Seth Kahan

When we think of innovation, most of us think of something like a skunk works, an experimental laboratory where new ideas are cooked up to take to market. We have been told by many innovation gurus that we can all be innovators if we become curious, adopt a playful attitude, give ourselves permission to fail, […]

Star Trek was an experiment when it first appeared on TV. The show was initiated in the 1960s predicting, among many other things, a future in which people of different races worked together in harmony. This came at a time when civil rights were tearing the country apart. It was a bold move. When all

…is to move from a single leader to a leadership team. I have now worked for over 100 leaders in organizations and their senior teams… close and hands-on. The biggest constraint I see leaders face is maintaining a senior management team instead of developing a senior leadership team. Managers complete tasks, control budget, use their

Associations have been an American staple for 100+ years. Today their primary value proposition, bringing together like-minded professionals and providing them with the best education, professional networking, and advocacy to be found, is being disrupted by advances in technology and private sector competitors. These member organizations are experiencing disruption on three fronts: 1. Their business

There is so much change in the world. Things are changing all around us. Are you leaning into it or bracing yourself as it pelts you? My newly adopted 6-yr-old daughter, from India, seems bent on becoming part of our family. Even as she was grieving the loss of her closest friends in the orphanage

Positioning your organization as the gold standard means generating the revenue you need to provide maximum customer value. My synergy zone shows how to make this possible. Successful leaders are expert at locating their products and services in this zone. The graphics below show where customer value and financial growth overlap, distance or reinforce each

My first major change initiative in the mid-90s was built on the back of assembling the best with measured regularity. We pulled together large and small groups with even periodicity. As a result we generated significant progress over and again. Using these steady, regular gatherings we systematically increased value while making it possible for others

The market is tough. Pursuing growth is on everyone’s mind. Identifying new ways to increase revenue and profit often relies on engaging the right people. They can provide an enormous amount of helpful information and guidance. Here’s some guidance for finding these folks. First, identify your core constituencies – these are the groups that must

Some decisions are permanent. Once you make them, there is no going back.  It can be a little intimidating to consider that there is no undoing what you are about to put in motion. Yet, in certain circumstances the risk and the uncertainty are justified by the gains. To lean far into the future, you

Innovation is nothing if not successful. If you’ve read the innovation literature, I know you’ve heard about letting your people be creative and maintaining a tolerance for mistakes. You’ve seen the lists that include things like: play, curiosity, intuition, collaboration, and failure. I’ll probably tick a lot of innovation pundits off when I say this: