Our Innovation Imperative

Written by Ed Morrison, Economic Policy Advisor, Purdue University

2008

The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open)

4415 Euclid Avenue Suite 301, Cleveland, Ohio 44103

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The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open)
4415 Euclid Ave Suite 306, Cleveland, Ohio 44103 Phone: 216-220-0172 Web:
http://i-open-2.strategy-nets.net
Our Innovation Imperative

“We are moving from an industrial economy to an economy based on networks.

New business models are emerging. Wealth creation is based on
entrepreneurship, "open innovation", and networks of civic relationships.
Innovation is the process of translating ideas into private and public wealth and
prosperity. Entrepreneurs -- both inside and outside existing organizations and
inside both the private and non-profit sectors -- manage the innovation process.
They rely on civic networks to learn, spot opportunities and align resources.
"Open innovation" means that the translation of new ideas into wealth and
prosperity by entrepreneurs increasingly takes place outside the four walls of any
one organization.

In our emerging economy, formal or informal civic networks that can efficiently
support innovation are critically important to building community and regional
prosperity. Wealth creation, which is now a function of relationships and
networks, arises from clusters formed from interconnected organizations, such as
businesses, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations.

To succeed in this economy, we need new ways of coming together so we can

continuously explore and find new opportunities based on our existing assets.
We need to define and reinforce new patterns of civic behavior. Building
prosperous communities begins in civic spaces where citizens come together to
exchange ideas, identify transformative initiatives and move forward. This civic
discipline can emerge most quickly from vibrant, flexible and focused civic forums
grounded in the practice of "strategic doing": translating ideas into action quickly.
Within these forums, new conversations generate practical collaborations among
civic and business entrepreneurs and their networks of support.

The speed with which we move our organizations, businesses, communities and
regions to the knowledge-based economy will depend on how well we can
routinely convene to create new collaborations and identify our new
opportunities. Moving any economy forward requires hundreds of new
collaborations that no one individual or organization can "command and control".
To support these collaborations, we need simple rules and new disciplines of
authentic civic engagement. We need to build habits of exploring each other’s
strengths, identifying opportunities, focusing on practical outcomes, aligning our
resources, and measuring our results. In short, we need to move from concepts
of strategic planning to strategic doing.

To meet the challenges of the ever increasing and rapidly shifting global markets

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that characterize today’s economy, we need new models of economic
development, new approaches to shape our thinking and guide our actions. We
need to design civic engagements that spin out new and innovative
collaborations quickly. With an increasingly turbulent economy, we need new
stable patterns of thinking and doing. The road to the successful future is
marked by the new disciplines of “strategic doing.”

Strategic doing is about translating ideas into purposeful action quickly.

However, translating ideas into action requires trusted conveners and
"appreciative" leadership styles that support collaborations. I-Open has
developed these new civic disciplines and has generated some significant
results.

I-Open in the Knowledge Economy

I-Open uses a blend of ongoing civic forums and workshops, as well as focused,
on-line communities powered by sophisticated Internet platforms. The approach
builds new civic habits of "strategic doing": quickly mapping assets to identify
transformative opportunities and then translating these collaborations into
measurable action steps. Regular civic forums held weekly, enable communities
to engage in thirty to ninety day cycles to assess progress and refine strategic
outcomes.

I-Open is an emerging leader in developing new approaches to civic engagement

for building community and regional economies. These skills are becoming even
more valuable as the nature of our economy shifts. In our emerging economy
wealth creation is based on innovation, entrepreneurship, and dynamic networks
of relationships. For each community and region, strengthening civic networks is
a strategic activity. Communities with thick networks of collaboration will be more
competitive. They will learn faster. They will spot opportunities faster. They will
act faster.

Building prosperous communities takes place in civic spaces and civic forums,
where citizens come together to brainstorm and exchange ideas, explore new
opportunities, and make better decisions based on replicable habits of strategic
doing. The speed in which we move our organizations, businesses, communities
and regions to the knowledge-based economy depends on how well we can
routinely convene to identify new collaborations, align resources, assess our
progress, and make midcourse corrections.”

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 – Ed Morrison, is co-Founder of I-Open; member of the staff of the Purdue
Center for Regional and Development and Economic Policy Advisor for
the Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development, or WIRED
initiative, in North Central Indiana; and CEO, Strategy-Nets.net

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License The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open)
4415 Euclid Ave Suite 306, Cleveland, Ohio 44103 Phone: 216-220-0172 Web:
http://i-open-2.strategy-nets.net