Code Halos: How the Digital Lives of People, Things, and Organizations are Changing the Rules of Business

Chapter TwelveSeize Advantage During Ionization: Sense, Innovate, and Prepare to Pilot

“If you always do what you always did, then you will always get what you always got.”

—Unknown

As we discussed in Chapter 6, we call the first stage of the Crossroads Model “Ionization” because there is an electrified sensation in your organization’s environment during this period. The canny business leader is aware that a great new challenge is imminent, an enormous new opportunity is shaping up—but the exact nature of that challenge is as yet unclear.

Based on our research and client work, we know that organizations in a wide range of industries and in markets around the world already know that their business environment is in a state of Ionization. Things feel different, a little strange, and the business-as-usual approach is not producing the results it once did. They know there is a “future of work” ahead that’s very different from the current model. Yet many aren’t precisely sure about what that means—or where to start.

Your Goal for Ionization Is an Action Plan

Your goal for the Ionization phase, therefore, is to move from the recognition that something needs to happen to making something happen. Specifically, you want to develop a portfolio of three to six Code Halo ideas ready for pilot.

The following five actions will help you find high-potential pilot ideas within your company and successfully plot a course forward:

1. Prepare your organization for innovation.
2. Map your value chain. ...