How MIT succeeds thru "Collective Action"

As I have been riding across the wild west of Innovation-Driven Enterprises since before it was an acronym (IDE for those keeping track of TLAs), a few resources have proven consistently helpful. MIT is on the top of that list.

But with the exponential expansion of Technology, it is difficult to keep up with all your best options. So, their MIT Innovation Initiative is at the center of not just MIT, but the very systems and methods for success. See https://innovation.mit.edu 
(click to enlarge)
MITii has databased and assessed it's way to being the hub of innovation. Just check out their "Resources" tab.  The above a screenshot of the I&E Resource Guide ... see how they deliver their most relevant activities by catering to different profiles and drilling into specific categories of projects, communities, and issues.



Another section in "Resources" is a list of (very) deep-dive Working Papers on WHAT and, most importantly, HOW to think and act for success.  For those of you familiar with Agile Scrum for software development, a key element is the Retrospect - see it there at the all important end of the Sprint. This is where the team de-briefs and shares what elements are, and are not, working in their methods, technologies, everything. 

This "How are we all doing?" is key for the iterations towards optimization.

Below is an excerpt from MIT’s Stakeholder Framework for Building & Accelerating Innovation Ecosystems (PDF of 28 page report):
The promise of regional innovation ecosystems is manifest: in the unequal world of innovation and entrepreneurship, the returns to strong innovation capacity and strong entrepreneurial capacity – and ways to connect them - are significant. The wealth and prosperity created in successful innovation ecosystems in the US, Europe and beyond are hard to deny. And yet the challenges of reaching a region's full potential are also clear: who should lead, can all stakeholders be brought to the table, how easily can these parties agree on a shared vision of the future and act accordingly?  
This short Working Paper serves as a guide to these efforts, drawing on our research, by emphasizing the important role of all actors in this process and reminding us all that ‘collective action’ among stakeholders is most likely to accelerate the process. We have tried to address the initial puzzle – of why innovation is still so localized, even when the world was supposed to be becoming so flat – and provide advice and options for those who wish to optimize ‘innovation-driven entrepreneurship’ in their specific regions, and build a vibrant innovation ecosystem in their locality. 

Managing "Collective Action" is the hard part... but the most valuable.

Thanks again MIT.


Share this Post:
www.bit.ly/MITii_InAction