INSIGHTS
Insights are important. I wrote my thesis about insights. You need them in your organisation. A startup without an ecosystem to create insights? Not good.
Insights? I love them. Even the smallest solution during a sudoku puzzle feels like a spark. So what is an insight? How is an insight created? Can we stimulate that process? An insight is the spark of an idea that helps you innovate in your business. Did you know that within your company you can create an “ecosystem” in which you can develop insights more easily? This method has always worked well for my companies and me. Don’t know where to start? Then let me help you!
Rome wasn’t built in one day.
It is a misconception that an insight must be earth-shattering. Small, simple insights can eventually have a significant impact on an organisation.
Do you know, for example, that the CD – yes, that shiny disc people used before they discovered Spotify – almost didn’t see the light of day? The idea did not initially get approval from the managers of Philips, because they thought no one would be looking for a new LP-sized disc with about 18 hours of music on it. It took just one person at Philips to realise that the CD did not have to be as large as the LP. And the rest is history.
At Bye Bra, we were not dancing on the tables every day because we had come up with a brilliant insight. But we did work hard every day to make our company, step by step, bigger, more efficient, and better. All the small insights, which were created with the help of the optimal eco-system and smart improvements, ultimately led to a unique and successful business model.
A bit of theory about insights…
Two factors contribute to the creation of insights:
A cognitive schema is a kind of mind map in your brain that provides the right knowledge to create an insight. The “aha! moment” must build on existing knowledge in the brain, which lies in these schemas.
New information. An insight is the moment when new information in the brain makes a unique connection with existing knowledge in the cognitive schemas. Then the proverbial light comes on, and suddenly you understand how something works.
Combine these two and fuel them with coaching, training, advise, and experience. You will create a spark. That “spark” or “aha! moment” sets the entire process in motion. Combine these insights with my success formula, and that’s how your startup will become a winner: Quicker, Cheaper, Better and it will arrange business Earlier.
The following overview shows what my idea is of an ideal ecosystem for a startup:
The ecosystem facilitates insights
You probably wonder how to distinguish yourself from your competitors by creating insights. In other words, how do you establish a competitive advantage? First, you have to enable the right eco-system to see opportunities (insights) and seize them (sensing and seizing). This process eventually leads to the development of dynamic capabilities – skills to deal with changing circumstances quickly, creatively, and adequately – in your start-up (Teece, 1997). I see that organisations with the right ecosystems develop a unique structure. They become dynamic companies, winners who stand out from their competition.
Spark
With the right ecosystem, you’ll see that your employees start to recognise opportunities. That spark will change your organisation rapidly. I strive to be an incubator who creates that ecosystem where insights can flourish. General advisers, distracting office jungles, corporate environments (!) and generic training programmes are not where you should be looking to establish such an eco-system.
Let’s meet!
You need that ecosystem? I fix it for you. How do I proceed once we establish the ecosystem? I want to tell you that in person. Are you going to a tradeshow? Let me help you. Are we going to write a patent? I’ve seen it all. Do you need an international pricing strategy? Let me help you. But. You are the entrepreneur of your startup.
We will place insights at the core of your start-up, and you won’t need that Red Bull anymore to fly high.