August 21, 2013 Geeky creativity – Why being geek and upping your Digital IQ can spur innovation New TechResponsibility Share this post: Where some management is still hanging on to its guarded precepts and habits (reading good ‘ole fashioned books, sticking to the 4P’s of marketing, management by fear and control…), other businesses are running full head of steam. Some teams just seem to be in the know, having adopted a more adapted mindset. Their cumulative digital IQ is on the rise and the taste buds for new are on high alert. Other teams, meanwhile, seem to talk about change and innovation, but remain resistant to real action. Why is this? 4 reasons for resistance to change A large part of this failure to mobilize is due to legacy and dealing with one’s historical success. In the past, they proved their ability to overcome challenges and to succeed. {Click to tweet} The second main issue is the management corps and its cultural bias. The third is the difficulty for publicly traded companies to get off the hamster wheel of quarterly results to join the “other” longer-term mindset all the while keeping the wheel spinning. And a fourth major issue is, in my opinion, about management’s digital IQ. It strikes me that the question “how can one know what one does not know” takes on greater significance when management is faced with the constant influx of new technologies and the accompanying new set of rules. Digital IQ starts at home Click to Tweet! Echoing an article on LifeHacker, it is important to experiment and get comfortable with the new technologies — especially when trying to get a grip on the new and evolving consumer digital experience. Too often, at work, management does not find the time, nor the incentive to “practice” these new digital tools and environments. The core of the problem is that it’s not like the Internet, Facebook or an iPhone come with a user’s manual. {Please click to tweet!} On a first level, getting digital in one’s personal life is a good way to stay in touch with one’s own kids. Secondly, by experimenting and experiencing the digital tools as “consumers,” senior management will equip themselves with a better understanding of how to interface and engage with their clients in a more impactful, effective manner. Thirdly, since many of these tools concern communication, some of them will also find their place in the workplace and in the workflow. As the LifeHacker article indicates, some of these tools require “practice” to help exercise and increase one’s digital muscle. Geeky creativity Click to Tweet! On another level, it is hard for senior management to consider the new technologies without being up-to-date with what is going on. At a minimum, it’s important to increase the geek quotient within the business, hiring individuals who are in the know and comfortable with the evolving new technologies. I would call this having geeky creativity embedded within the organization. Once equipped with this knowledge, it becomes easier to conceive and consider inspiring, innovative solutions to today’s business challenges. How is one supposed to imagine how easy it can be to “hire” a crowdsourced advertising agency, or to convert your iPhone into a credit card reader, or scan text and automatically translate it into another language… and so many more. Of course, the critical component is having the right mindset, open to exploring these new technologies and, importantly, being able to tolerate the risks associated with trying something new (including having the humility to know when help is required). Professionalism gets personal As these points suggest, it is no longer possible nor desirable to separate the personal from professional. In order for digital marketing tools to be fully co-opted by a brand, I believe management needs to get digital themselves. Their customers will feel the difference! Your feedback and comments are as ever welcome. NEWSletter Subscribe to Minter’s Bi-Weekly NEWSletter and receive a free copy of the exclusive and updated 8 Golden Rules of an eReputation Your Gift For Signing Up 8 Golden Rules of an eReputation SUBSCRIBE! You have Successfully Subscribed! business, digital IQ, digitaliq, geek quotient, geeky creativity, innovation, leadership, life hacker, management, New Tech, new technologies Minter Dial Minter Dial is an international professional speaker, author & consultant on Leadership, Branding and Digital Strategy. After a successful international career at L’Oréal, Minter Dial returned to his entrepreneurial roots and has spent the last ten years helping senior management teams and Boards to adapt to the new exigencies of the digitally enhanced marketplace. He has worked with world-class organisations to help activate their brand strategies, and figure out how best to integrate new technologies, digital tools, devices and platforms. Above all, Minter works to catalyse a change in mindset and dial up transformation. Minter received his BA in Trilingual Literature from Yale University (1987) and gained his MBA at INSEAD, Fontainebleau (1993). His newest book Heartificial Empathy, Putting Heart into Business and Artificial Intelligence, bowed in December 2018 and won the Book Excellence Award 2019 as well as being shortlisted for the Business Book Awards 2019. It's available in Audiobook, Kindle and Paperback. He is also co-author of Futureproof (Pearson, Sep 2017) and sole author of The Last Ring Home (Myndset Press, Nov 2016), a book and documentary film, both of which have won awards and critical acclaim. Minter has a new book on leadership, You Lead, How being yourself makes you a better leader, published by Kogan Page, that released January 2021. It's easy to inquire about booking Minter Dial here. View all posts by Minter Dial Previous post Next post
Geeky creativity - Why being geek and upping yo... August 30, 2013 at 11:39 am […] Some teams just seem to be in the know, having adopted a more adapted mindset. Their cumulative digital IQ is high, open to change. Others are resistant […]
Geeky creativity - Why being geek and upping yo... August 30, 2013 at 11:39 am […] Some teams just seem to be in the know, having adopted a more adapted mindset. Their cumulative digital IQ is high, open to change. Others are resistant […]
How green are you? An ecometer concept… | | Minter Dial February 20, 2020 at 3:57 pm […] a social media application (say on Facebook) as well an educational tool. I harken back to my pre-geek era when I took a geek test the first time. I achieved a miserly 39% geek status. Six months later, […]