Methodology for strategic challenges used to save water

KTH Executive School has developed a methodology to help our participants to solve strategic challenges. The same methodology was recently used together with eights small islands that all face the challenge to reduce their water footprints and save 25% of the fresh water.

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One of the biggest challenges for all mature Swedish companies is how to become or stay innovative. To address this issue KTH Executive School has handpicked the best from academia and industry to a three-day course in Leading Innovation.

The course combines theories with hands-on methodology and address:
– Innovation Management
– Innovation Action
– Innovation Leadership

The course takes place on November 29-30 and December 14. Read more and apply here.

The higher education system is facing a time of disruption. The rapid development of Massive Open Online Courses, MOOCs, has generated a lively debate. The effect on the existing higher education is in focus. Can MOOCs really be an alternative to face to face classroom teaching? Despite this legitimate scepticism, the number of universities offering MOOCs increase at a rapid pace. As MOOCs went from an experimental phase to become well established in 2012, more and more universities jumped on the bandwagon. Some clearly see an opportunity, while others seem to join without a clearly formulated strategy. Jumping or not, all universities are today expected to have an answer to the question: What are your plans within the MOOC area?

The disruptive innovation theory indicates that we can expect dramatic changes

So far, the phenomenon follows the disruptive innovation theory by Clayton Christensen: incumbents regard the new service to be of a much lower quality; the new innovation target underserved or new customer segments; the service is offered at much lower price levels; the offer is less complete but holds the potential to develop fast meeting demands of present customers, “ordinary students” in this case. The disruptive innovation theory indicates that we can expect dramatic changes within the higher education industry. The core of the disruptive nature of MOOCs is, compared to ordinary face to face higher education, the very limited incremental cost to add one additional student along with that the service is ubiquitous. These two characteristics combined, lay the foundation for a very fast penetration. This pattern has earlier been seen for other internet based business models challenging established industries. Läs mer

Amazon began with a young Jeff Bezos who, through his job at the time, learned that Internet usage grew strongly. He then made his analytical homework and decided that he would start a website for selling books. Here’s an interesting clip from 1997 where you can hear Jeff Bezos himself describe his process.

It would be easy to say that “the rest is history”, but instead we are going to stop and think about it. Being small, on the right market, at right time and growing is one thing, being big and continuing to develop is a completely different challenge. The two are very often confused. The question for established actors is not if, but when their conventional ways of doing business are going to become outdated. Many companies hold on to obsolete business models far too long… and eventually die. But there are ways to go forward – and like everything else it takes decision making and commitment.

Amazons competitors at the time was called Barnes & Noble and in Sweden Akademibokhandeln. Today, the list can be made considerably longer – way too long to post here, but have a look at this link. Firms like DHL, Volvo and Scania is going to be challenged in smart deliveries, transports with self-driving drones. With regard to data analysis and data storage, Amazon today competes with both Google and IBM. And with the acquisition of Whole Foods, Swedish food actors like Martin & Servera and ICA will also have to think about what their real challenges will be in the future. Läs mer

KTH Executive School thank our founder Professor Emeritus Eric Giertz for his contributions. Eric has been in the forefront in research connected to business development and technology for decades and in this movie you can hear about some of his work.

It is summer, at last. For lazy days we have selected a few book titles that do broaden perspectives.

Alec Ross, Hillary Clinton’s Senior Advisor for Innovation, distils his observations on the forces that are changing the world in The Industries of the future. Robotics, artificial intelligence, the commercialization of genomics, cybercrime and the impact of digital technology. How will we need to adapt to all of this? You can purchase it here.

The other titles we recommend are Originals, Plattform Revolution and Crossing the Chasm.

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During the two-day innovation workshop initiated by HiQ in connection with Rally Sweden (Svenska Rallyt) in Värmland, we also discussed speed. Namely, how fast the business landscape is changing. The conclusion is that if you feel you have full control, you are not moving fast enough.

At a high transformation rate, what actually happens is very similar to what happens in the rally forest, sometimes one slides off the road. However, what distinguishes the most successful is how fast they can get back on track and how they use their experience to continuously improve their performance.

KTH Executive School is heading a study on eight small, dry European islands on how to save fresh water. To become more sustainable, they need technologies and they need to address people’s attitudes and behavior regarding water.

We use  Executive School’s ”Challenge” methodology meaning we don’t lecture, but let the highly competent islands Mayors and Technical Directors meet in frank discussions. You could describe them as well-prepared, thoroughly researched round table talks.

The study is led by Christian Pleijel at KTH ES with the support of Associate Professor Anders Nordström from Stockholm University, dr Christoforos Perakis from CRES (Athens), Professor Louis Brigand and Maxime Bredin from l’Université de Brest and Máirtín O’Mealoid from Cape Clear Island, Ireland.

The study will be presented to the European Parliament in late November with Tonino Picula as host. Mr Picula was Foreign Minister of the Republic of Croatia and is now Vice President of the European Parliament Intergroup for Seas, Rivers, Islands and Coastal Areas.

MTC holds its next lunch seminar on 1 February focusing on new digital technology, its influence on current marketing practices and the new opportunities it opens up. If you speak Swedish and you are interested in how new digital technology affects corporate marketing and the roll of various business divisions, you are most welcome to join us.

Our process leader for Round Table Industrial Management Maria Poppen Wiklander was today elected as a member of IVA, The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, among  for example Jan Gulliksen from KTH who is chairman of The Digitalisation Commission as well as belonging to our faculty in 2016.