Friday Linkage from our BIF community

Following are a few noteworthy blog entries from members of our BIF community reflecting processes of innovation which I don't think get enough attention these days: talent and trust.

BIF-4 co-host Bill Taylor writes about Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh. The online retailer founded in 1999 is unbelievably successful and if projections hold true, will reach the $1 billion in merchandise sales mark by the end of the year. (Up from $70 million five years ago). In Why Zappos Pays New Employees to Quit—And You Should Too Bill profiles Hsieh's obsession with customer service. From simple things like a 365-day return policy and free shipping both ways for customers to paying potential employees in their four-week training program a whopping $1,000 to leave the company, Hsieh emphasis on delivering value to the customer through a talented and well-trained staff has turned Zappos into an online retailing phenom.

(Side note: Tony Hsieh will be a storyteller at our upcoming summit in the fall. His personal story is not to be missed.)

Some of the most successful innovations come from creating environments where your talent (both internal and external) can work together collaboratively. All too often though, companies just don't make the time. Former BIF-3 storyteller Irving Wladawsky-Berger writes about a couple of such platforms in Innovation 2.0. "I have become convinced that most highly talented people, - especially those destined for high management and technical positions, - are essentially ambidextrous when it comes to their work. They are able to do their day jobs with flying colors, while simultaneously participating in innovation activities," writes Irving.

And finally, John Wolpert, newest member of our research advisory council and BIF-4 storyteller wrote a great post called “Us” is all of us. “Them” is none of us. Trust-building is overlooked in most innovation conversations these days. Similar to the points made in the blogs above, collaboration isn't simply a matter of providing the right tools and technologies. In this entry, John shares a great example from a Japanese silicon chip consortium in the 1980’s and its four-year effort to break down silos for major breakthrough.