Continuing the Adventure

It’s time to say goodbye, but I think goodbyes are sad and I’d much rather say hello Hello to a new adventure

—ERNIE HARWELL

My grandmother was a great wild-game cook. At her table during my childhood, my family enjoyed wild turkey, venison, wild boar, squirrel, and even an occasional opossum. One of my favorite dishes was her rabbit stew (hasenpfeffer). She used an antique recipe that had as its first instruction: “First, get a rabbit.” The recipe for co-creating with customers begins the same way—first, get a customer.

Your adventure begins by communicating to your market-place that you are a resource for experimentation and thus open to collective discovery. It signals you are willing to be courageous and adventurous instead of betting solely on the “tried and true” and “proven results.” Ideas cannot be stock-piled nor creativity inventoried. It is a part of the “on faith” section of the balance sheet, right along with advertising, new ventures, and world-class customer service.

When customers acknowledge or imply their uncertainty about a clear path to their aspirations, it should also be a welcome sign of their search for a partner willing to work with them, not just on their behalf. Consider it an affirming gesture, and demonstrate your enthusiasm as well as your humility. An invitation to partner for innovation is not a sales pitch any more than you would sell a person on being your friend or spouse. Features and benefits might not have the same influence capability as curiosity, grounding, discovery, trust, passion, and a willingness to discover together.

Build the relationship before you start crafting ideas. Clarify the collective focus and agree on the guardrails before you begin whiteboarding a plan. This is not drive-by innovation; it must be unfolded thoughtfully. Rushing to the punchline not only risks leaving unused genius and ignored imagination in your path, it also hazards leaving your customer back there as well. The goal is not just a successful outcome; it is one that works for all. That requires the amalgamation of the needs and talents of all constituents involved and a clear cognizance of all people impacted. And when success is underway, don’t forget to celebrate your collaboration and express your gratitude for all contributions.

Let’s do one last review before we bid adieu. Why this book? Organizations need breakthrough products, services, and solutions to effectively compete. They need the customer’s imagination to ensure the discovery of innovative and valued offerings. How? Accessing the customer’s imagination requires a co-creation partnership that invites and attracts creative contributions. A co-creation partnership takes 1) curiosity that uncovers insight, 2) grounding that promotes clear focus, 3) discovery that fosters risk-taking and experimentation, 4) trust that safeguards partnership purity and wholeness, and 5) passion that inspires energized generosity. And the payoff? The journey leads to ingenious outcomes and a customer who emerges as an advocate.

Writing this book has been a great experience for me. In a profound and personal way, the process has helped me sort out what I believe about partnering and collaborative innovation. For much of my professional life, my vision of the innovation process was sort of the “Edison in a lab” image—a lone inventor toiling late into the night. Despite the appeal of synergism and the magnetism of “two heads together,” that rugged individualism and solo pioneering spirit had a romantic appeal.

But a turning point came when my son came down the hospital hallway with tears rolling down his face and a glow on his countenance to announce, “We have a perfect baby girl, and her name is Kaylee Marie.” My wife’s middle name is Marie. It was a magical moment of announcing a creation that came from a partnership, the miracle of birth replicated by countless couples every day all over the world. Yet, despite its ordinariness from a world view, it was clearly a moment of exhilaration for him and the grandparents, family, and friends who witnessed his excited announcement.

“Imagination is more important than intelligence,” said Albert Einstein, arguably the twentieth century’s most intelligent person. “For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.” As customers, our imagination applied to a challenge is much the same. Intelligent service makes us feel secure, but applications that source our imagination make us swoon. Smart service builds our confidence; solutions with imagination make our heart skip a beat.

The by-product of a customer partnership focused on innovation is more than loyalty or advocacy. It is a deep, abiding bond that emerges from risking together, being authentic and vulnerable together, and solving or inventing together. It is a microcosm of interpersonal relationships at their finest, a model for the best of democracy in action. It starts with the courageous act to more passionately connect. And it starts with a single encounter—your next one.