The (Counterintuitive) Rules of Innovation

“If I had listened to my customers, I would have built a faster horse.” — Henry Ford

Last Wednesday, Laura Dunham, Ph.D., associate professor of entrepreneurship, launched the Opus College of Business’ Power Lunch Series with a presentation on “The (Counterintuitive) Rules of Innovation." During this one-hour presentation and discussion, Dunham talked about the role of innovation in organizations today, shared examples of innovation in action and outlined five rules that may not seem logical, but ultimately lead to great innovation:

Rule #1 – If you wish to delight your customer with true innovation, don’t ask them what they want.

Rule #2 – We are all creative, capable of bringing innovation to fruition.

Rule #3 – Creativity can be structured.

Rule #4 – You can’t plan your way to great innovation.

Rule #5 – If you want to succeed at innovation, you have to fail.

For those who were unable to attend this event, stay tuned for details about future events in the Power Lunch Series. The bar has been set and the next event is sure to spark some interesting questions and conversation.

The Opus College of Business' Power Lunch Series will focus on emerging issues in the news that are also relevant to the downtown community. You’ll have the opportunity to network with people from across downtown Minneapolis as well as learn from University of St. Thomas thought leaders. See all upcoming OCB events.

Dunham has previously presented on a similar topic to organizations throughout the Twin Cities. If you are interested in this presentation, contact amhwagner@stthomas.edu or 651-962-4253 for more information.