GoInnovate! Your Business E-Zine GoInnovate! Your Curiosity
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GoInnovate! a CEO
January 2008 - Vol 10, Issue 1
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Greetings!

Greetings! And Happy New Year!

In the year ahead, we will challenge your thinking, spark your imagination, stimulate your creativity, and reveal your intuition. Some of your most cherished beliefs may not make the heroic journey over the horizon to meet the day we call tomorrow. But you will will discover the healthy potential and substantial results afforded by new thinking.

We are proud to introduce in this issue a new column - Innovator Interview. During the year, you will develop your own expertise at innovation as innovators from all walks of life share their insights and lessons learned.

May your greatest aspirations be realized in 2008. GoInnovate!

ozzie
Innovator Interview: Ozzie Gontang
For 22 years Ozzie Gontang has been a Group Chair with Vistage International, the world's largest membership CEO organization. Member CEOs bring forward their business issues and receive peer feedback at monthly meetings. Vistage International and its global TEC affiliates have 14,000 members in 16 countries.

Each month Ozzie meets with a group of 10 to 18 CEOs for a full day under these guiding principles-to help one another make better decisions, achieve better results for their businesses, and enhance their lives. He also does one-on-one coaching with each CEO every month.

Combining his CEO experience and interest in the mind/body/spirit connection, Ozzie offers a unique perspective on innovation in organizations. You can email Ozzie at: gontang@electriciti.com.

I interviewed Ozzie at the Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine in La Jolla, California where Ozzie is also the group leader for patients with severe heart disease. What follows is an edited transcript of our conversation as we sat in a groove of pine trees overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

A: Why has Vistage been so successful?

O: A big part of our success is that we are all there to learn. Instead of telling each other what to do, we share our unique perspectives. The analogy for me is that of a Grand Round rather than a Board of Advisors or a Board of Directors.

In Grand Rounds, someone introduces a particular issue to a group of medical professionals. All of those involved, from the newest resident with access to the latest research to the oldest clinician with 30 or 40 years of practical experience, come together as equals and share their information for the good of the patient and the good of each other. That is how it works in our monthly Vistage meetings.

Any time anyone brings an issue, my intention is that everyone walks away with something of value to them personally. If they don't, the group will not be around for long.

One of the most important factors in our success is the emphasis we place on clarification, which comes through asking good questions. Over 50% of the time when someone brings an issue and we have done a good enough job listening, we find out the issue is not the issue at all. Once we clarify the real issue we can focus on viable solutions.

The key skill here is listening. Hidden in the word listen is the word "silent." The tendency is that most CEOs are speaking or getting ready to speak. The ability for a CEO to listen is very powerful; it provides them with the insights necessary to lead high-performing, innovative organizations.

A: What are the distinguishing qualities of the most innovative CEOs you have worked with over the years?

O: Firstly, the most innovative CEOs have the ability to listen, question and use the insights and collective wisdom of their people. They are clear on their purpose and recognize there are a thousand different ways to accomplish their goals. They are willing to listen to how others would get there. They recognize that each person is unique with unique perspectives.

A friend of mine, Tony Lewis, who ran an $8 billion division of ConAgra, would continually ask people throughout his organization three questions to uncover innovative possibilities.
  • What do like about your job?
  • What don't you like about your job?
  • If you were sitting in my seat, what would you do?
Secondly, innovative CEOs create connectedness. They are willing to hire people smarter and better than themselves. They then connect these people to achieve optimum results.

They also connect ideas. When Gutenberg invented moveable type and mechanical printing, he put together the coin stamping machine and the wine press which had been around for a few thousand years. Innovative leaders do the same sort of connecting.

Thirdly, innovative CEOs inspire (breathe life into) people. They see people for being more than what they think they can be and figure out a way to develop those people to their full potential.
Abilene Paradox
This is one of my all time favorite parables. Travel the road to Abilene as a group of people collectively decide on a course of action that is counter to the preferences of any of the individuals in the group. Each member mistakenly believes that his or her own preferences are counter to the group's and does not raise objections.

Produced by the people who also brought you GroupThink and The Pygmalion Effect, this best- selling, classic training program has been offered in thousands of organizations.

The Dash
In July 2006, a short 3-minute movie was launched on the Internet called The Dash. Since then, over 40 million people from around the world have watched it; and over 20,000 a day continue to watch it as a result of people passing it along. It has inspired many, many people to reflect on their lives and ask that all important question, 'Are my priorities where they should be?'
In each issue of the GoInnovate! E-Zine we offer you a practical Inno-Tool© to assist you in being more creative and innovative.
A Simple Quiz
Here's a little and simple quiz of your creative thinking and problem solving abilities from Accenture. It consists of four questions none of which are difficult.

1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
2. How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?
3. The Lion King is hosting an animal conference. All the animals attend expect one. Which animal would that be?
4. There is a river you must cross but is inhabited by crocodiles. How do you manage it?

According to Accenture, around 90% of the professionals they tested got all the questions wrong. But many preschoolers got several correct answers. Why? They haven't been polluted yet with thought blockers. Let's see how you faired.

1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
The correct answer is, Open the refrigerator, put in the giraffe, and close the door. This question tests whether you tend to do simple things in an overly complicated way.

2. How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?
Did you say, "Open the refrigerator, put in the elephant and close the refrigerator? (Wrong answer)
Correct answer: Open the refrigerator, take out the giraffe, put in the elephant and close the door. This tests your ability to think through the repercussions of your previous actions.

3. The Lion King is hosting an animal conference. All the animals attend expect one. Which animal would that be?
Correct answer: The Elephant. The elephant is in the refrigerator. You just put him in there. This tests your memory. Ok even if you didn't get the first three questions right you still have one more chance to show your true abilities.

4. There is a river you must cross but is inhabited by crocodiles. How do you manage it?
Correct answer: You swim across. All the crocodiles are attending the animal meeting. This tests whether you learn quickly from your mistakes.

Go ahead and try the quiz out on some colleagues at work.
 

"To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly." French Philosopher, 1927 Nobel Prize in Literature, 1859-1941

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