Constantly generating great ideas is the foundation of staying ahead in a rapidly changing world, yet too many people assume it is a gift rather than a learned skill. In BEYOND THE OBVIOUS, vice president and chief technology officer for Hewlett-Packard's (HP) Personal Systems Group Phil McKinney convincingly puts this myth of the individual genius to rest.
In its place, McKinney shares the toolbox that has allowed him to rise through the ranks at one of the world's preeminent technology companies. Specfically, he will present a structured, four part FIRE (Focus, Ideation, Rank, Execution) program designed to change the way the reader or his company operates, innovates, and creates. This cogent framework will give readers an easy to use plan that they can use to systematically generate better ideas and then execute them. And it all starts with a set of 65 battle tested questions called "Killer Questions."
Among them are:
What is the process used by my customer to discover my product? To select it?
What will my company look like in five years?
What are my unshakable beliefs about what customers want?
What is inconvenient about my product?
How can I identify emerging trends that could impact my products?
Who is using my product in a way I never intended -- and how?
At once prescriptive and deeply challenging, this program and these questions -- what McKinney calls his "crash course in how not to know" -- will reframe the way readers see their their products, their customers, and their problems. Whether you're a company with a conference room of Aeron chairs or one with nothing more than a garage and Gmail address, this book will give you the skills and easy-to-follow plan you need to make both the revolutionary changes and nuanced adjustments required for staying ahead.
