Innovation Requires Project-Based Work: Creativity Needs Constraints

This is an insightful video from the Swedish magazine/web site Innovation Management.

In product development, Google’s Marissa Mayer, Vice President of Search Products & User Experience, believes that a small amount of constraint – whether in file size, pixels, or speed – fosters a lot of innovation. The lesson she shares? Too much creative freedom can make creativity unfocused. A solution with a strict set of barriers yields more concrete solutions.

Presentations Rule--use this to guide the next one

Leaders of complex global projects and programs have to make presentations in 3 organizational dimensions:

1. To their executives and sponsors
2. To their peers
3. To those they lead

All of these are critical for success requiring levels of nuance and design.  Nancy Duarte (Duarte Design) excels in the design of presentations that matter.  See her site for examples and learn from her two excellent books:  Slide:ology and Resonate.

The Presentation Landscape is one of her many tools (download here).  It provides an effective means of determining what needs to be done given the type of presentation required.  Go forth and present!