Lab 1.0... innovation with a twist
I created LAB 1.0 as a way for Panasonic to connect with innovators, customer communities and to open up the innovation process to new possibilities and ideas. At the time Panasonic did not have any outward facing activities beyond sponsorship of accelerators like Plug N Play in Silicon Valley. These types of sponsorships didn’t really inspire innovative thinking or new ideas. Instead they were placeholders that served as a venue where corporate executives could meet SV startups and other corporations that offered some value to internal projects.
Like most large companies Panasonic connects with startups that offer innovation in the form of new technologies and business models they can learn from, partner with and possibly acquire. This is the soup du jour for many corporate innovation labs with mixed results. Startup vetting by accelerators and incubators allows companies to “play it safe” by not getting involved until the startup builds traction and customer validation. Yet corporations miss out on the innovation process and the myriads of opportunities it unlocks for new ideas that many startups discover before they become something of interest to corporate suitors.
Innovation is not a place, product design process or customer needs analysis. It’s a state of mind. This is what many corporate innovation labs miss. The whole idea of innovation requires a state of mind that is willing to accept new ideas, discussions and theories that would otherwise be considered “not appropriate” or too early for corporate (enter department here) teams. State of mind does not accept things for how they are….they question them. The state of mind of entrepreneurs is always thinking of ways to do things better, to reduce friction in a process or in product design. It accepts risk as part of the innovation process and embraces it. It pushes the boundaries of technology; product specs or business practices and completely changes them in pursuit of their vision.
Perhaps the most famous example of this was Apple’s 1997 advertising campaign “Think Different” which featured a series of iconic inventors, actors, artist and scientists who changed the world through their innovative ideas and art. Steve Jobs himself helped shape the campaign to illustrate how Apple thinks, how they design and build great products. Again, it was the state of mind of Apple that Steve really wanted to brand, not just their products.
When entrepreneurs describe their innovative idea they use words like “just imagine”, “what if you could” or “we’ve created something really cool that is going to disrupt the (enter industry) with $x market value”. They begin to discuss their idea or solution with vigor and why it’s a big deal. They describe it on a personal level as if it were alive and in the room with them. They don’t describe their idea as a risk mitigation tool for corporate planners or as a line item in a product roadmap. This is why the language of innovation is as important as the state of mind of innovators. Both go hand in hand. So why not create an innovation process that embraces this way of thinking and speaking? So I did. It’s called Lab 1.0.
Lab 1.0 featured 2 speakers from different backgrounds discussing a common topic in a collaborative and conversational format. Half way through the event a sealed envelope is presented to one of the speakers revealing a unique object for the speakers to "re-imagine" and innovate. The idea is to explore the process of innovation live on stage that relates to the topic of the event. Out of the box ideas, creative perspectives and poetic inspiration was encouraged. The Lab 1.0 event series debuted every 3 months featuring different themes, unique speakers and a blank canvas for innovation.
The goal of Lab 1.0 was to create a “state of mind” where innovators, entrepreneurs and luminaries could speak in natural, startup inspired language. This would allow for fluid discussions, creativity and problem solving that would help unblock internal efforts to identify breakthrough ideas and innovative solutions. And since Lab 1.0 attracted potential partners and customers from targeted industries we were able to “sound check” ideas with their participation at the event (and through follow up correspondence). It was a great feedback loop that helped accelerate important discussions with Boeing, DHL, Amazon, BASF, Apple, Airbnb, Hilton Hotels, Google and many other corporate innovation teams. It was interesting to learn the perspective of these companies in relation to the event topic and the questions they were trying to answer. These insights were helpful in shaping our own approach to innovation and in the development of new product ideas.
For Lab 1.0 we focused on 4 themes (in lieu of discreet topics): Food, Fitness, Travel and Wearables. Each of these themes included many sub themes we could explore. For example, for Travel we could focus on Point of Sale (inside airports), hotels and transportation. Each theme inspired activity in the next theme so they formed an ecosystem collectively.
The Lab 1.0 event series became a success, albeit we started off with a small audience and learned from our mistakes. From the very beginning we created an atmosphere for collaboration, creativity and inspiration that allowed the speakers to “think differently” without encumbrances. Our event slogan was “Innovation with a Twist” as nod to our envelope concept of live innovation. Lab 1.0 hosted 30 world class speakers, created over 85 new innovative ideas and connected with standing room only audiences who actively participated in our innovation discussions. And we signed up great cosponsors such as VentureBeat, Catalyst Companies, StartX and the British American Business Council (BABC).
The inspiration for Lab 1.0 was Sundance Film’s Iconoclast series where two world class figures would interview each other about important topics. For example, Sir Richard Branson would interview Desmond Tutu about a variety of important topics shaping the world today. Sundance films expresses their purpose for the series in this way… “Sundance is really about innovation, artistic expression, breaking new ground. There's a strong desire on the part of organization to be looking for people who are trying to break the paradigm and innovate in some way. Creative iconoclasts are extremely Sundance--they are exactly what we are.”
At our very first Lab 1.0 event we featured Allan Evans, CTO @Avegant & Brad Leong (Tile video creator). Allan and Brad delivered an engaging discussion about innovation for the smart, connected home. They discussed their own personal approach to innovation and how it shaped their products, company cultures and new ideas they have yet to build. The envelope moment revealed a doorknob as the object to reimagine. Both speakers began to image how a doorknob could recognize you by your hand print and heartbeat without the need of your smartphone or set of keys to open the house. They continued their riff by redefining the relationship between the doorknob, the home and other doorknobs. For example, the doorknob could communicate with your smart home with information about your mood (tired, anxious, happy) and share that with your Nest thermostat, your lights and even your television and sound system so when you open the front door the house is ready for you. And since the doorknob is smart it can communicate with other doorknobs in the house so access to your favorite wine cellar is not granted to your 13 year old son.
The discussion inspired many ideas from the audience as well. One person recommended removing the doorknob altogether by replacing it with a touch screen that unlocked the front door through digital touch or eye authentication (think Apple’s new iPhone). By the end of the event every person in the audience was personally invested in the re-imaged doorknob and the Lab 1.0 event. People were inspired, and you could feel the collective enthusiasm to explore the next idea in the envelope.
The Lab 1.0 event series took on a life of its own with a number of corporate innovation groups jumping in. The power of live innovation unlocked new ideas and challenge old ones, allowing audiences to participate while guided by the savvy wisdom and experience of luminary speakers. Soon we were approached to host specific themes on IoT, wearables, farm-to-fork and frictionless retail. This allowed us to build powerful partnerships with companies to explore innovation and new ideas for themes they (and Panasonic) cared about. The concept was simple yet compelling. The object in the envelope was chosen by the partner company and the speakers by Panasonic. Since we hosted the events we chose the venue which rotated between the peninsula and San Francisco.
We recruited a different moderator for each event with a background on the subject matter of the event. For example, William Rosenzweig, the dean of The Food Business School of the Culinary Institute of America helped moderate the Lab 1.0 event on “the Startup lunch economy” with Jae Berman (Stanford Health Educator) and Matt Rothe (co-founder of FEED Collaborative). The event explored the power of food to attract and retain talent at some of Silicon Valley’s hottest startup companies. Food influences many important decisions in company culture and team dynamics, especially in people’s diet plans and lifestyle choices. Aramark was our corporate partner on the event who helped with the object in the envelope and with example use cases for discussion (Aramark designs and manages the food experience at Cisco, Nike and many leading companies). And just to add context to our food event we chose The Climate Corporation offices in SF as our venue.
We learned a number of things from Lab 1.0. In summary here are the most salient points:
1. You can create an atmosphere of innovation that inspires people to “think different”. This is no small task. Companies pay consulting firms a lot of money to achieve the same result. By creating a format that inspires both the speakers and the audience to participate with actionable results everyone feels vested in the outcome.
2. Select a topic that people want to discuss. Although this seems obvious it’s not easy with multiple stakeholders and agendas. You need to discuss a topic that intrigues people and attracts great speakers.
3. Secure great speakers. After all they are the main attraction of the event. The magic of Sundance channel’s Iconoclast series is the speakers. But speakers are fickle. They don’t want to participate in me-too like events. They want to be challenged both intellectually and creatively.
4. Pull in your audience by allowing them to participate in the event, not just in Q&A afterwards. The audience participation through constructive engagement really inspired the speakers and fueled a high level of creative ideas.
5. Invite key stakeholders from select industries you are targeting to attend the event. You need to create a feed-back loop that is relevant to your innovation efforts. The best way to build strong relationships with potential customers and partners is to make them feel part of the solution you are building.
6. And six, make sure you have great wine and food. This is always a must.
There are many great examples of how Lab 1.0 inspired innovative ideas and discussions. But most importantly Lab 1.0 helped create a state of mind and language of innovation through a vibrant community of partners, customers and innovators and…. helped our team at Panasonic to “think different”. If you are interested in ways to build break-through innovation with actionable results for your company I invite you to join our Lab 1.0 community and connect with me here.