Hey! What’s the big idea?

BY DELORE ZIMMERMAN

Few people know it, but Daniel Burnham, a preeminent architect of the early 20th century, is the original voice behind these oftrepeated words of wisdom: “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men's blood and probably will not themselves be realized." A student of his own advice, Burnham created master plans for Chicago and downtown Washington, D.C. He also designed the famous Flatiron Building in New York City and Union Station in Washington, D.C.

What Burnham accomplished, albeit quite big, is not the point here. I’m more interested in the notion that we could do a little more — no, make that a lot more — big thinking around here. The good news is that there are some big ideas out there right now that are worthy of pursuing.

Dakota Fiber is an initiative to bring bleeding-edge bandwidth to North Dakota. Inspired by the Google Fiber initiatives, the Dakota Fiber project would convert all or a portion of North Dakota into a “fiberhood.” Doug Burgum, one of North Dakota’s preeminent entrepreneurs, is spearheading the initiative. He and other technology and community leaders are promoting the impact that high-speed, low-cost bandwidth would have on the state.

An “energy corridor,” recently unveiled by Gov. Jack Dalrymple and energy company Allete Inc. will move oil, natural gas, electricity and water out of western North Dakota on a right of way adjacent to Allete's existing electric transmission line. From Duluth, Minn., oil and natural gas could be shipped to other markets. Pipelines could move water to other parts of the state and wastewater from North Dakota's oil patch. Coal-fired power plants' carbon dioxide emissions could be sent and stored underground or used for enhanced oil recovery.

Free higher education for all North Dakotans is something David Osborne, author of “Reinventing Government” and “Laboratories of Democracy,” once suggested North Dakota could do to maximize the use of its resource riches to build a more competitive economy for the 21st century knowledge-based economy.

A big idea that strikes me like a thunderbolt occasionally is high-speed rail from Winnipeg to somewhere in Texas, which could serve to galvanize a north-to-south Great Plains economic corridor. Not possible you say? The Texas Oklahoma Passenger Rail Study is already looking at the 850mile corridor from San Antonio to Oklahoma City. It’s just another 1,100 miles to Winnipeg from there.

A really good Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG), as characterized by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras in the book “Built to Last,” is visionary, strategic and emotionally compelling; it should have a minimum length of about a decade up to a quarter century. All of the big ideas noted above fit these qualifications. Antoine de Saint-Exupery, a French writer and pioneering aviator captured the essence of how we can motivate and mobilize for action to accomplish big goals. “If you want to build a ship, then don’t drum up men to gather wood, give orders and divide the work. Rather teach them to yearn for the far and endless sea.” PB

Delore Zimmerman President, Praxis Strategy Group Executive Director, Red River Valley Research Corridor delore@praxissg.com

Twitter:

@DeloreZimmerman

It’s a Hat Trick!

For the third consecutive year, Spectrum Aeromed has been added to the list of the Inc.500/5000 Fastest Growing Companies. In addition, the company increased their rank to number one in the top 100 in the State of North Dakota.

“Being ranked number one in the state as the fastest growing company is a huge honor because we’re a company focused on providing customers life-saving solutions for their air ambulances,” said Spectrum Aeromed President and CEO Dean Atchison. “The more we grow the more impact we have on saving lives which is how we truly measure success.”

Spectrum-Aeromed.com

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