had the opportunity at the end to voluntarily pull the plug on it’s life support in the recognition that it was best for all involved, acknowledging the good times, the learnings and in the knowledge that there would be another time, later on, where the business would benefit from it’s investment if those learnings were retained.