The Innovators Studio with Phil McKinney

Every year Chicago highlights the art of invention and innovation.  I'm honored to  welcome back  Tom Kuczmarski to the show.  Tom talks about exciting things going on in the realm of Chicago innovation and student invention.  If you've had trouble buttering your toast, today's show might have the solution. At the  Chicago Student Invention Convention , one student invention solves a simple breakf...

Anyone who wants to be highly creative, be an innovator, and generate killer ideas needs above all else one thing.  You need your brain. That's why it's of primary importance that you take care of your brain health. Your brain, like any muscle  can be exercised  and strengthened.  In today's show, we talk about how you can optimize your brain health for innovation and creativity.   Good News for Y...

Growing up with an inventor dad, Jarl Jensen knew innovation and ideas were in his future.  As a kid, his dad would play  the "Invention Game"  with him.  His dad would present an object and together they would come up with different ideas for its use.  In his teens, Jarl was already on the road to success writing a medical patent. Now Jarl has several patents in medical innovations.  He was also...

September is  National Peripheral Artery Disease Awareness month .  In view of this, today's show is an edited re-broadcast of two shows from  November 2017 .   Kym McNicholas and I interview  Ra Medical  founder, Dean Irwin.  Dean shares his unusual path to medical innovation with some key lessons for innovators. From TV Tubes to Thermonuclear Fusion Dean started his journey of lifelong  learning...

A recent event brought back to mind a blog I posted in  January 2017 on the innovation economy .  A news agency reporting on a candidate running for governor referenced that blog post.  The candidate's platform is the innovation economy. It seems to be gaining traction this political season.  There is a drive for economic rebirth of urban areas or to reestablish the growth engine for states. This...

In a recent show, I talked about setting innovation objectives.  Listeners wrote in asking for details on how to include innovation in the objective setting process.   So, in this week's show I share the steps to setting innovation objectives. Done well, innovation objectives can result in exponential success for your organization. The purpose for setting objectives is to  gain alignment  in the o...

A key mission for an innovation leader is to motivate, support, and help your teams learn good innovation habits.  This should occur daily with each interaction. Modeling leadership habits and exhibiting leadership skills inspires employees to become leaders.  In today's show, I share six questions I ask my employees. These questions encourage good habits and sharpen innovation leadership skills w...

A common question I get from listeners is how to fight against the roadblocks and barriers to innovation.  In this week's show, I address five of the biggest barriers to innovation. The list is based on the 2018  Innovation Leader  study done in partnership with KPMG.  The study surveyed Chief Innovation Officers in organizations ranging from small to large.  As many of you have let me know, these...

Success in the innovation game requires strong innovation leadership.   But there is confusion about what defines leadership. To understand leadership, we need to boil it down to the essence – what it is and what it isn't.  We need to identify a key leadership skill and determine how this skill can elicit success. There are leaders who stand out in my mind. They have had an effect on me through my...

  Today's show is unique.  I recorded it as I drove back to Denver from an annual event in Keystone, Colorado .  The event centers around what's coming in the next three to eight years in technology and innovation.  So, sit back and enjoy the ride as I share my thoughts on innovation and the near future.   Pondering AI and Ethics I delivered two keynotes at the event.  During one, I got a question...

  Often when we think about innovation, it's high tech or a game changing breakthrough.  Today, we look at innovation through a different set of glasses. Rather than innovating a product or service, "costovation" innovates on the business model.  Stephen Wunker talks about innovating behind the scenes, creating customer value through cost innovation. New Markets Advisors founder and managing direc...

On today's show, instead of hosting a guest, I am the guest.   Erich Viedge  interviews me for his podcast,  The Skeptical Executive .  Erich brings innovation to unique industries.  He's also an early listener of Killer Innovations. Erich has some good questions to ask me. We touch on a range of thoughts and issues around innovation and creativity. Is Innovation for Everyone? Are there industries...

  From my shows on this year's CES , you'll know I'm leery of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the many companies touting it.  On the flip side, I have also featured some interesting ventures into AI .  When I heard that Box was delving into AI, I had to learn more.  In this show, hear how Box's content management innovation increases the value of content stored.   Can Awesome Get Better? Box offe...

Keywords:  innovation; fuel efficiency innovation   Competing for Fuel Efficiency Innovation There's been an explosion of innovation competitions in recent years.  They highlight the fact that innovation can come from non-obvious sources.   These competitions bring together smart people – usually industry outsiders - to tackle a problem.   The annual Shell Eco-marathon Americas took place this yea...

Great ideas come and go, but what makes an idea into something bigger?  How do you develop your idea into a product that will attract venture capitalists and scale your business?  Is the idea sustainable beyond one or two seasons of growth? Can the idea bloom into a niche market and then cross pollinate?    Patrick Henry, QuestFusion founder and CEO, shares his framework for cultivating ideation t...

Did you ever set a goal or New Year's resolution only to abandon it?  Do find your life lacks purpose? Do you doubt your ability to accomplish amazing things?  Today's show features Tal Gur , blogger, author, motivational speaker.  Tal's goal, or one of many, is to inspire you to set goals and achieve them.   The Start of a Life Journey Some people may do one or two extraordinary things in their l...

The pressure is intense in the U.S. government to get innovation efforts underway.  "Beltway bandits" riddle proposals with "innovation" in hopes of securing contracts.  Politicians believe it will solve all the problems. This politics of innovation doesn't always bring about impactful innovation.  What can governments do to generate meaningful innovation? How should politicians think about innova...

What brought a successful Wall Street investor and a lauded entrepreneur to Central Ohio?  Flavio Lobato and John D'Orazio, Ikove Capital Co-Founders , saw amazing innovation where few were looking.  To cultivate technology growth in the Midwest , Ikove Capital developed the Innovation Nursery.   Nurturing the Startup Ikove means "growth" in the Brazilian indigenous language Tupi-Guarani.  This ap...

At the Innovation Boot Camp , I had a chance to talk with Kym McNicholas .  We've both been traveling.  Kym's made stops in Europe and Asia to promote medical innovations.  I've driven 12,000 miles in four months in the Mobile Studio. On the road, we've found innovation in non-obvious locations .  Here's a recap of what we've been tracking in the innovation arena.   A New Market of Employees Kym n...

Take a look in an unexpected direction and discover non-obvious innovation.  One entrepreneur is building solutions to meet basic needs in rural and urban slums of India.  Hasit Ganatra is founder of ReMaterials .  His company designs and produces the ModRoof, roofing for the developing world.  ReMaterials solves a serious problem in a non-obvious location .   Microchips to Roofing Hasit could hav...

Keywords: (1) Copycat Innovation and (2) Ethical Innovator   Copycat Innovation and the Ethical Innovator   This year at South by Southwest (SXSW), I facilitated a discussion on neurodiversity hiring .  This is part of my work with Hacking Autism .  SXSW is a multi-week event, part music festival, part innovation reveal.  It's where big names like Twitter first launched. However, I noticed at this...

Being content may be a positive emotion in some senses.  Not so with innovation. If you are ready to rest on your laurels after a triumph or a stressful circumstance, get ready.  Major change could be looming around the corner. Let me explain why I believe being content can be the enemy of innovation.   First, consider what being content means.  Feelings of peace, calm, acceptance of where we are...

Ever wish you could travel the world discovering better ways of doing things?  The next best thing - read the book. Author Mark Stevenson is an innovation explorer.  He's visited remote parts and populous cities worldwide. This 'reluctant futurist' searches for people whose innovations are making a positive impact.  In the process, he's discovering the roadmap to a better future. His book, We Do T...

When civic and business leaders have a meeting of the minds, amazing things can happen.  Cincinnati is home to several major corporations and health care organizations. The demand is high for tech innovation.  This midwestern city has created a  unique approach  to draw in the best talent.  Cintrifuse is the confluence of innovation in Cincinnati. Cintrifuse  exists through public private partners...

Exploring rural innovation, I stopped in Paducah, Kentucky.  Drs. Lula Luu and John Crilly, founders of  FIn Gourmet Foods , joined the mobile studio.  Word got around town. Monica Bilak contacted me through  The Innovator's Community .  I'm pleased to welcome Monica and Jimi Gwinn.  They share how Sprocket is inspiring student innovation in Paducah. Sprocket  is a makerspace for students and the...