Business Innovation Speaker and Consultant Stephen Shapiro

Three Innovation Distinctions (Part 3): Diversity not Homogeneity

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 18:16:55 +0000

This is the third of my “innovation distinctions” entries. In the first part of this series, I wrote why you should focus on “Challenges, not Ideas.” Next, I addressed the distinction of “Process, not Events.” In this final entry, I discuss why innovation requires “Diversity not Homogeneity.” Be sure to read the previous two articles before [...]

More Blog Entries Coming Soon

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:01:51 +0000

I have been working ’round the clock to finish my Personality Poker manuscript. It goes to the publisher Feb 1. After that, I will be back and blogging in full force…

R.I.P. Robert B. Parker

Stephen Shapiro — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 23:40:18 +0000

Today I learned that one of my favorite authors, Robert B. Parker, passed away. He is probably best know for his “Spenser” books. These fast-paced crime stories are based in Boston (my hometown) and were the inspiration for the ’80s TV show, “Spenser: For Hire.” I read every book and loved them all. He is also the [...]

Three Innovation Distinctions (Part 2): Process Not Events

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:00:45 +0000

In the first part of this series, I wrote why you should focus on challenges, not ideas. You should read that article before proceeding. In this second entry, I will focus on “Process, not Events.” I first shared these three distinctions with a bunch of speakers and authors. In the speaking industry, conferences/conventions are the primary model [...]

I Need Your Help: Personality Poker Book Subtitle

Stephen Shapiro — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 17:21:14 +0000

I need your help! I am in the process of finishing the manuscript for my next book, “Personality Poker.” The book will be published by Penguin’s Portfolio books and is expected in stores September 2010. We have been working on a subtitle for the book – and I would love your input. I realize that you don’t know [...]

Why Best Practices are (not Always) Stupid

Stephen Shapiro — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 20:34:04 +0000

A couple of days ago I wrote an article entitled – “Why Best Practices Are Stupid.” You can read my rationale there; I won’t bother reiterating it here. Besides, there is a video in that post. But there are situations when best practices are NOT stupid. Core & Support Capabilities In an even earlier article I talk about [...]

Deja Vu All Over Again

Stephen Shapiro — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 12:33:15 +0000

Some things never change. October 7, 2008 I wrote an article about how our airport security measures are messed up. I contended back then that we needed to move from a reactive model to a proactive model. Instead of responding to terrorist threats after the fact, we need to predict what will happen next. In the [...]

Why Best Practices are Stupid

Stephen Shapiro — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 12:28:01 +0000

The other day I saw this video of Tom Peters from 2007. He contends that “benchmarking is stupid.” It is a good video that is worth watching. While watching this, I couldn’t help but reflect back to back to the year 2000, when I started penning my first book, “24/7 Innovation.” The first paragraph of the [...]

Take Our Ultracool Test that Assesses the Unconscious Mind!

Stephen Shapiro — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:06:38 +0000

As many of you know, I am working on the manuscript for my next book. It is based on “Personality Poker,” a game that is primarily used to help organizations be more innovative. But everyone enjoys it because it is a fun card-based game that tells you all about your personality. As part of my research [...]

What is Your New Year’s Theme?

Stephen Shapiro — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 15:53:42 +0000

New Year’s Eve is just around the corner. Many of you know that I have a tradition of setting a “theme” for each year rather than a resolution. My theme for 2009 was “cool things.” And it definitely was a year of cool things. I signed a 2 book deal with Penguin’s Portfolio imprint. I became InnoCentive’s [...]