Taking the First Steps on the Quest to Create a Regional Culture of Innovation Abstract: Our region can be recognized internationally as a vibrant hub for commerce and lifestyle if we take action to cultivate a true culture of innovation where the predominant mindset is one of openness and collaboration. When we realize the potential of this cultural shift, we will improve the way in which we live and work and, as economic development organizations, be more successful at our core work creating, retaining and attracting commerce. Statement: Richard Longworth, Fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and author of Caught in the Middle, recently keynoted an economic development event in our area and illustrated how the changing global economy is separating regions into winners and losers. According to Longworth, those areas who fail to embrace this new landscape will have no place in tomorrow’s economy. We are already witnessing many Midwestern communities educating young people only to see them leave; taking their ideas and dreams with them as they seek out vibrant areas adept at assisting and leveraging the talents they offer. These increasingly mobile workers, and the companies for whom they work and create, will gravitate to regions that embrace a mindset of inclusiveness – one defined by open networks of ideas, people and capital. The Cedar Rapids/Iowa City Corridor has fared comparatively well during this most recent recession, but now is not the time to return to business as usual. Rather, it is time to engage in the “Good to Great” conversation and embrace the changing global economy. We have many of the assets and ingredients in place or at hand to join other dynamic regions such as Austin and Boulder which attract people and capital. These regions truly demonstrate and constantly work to enhance their cultures of innovation. Nothing is preventing our region from achieving this same kind of success and generating international recognition and acclaim. Nothing, that is, except a deep‐ rooted Midwest mindset that all too often perpetuates comfort with the traditional status quo, is overly risk averse, and considers novel thinking as a fad challenging traditional institutions. What steps are required as we begin our quest toward a regional culture of innovation? Step One: Understand What it Means to Live in a Culture of Innovation The Midwestern mindset has not always been anti‐innovation. Companies such as John Deere, Pella, Amana and others became what they are as a result of embracing challenging ideas and taking calculated risks. After economic shifts and scares of the 1980s and early 2000s, Midwesterners now
relish our role and responsibility for being the devil’s advocate, protecting our turf. When confronted with new ideas, we are quick to discuss potential pitfalls, satisfied that we have helped a friend or colleague mitigate unnecessary risk and in doing so have unknowingly held to the status quo. What appears to be leadership is actually prejudgment and assumption. We are prone to getting bogged down in the “how” before we truly understand the value of the “why.” Ask anyone who has ever started a business in our area or state in the past twenty years how challenging it can be to open minds and gain support for a new concept. Better still, ask those who chose not to open a business or who left the area altogether. It is hard enough to start a new venture without the additional challenges of overcoming the antagonists. You may be prone to this state of mind even now, without knowing it, coming up with reasons why a culture of innovation is not the best approach. It is not surprising the state of Iowa is near the bottom of most rankings on new company formation and capital growth, while also near the top in percentage of companies operating for more than thirty years. It is not that company longevity is bad, in fact retention and growth are economic drivers. What is becoming increasingly important is developing a balanced portfolio of new and emerging companies with established operations that embrace creativity and innovation. Overcoming the status quo mindset will be THE CHALLENGE. But just like in business, where successful companies recognize everything they touch is part of the sales process, so too must we seek to realize innovation should be the foundation of everything we do as a region. This culture will be defined by an inquisitive nature which is open to serendipity; realizing new markets are found and created when we look beyond sector limitations and open our thinking. We must reprogram ourselves to accept the merits of new ideas without feeling threatened. We must recognize that long term social capital is as important as short term monetary gain to our collective vision and our future success as individuals, organizations, businesses and communities. In the end, we will learn that longevity is fueled by innovation, rather than seeing them as adversaries. A culture of innovation is not merely the realm of the entrepreneur, but an embrace of a level of thinking for each of us in the Corridor who yearn to achieve our highest potential. It is a systemic rethink of how we plan, engage and solve problems as people, professionals, businesses, organizations and governments. Led by an understanding that the conventional may not be the most effective, this cultural shift would move us away from the impulse to limit, control, protect, predetermine and restrict. Instead, we would embrace a collective mindset which looks for the possibilities of new ideas and the opportunities of change. A richness of experience and personal growth arise when people begin interacting and sharing with those they have not worked with or taken the time to understand. We must realize our turf need not be mutually exclusive and static, but will be significantly more solid when flexible and shared. Celebrating and embracing the uniqueness of our communities, business and people is not diluted nor lost as we build this culture of innovation, but rather this process produces exponential experiences and opportunities for us all.
Innovation arises when we allow ideas to migrate between and among a diverse set of minds. Rather than coveting our thought process, innovation utilizes an open source model, embracing with confidence that the collective and the individuals within generate significantly more rewards, credit and profit than any one entity could have in isolation. These are traits that define regions like Austin and Boulder. Rather than fearing those with challenging new ideas, these regions have learned to collectively support, encourage and provide assistance. They do not relegate this job to a handful of organizations, but rather trust it is a part of everyone’s role in the community to actively engage in this process. How do we arrive at this culture? Step Two: Make the Commitment to Bringing this Culture to Life in the Corridor If we want to live in a region recognized internationally as having a culture for innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit for everyone, we must first commit to making this our goal. It has been said that you cannot “create” a culture, and with this we agree. A truly genuine culture of this type cannot be created but it can be envisioned and endeavored with new thinking, new approaches and by utilizing existing assets in more creative ways. Moving toward this culture has its own set of challenges. Typically when we desire change, a group of leaders seeks to enact it into reality. This runs counter to what we envision, because a culture of innovation cannot be controlled or shaped by a handful of minds. We must resist the urge to overthink and over plan and instead allow this culture to take shape on its own. This type of culture, like each of us, works best and produces more when given room to breathe and afforded autonomy. We can begin by injecting this way of thinking into each of our organizations and businesses. We must support an environment that gives all our citizens a way to direct their own lives; to learn and create new products, services, companies, and the like, and to do so in such a way that we better our lives and those around us. We should not seek to predefine what this culture will look and feel like, but rather let it take a shape and direction of its own volition. This runs counter to how we have traditionally solved problems or viewed our roles as Midwesterners in the past, but it is vital to reshaping our culture into one that can flourish in the unforgiving global economy at hand. So how will we know when we have gotten there? When people know our story without us having to tell it. When people, businesses and capital gravitate here autonomously, without extensive outreach and unsustainable financial incentives. In fact, this new environment will be our strongest incentive. We will need a new set of metrics to measure our success in the new economy. This too will be an enjoyable part of the journey in defining who we are and how far we have come; one that will require us to ask different questions of different people than we have in the past. Again, our basic priorities as economic development groups are not changing. We are, however, challenging the way in which the world sees us, such that we are better able to accomplish our missions. So where do we start at achieving such a seemingly ambiguous and ambitious goal?
Step Three: Start Actively Putting People and Ideas Together If an innovative culture is a mindset where ideas flow freely between people and organizations and our goal is to create such an inviting and inclusive region, then we must begin to do just that: bring people and ideas together. There is already an undercurrent in this market. At times we see it and feel it. We are not trying to create something out of thin air but instead actively engage in mixing the existing ingredients in a new and better way. On January 11, 2011, we will unveil an overarching umbrella brand that will identify events in our region which capture the essence of this mindset and bring innovative minds together. Many of these will be tied to larger global initiatives which already have some level of brand recognition we can leverage. Examples would be Jellys, Start Up Weekends, Ignite Conferences, Tech Brews, Bar Camps and other similar un‐conferences and events, ultimately leading up to highly visible and internationally renowned efforts such as TEDx events. As the economic development entities in the region, we can help coordinate and organize some of these activities, yet as the culture develops, other ideas will emerge from outside groups. If these concepts hold true to the mission of building this innovative culture, we can utilize the brand to drive audiences and resources to help make them successful. This is how we bridge the traditional to the innovative; preserving institutions while still encouraging emergent thought and solutions until the culture takes hold and self generates. Another way we can influence the way people engage and interact is to create physical spaces or encourage development of spaces within the region where innovation can take place. Currently both ends of the Corridor are exploring how to create knowledge ecosystems. These are not incubators as we traditionally think of them, but rather physical coworking places where entrepreneurs and freelancers work next to individuals from existing companies, artists, students, writers and visitors on a daily basis. Knowledge ecosystems are places defined by their affinity for attracting open minds and facilitating the ongoing flow of ideas. Similar spaces, including The Hive and New Work City, have started to take hold throughout the country in the past few years. To broaden the reach of these events and spaces we will utilize existing social networking platforms to expand upon the momentum and linkages created. Over time, these events and spaces will prove to catalyze new company formation, increase the number of workers living in the region working remotely for outside firms, and develop new markets from this collaborative process. Ultimately this culture will spread into all businesses, organizations and government entities in the region to help them better engage and capitalize on new opportunities. The global economy is changing, but it need not be something to fear. Our region can remain vibrant and be one of the “winners” if we commit to lead and innovate. We must rethink how we support our existing companies, grow new firms and increase our attractiveness for recruiting new employers. Our organizations recognize the incredible potential of what we can become if we embrace this vision and take these steps. Developing this culture will take time, it will be an ongoing quest requiring hundreds of engaged Sherpa to guide others. We stand united at the foot of the mountain excited for the journey ahead and confident that together we will succeed.