It is always good to step back and look at current economic data as it keeps us very sober and grounded. Over the past year we have experienced a very brutal economic recession, as industrial production has plummeted at double digit rates in Germany (-17.9%), Japan (-29.5%) and the United States (-13.6%).

Profits have collapsed and millions of workers are unemployed. A recent Cap Gemini Merrill Lynch World Wealth Report survey of high-net-woth individuals representing US $33 trillion in...

Our firm Helix has  spent the last two years researching, and developing virtual world experiences in numerous experiments internally and with clients - all with the goal to understand how Generation Virtuals will change and impact the future consumer/customer landscape.

Some of the interesting findings that we have determined are:

1.) Generation Virtuals (children ages 3-14) socialized on Habbo Hotel, Club Penguin, or WebKinz look at virtual worlds as an extension to their real worlds.
...

There is another insightful IBM video circulating on YouTube. It shows the extent of the use (and misuse) of buzzwords today. See the YouTube video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgeLY7CL5IE

Today, the misuse of jargon is no joking matter.

Lingo is acceptable if it is used as a common language to describe difficult-to-describe concepts to a knowledgeable audience. However, if it is used to oversimplify complexities, gloss over details or impress an audience, buzzwords can be ...

What are Intangible Assets?

Intangible Assets are assets that are not physical in nature. Corporate Intellectual Property (items such as patents, trademarks, copyrights, business methodologies), good will and brand recognition are all common intangible assets in today's market place. An intangible asset can be classified as either indefinite or definite depending on the specifics of that asset. A company brand name is considered to be an indefinite asset, as it always stays with the...

In every joke there is an element of seriousness.

This can be seen in a interesting video that IBM has produced on innovation. The video makes use of a comedic super hero. His name: Innovation Man; his mission: drive innovation within the organization.

Watch the Youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXrIoF-sVi8

Humour aside, this video struck a chord with me. Having someone preach about innovation in the organization does little if it is not adopted by its people. Innovation...

The Power of Social Networking:

Social Networking is a powerful tool to connect people from across disparate parts of the organization, enabling them to collaborate in, and innovate on developing new and valuable ideas.

The core value behind Social Networking is that it supports the free and unfettered flow of ideas and information across the organization. It acts as an accelerant in tearing down organizational silos and driving people who have never collaborated before to work together...

A new report on the health of Canadian innovation is due out from the Council of Canadian Academies in June 2009. An abridged version of the report has recently been released.

Here are some of its points:

1. Issues underlying strategic weaknesses in the Canadian economy include:
- Lack of involvement in goods and services that bring Canadian firms closer to end-users/customers. More exposure to downstream players would provide deeper insights into and impetus for innovative...

Taking a positive approach in life is an important thing. Our current recession just may lead to many interesting outcomes. One of these might be the increased market capacity for innovation.

It seems to me that during times of economic growth our talented workforce is absorbed into organizations to support organized and steady growth. However, during times of economic contraction those same workers are released into the marketplace as entrepreneurs to drive disruptive and accelerated...