A strong community that supports, creates and succeeds is built on connections, resource sharing and collaboration.
On Friday October 23 the SLO Chamber brought Mary Wagner, senior vice president of global product innovation / food safety and quality at Starbucks, and Kimberly Guiry, of ROCeteer who is responsible for coaching more than 300 Downtown Project startups in Las Vegas, to share how they inspire and cultivate innovation in large and small businesses.
“Co-learning is the part where it gets a little more intimate,” Guiry said. “It’s finding people at your table that are in the same exact situation that you’re in and then setting up a lunch date, spending time with them to share your learnings, inviting them over to your office, really getting them involved in your business because sometimes it’s an outside view that can show you exactly what you’re missing.”
Below are takeaways from five attendees along with short video clips from Insight Studio | Inspiring Innovation:
“I was reminded that innovation takes time and intention. As a small, busy firm it can be easy to cruise along thinking that big ideas will just happen. Sometimes they do, but it’s better to invest time and energy proactively, for both success in business as well as keeping the work fun and interesting.” – Andy Pease, principal, In Balance Green Consulting
“The chance to see two very different people of such high caliber share similar insights into what leads to success was an opportunity that you don’t get every day. The insights that Kimberly shared about engagement, culture and the mission, vision and values of a company being what leads to success across all of the companies they have worked with during the course of their project are an additional affirmation of what successful leaders have known intuitively. I also thought the idea of “carving out time to think” was something that everyone can take back to their day to day world.” – Lee Johnson, economic development manager, City of San Luis Obispo
“Creating a culture of innovating thinking is so important to our business, so Mary Wagner’s message really hit home. She emphasized the importance of community, curiosity and co-creation. Her strategies for encouraging collaboration and team heroism were truly inspiring.
Kimberly Guiry discussed the importance of letting go of outdated methodology and getting excited about change. Her strategies for creating return on collaboration were extremely relevant and inspiring. She gave real-world examples demonstrating how community partnerships translate to industry growth.” – Cynthia Horwitz, support unit supervisor, Morris & Garritano Insurance
“It was interesting to learn about the categories that fall under product innovation at Starbucks from Dr. Wagner. Not only is the product developed but the space that it is enjoyed in is developed as well with local input. The big take away for me was the focus that Starbucks has on all of its employees. The use of cross functional teams and input taken seriously from the baristas was reinforced throughout her presentation. The cross functional theme was also apparent in Ms. Guiry’s presentation. She encouraged openness to the sharing of experiences and ideas in the entrepreneurial community to help one another along the path to success were inspiring to hear. Both women had a wonderful compliment that we have a unique community on the Central Coast.” – Victoria Hanna, program manager, Trust Automation
Insight Studio is a series of workshops and events created to provide educational, inspirational and relationship building opportunities to our members. The 2015 Insight Studio program is supported by lead sponsor Spectrum Business and supporting sponsors the City of San Luis Obispo Economic Development program and Express Employment Professionals.