I’m hosting a panel discussion exploring the differences + similarities between Products and Services Development at Dilworth Neighborhood Grill on 9/22/11. We’ve got a neat lineup of cross-breed panelists who have worn both hats and they’ll be sharing their stories over snacks and drinks starting at 5:30.
This is all on behalf of the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA), Carolinas Chapter.
Innovate Carolina attendees, use priority code Innovate2011 to get a discounted registration rate!
Filed under: Uncategorized
Long time no hear, I know. But I’m making a (sarcastic) exception in my vow of silence to promote a great event I’ve been working on in Charlotte: Innovate Carolina. It’s put on by the PDMA Carolinas Chapter (Product Development and Management Association) and promises to be a jam-packed day of Open Innovation conversations with local companies such as SPX, Ingersoll Rand, Enventys, and Electrolux.
Since tax day’s been extended, there’s no excuse for innovators to miss this one!
Filed under: arts and creativity, Charlotte, community services, innovation | Tags: Charlotte, enventys, innovation, levine museum, startup weekend, UNCC
logo via charlotte startup weekend
Posts have been less frequent than intended as of late, but I wanted to post two events that are happening here in May.
The first is Charlotte Startup Weekend over at Enventys Friday the 14th through Sunday the 16th. If you’re looking for an excuse to stop talking about your great business idea and actually start doing something about it, then this is for you. Billed as a “un-conference,much in the same vein as Barcamp, this partners entrepreneur types with developers in teams to get pitches up and running.
Also affiliated with UNCC is a panel event on May 19th at the Levine Museum called “Charlotte’s Creative Class: How Innovation Can Lead the Queen City Beyond the Recession.” Yet another discussion about this town’s identity post-financial crisis, but this time through the lens of Charlotte’s creative class.
Filed under: arts and creativity, Charlotte, community services, design research, information design, innovation, social media, Uncategorized | Tags: barcamp charlotte, charlotte design week, idsa southern district conference, richard saul wurman, ritz carlton charlotte, tedxcharlotte
photo via sirconferences
I wanted to quickly highlight a handful of design+innovation events in the Queen City before they sneak up on us! Who knew we were such a hotbed?!
- Perhaps as a preview to TEDxCharlotte, TED conference founder Richard Saul Wurman is visiting Charlotte to host a double feature on 4/7 and 4/8. The first is “Charlotte as a Learning Playground,” which is geared to be “an interactive conversation on Charlotte’s present and future identity.” At $199, it’s a little pricey, but one perk is that it’s at the new Ritz Carlton Uptown, where attendees can enjoy a fancy spread of hors d’oeuvres and try out the locally filtered water through its first-of-its-kind LEED setup.
- Charlotte’s own AIGA chapter is coordinating the city’s first annual Design Week, and they’re kicking it off at Imaginon on 4/13 with a Design Unplugged panel discussion of local creative directors and businessfolks.
- The next two conflict with an innovation event I’m attending in Chapel Hill, but I figured I’d share it here for those staying local that weekend: Barcamp Charlotte is hosting version 3.0 at Area15 on 4/10 and the Southern District Conference for the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) is in Charlotte on 4/9-11, themed The Economy of Design.
Filed under: consumer behavior, delighters, Uncategorized | Tags: data visualization, easybloom, mint.com
photo via easybloom (click for larger)
At work, I’ve been thinking a lot about how consumers consume data and use it to make everyday decisions. Now that we live in always-connected, info-lusting world, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that there are examples of it everywhere after I leave the office. I’ve been using a calorie-counting app on my iPhone to balance food with exercise over the last two weeks. I’ve played around with Mint.com and TurboTax to make decisions that deal with money.
Over the weekend, I used a sensor-based device called EasyBloom to decide what seeds to plant in my backyard, based on the chemistry of the soil and the amount of sun it gets (clearly, my plants get no sun at night, as the picture will above confirms.) And while the chart is nice to have for reference, what’s far more important about the data is what I should do about it. Since I’m no gardener, the insight and the expert recommendations that companies make for me is where the value lives.
I’ve written about data visualization before, and there’s many many beautiful examples of it everywhere. Then what’s the lesson here? Sometimes as designers and businessfolks, we forget to finish drawing the conclusion and offer the viewer a point of view by which to process those great charts, graphs, and lines. Be that an insight, a recommendation, or a call to action, remember to give consumers the ending!
Filed under: arts and creativity, Charlotte, innovation, social media, Uncategorized | Tags: Charlotte, dan pink, ideas worth spreading, NC music factory, ted, ted talks, tedxcharlotte
How excited was I when I learned about this?! Looks like details are still being formed, but a local version of the knowledge phenomenon that is TED will take place at the NC Music Factory in September. You need to apply to attend, but admission is free if you are one of the chosen. The RTP version is in just a few days.
Until then, here’s one of my favorites from Dan Pink talking about the topic of his most recent book, Drive, which is all about human motivation. A wonderful lesson for service designers everywhere.
Filed under: arts and creativity, Charlotte, innovation, Uncategorized | Tags: amelie's bakery, area 15, brainstorming, Charlotte, creativity, ideation, imaginon, innovation, magellan idea center, the light factory, wachovia
Innovation experts stress the value of conducting ideation sessions offsite, where participants focus on the task at hand and are removed from their day-to-day distractions. Brainstorming in a unfamiliar, yet relaxed environment really gets those alpha brain waves moving.
The economy undoubtedly presents a cost challenge, and it may seem like a luxury to whisk away your most productive employees for a day. However, I’ve seen dramatic differences in idea quality when teams downgrade to ideating in an internal conference room. In light of that, I suggest a few affordable creative spaces in Charlotte, all of which cost far less than a boring hotel ballroom and worth the investment for results.
photo via Magellan/IMR
The Best Buy: Magellan Idea Center
Located just outside Uptown in the Atherton Lofts, this space was designed with ideation in mind. (They also use it for focus groups and other types of market research.) It’s a huge space packed with creative stimuli (magazines, toys, and local art) and has smaller spaces ideal for breakout exercises. Lots of amenities are included, like coffee, snacks and tech equipment.
The Local: Imaginon
One of the benefits of having a session in a children’s museum is that it encourages your participants to think like kids again. Frank Blair of PLCMC suggests choosing one of the round rooms, adjacent to the courtyard, to have a session outdoors. Note that meetings technically have to be open to the public, so it may not be ideal for super-secret topics, but would be a nice place for brainstorming with potential customers.
Runner up “public” space: The Green at Wachovia
The Extra Sensory Experience: Amelie’s French Bakery
Though I haven’t had a workshop here myself, I imagine it would be a lovely place to host one, especially with the tasty treats so close by. And it would be a neat option for teams who are most creative during non-business hours, since they’re open 24/7.
Runners-up: The galleries at the Light Factory or the studios at Area 15 in NoDa (site of local meetups and barcamps.)
I’d love to hear about spaces that other folks in the area have tried. Post them in the comments!
