Last week, I immersed myself in the wonderful Business Innovation Factory community by attending the BIF-8 conference in Providence, RI. I always find great case studies to pursue at this event, so stay tuned! For my overview “trip report,” I stepped back and squinted to discern the patterns and common themes that I took away from this rich tapestry of storytelling and conversations. A few things really pop out:
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People
of all ages are building networks (physical & virtual) to make a
difference in their world. Despite the economic malaise (or because of
it) there’s an abundance of grass roots social movements at the local
community level and across the country tackling everything from building
playgrounds, to reducing gang violence, to improving the lives of
homeless children, to bringing peace of mind to the mentally ill.
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New
forms of institutions are turning up to take the place of the ones that
no longer work—for diplomacy, for education, for healthcare, for
citizen-led government, for city-planning.
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Customer-led,
customer-engaged, citizen-led movements and organizations are where
most of the action is. We’re moving beyond social networking to social
working.
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We now
know enough about how to create customer-engaged business models and how
to support social movements that we’re entering a meta-model era. There
are now “platforms for participation” with online tools and structures
that can be used as a foundation and/or a model by business and social
entrepreneurs.
-
The
biggest boost to our economy will come from life sciences, as our next
generation of programmers creates new bio-fuels and new healthy pathways
and we tap the power of the human brain to overcome physical
disabilities.
- To increase our happiness quotient, we need to counter the seduction of our ever-present electronic gadgets by focusing on the present moment, indulging in physical face-time, and experiencing life as we do music.
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