Principled Innovation LLC

Serious. Simple. Social.

January 1st, 2009

Happy New Year, and welcome to 2009!  To set the right tone for the year from the very beginning, I want to share my three watchwords for 2009 with you straightaway, and without any rhetorical flourish (there’s plenty of that below):

Serious. Simple. Social.

Without question, the “2009 is going to be a difficult year” meme is out there in full force.  And while it’s true, of course, I’m reading and hearing it so much, I’m now beginning to ask “so what?”  Sure, we’re in the middle of a deep economic downturn that is global in scope and unlike anything we’ve experienced in our lifetimes.  The real issue before us, however, isn’t how we’re going to get out of this predicament, but how our organizations are going to succeed in a sustainable way in the irrevocably-altered world we will find on the other side of this mess.  The former is a complex challenge.  The latter is a wicked problem.

So, I suppose what I’m really wondering is whether we’re going to approach this difficult year in a way that breaks with our past assumptions, because those assumptions no longer serve us well.  Sadly, when I read articles about associations behaving in the same destructively myopic fashion as business, it does not inspire much optimism.  But I’m not prepared to surrender to pessimism either, so instead let’s focus on what association leaders can do to change the current dynamics and open new lines of inquiry and action:

Serious–2009 is the year for serious leaders to create spaces for serious conversations that drive serious thinking about what is possible.  Association leaders must be serious about creating value, creating meaning and creating the conditions to achieve the right outcomes.  But as I’ve already suggested, being serious doesn’t mean being shortsighted and severe. When we’re serious, we can focus on doing the right thing at the right time and in the right way.

Simple–2009 is the year to rid our organizations of their unnecessary complexity to make them simpler and more user friendly for members, staff and business partners.  By being simple, we can achieve increased efficiency, realize cost savings and redesign the essential elements of organizational success for greater effectiveness.  While association leaders have no power to change the inherent complexity of the operating environment, we can develop simpler and more lightweight interfaces to drive success within it.

Social–2009 is the year to fully integrate a social mindset into association work.  Most associations function as closed systems, and lack the requisite diversity and vibrancy to make innovation sustainable.  By adopting a social perspective and approach, associations can nurture the kind of genuine openness that leads to new collaborative possibilities.  Our organizations will need a deep reservoir of the spirit of shared discovery and invention to devise creative solutions to the wicked problems we face going forward.

If you’re skeptical that three words can define a year, you may not be familiar with the phrase, “Yes we can!”  But let’s be clear that the three watchwords I’ve shared with you here are not a political mantra, but a strategic point of view on what success will require of us in 2009.  Despite all that is happening beyond our control, we still have the power to make this year what we want it to be.  My New Year’s wish is that we will choose to be different in 2009, and change the trajectory of our future in the process.

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