Velour Based Innovation helping to 'Spice' things up! – Cris Beswick

If you’ve seen the past couple of blogs by me and fellow VBI (Velour Based Innovation) speaker Perry Timms (here and here) hopefully you’re getting the sense that we’re bringing a fresh perspective to this year’s conference.

Perry and I will be speaking as a Baddiel & Skinner style duo in an attempt to create livelier and informal peer debate as an alternative to the traditional keynote style. In essence, we’re going to spice things up a little! So, being partial to the odd analogy that got me thinking? How spicy are you and your organisation? In our second session of the conference on Wednesday 10^th at 1pm we’ll be kicking off an hour’s discussion around ‘celebrating averageness’ in organisations. In my latest workshop I discuss the concept that average tastes like chicken, we’re indifferent to it.

Although now somewhat of a cliché and used for incongruous humour ‘it tastes like chicken’ still describes food or situations that have no real relevance. So, in the eyes of our respective customers if we’re not at the very least a ‘spicy’ piri piri chicken dish we’re invisible, we’re average and that means in the world where differentiation and clearly visible excellence are paramount, we’re doomed to failure! So, how do you and your organisation demonstrate to your people and your customers that you’re a gastronomic delight, that you’ll tantalise their taste buds at every opportunity and that you definitely don’t taste like chicken? How do you demonstrate that you’re definitely not average?

So, comment on this blog, tweet your thoughts and share your point of view with Perry, myself and the rest of the audience at ‘Celebrating Averageness’ our 2^nd VBI session on Wednesday 10^th at 1pm.

For more info on all three of our VBI sessions click here and join in the debate or follow the many tweets at #CIPD10