GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

Scientists have discovered that we’re engineered for kindness – or not. The caring button is a genetic trait that determines how we respond to oxytocin (aka the “love” hormone); some of us have it, some of us don’t; most people can spot it a mile off.

In an experiment at the University of Oregon nine out of 10 neutral observers correctly identified carriers of the “A” version of the kindness gene, who are less inclined to feel positive, or to feel (say) parental sensitivity. On the other hand six out of 10 could spot those carrying the “GG” genotype – people with this genetic variation are generally seen as more empathetic, trusting and loving.

Perhaps to settle the nerves of the unloving by nature the researchers add that no gene trait can completely predict how we behave. But if you want to prove you’re hardwired to care, go spread some love today. If you want to start a revolution, pick out an “A” type and be kind to them. And next time someone’s mean to you, tell them they’re being … genetic.

Editor’s Note: Go Ducks!

Image credit: Enjoying the Journeys

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

The UK is drowning in junk. In seven years there will be nowhere left to put it – check out this story on Packington (which sounds suspiciously like “pack it in”), one of the many landfills surging towards capacity. It covers about 380 acres and contains more than 18.5 million tons of rubbish. The height of a skyscraper where once there was flat land, it is, literally, a waste of space.

Answers to problems this big come in DOT (Do One Thing) form, multiplied by collective action. One good idea to emerge from a conversation with a waste tip supervisor is the world’s first paper wine bottle made by packaging company GreenBottle. It weighs about a tenth of a glass bottle, has a tenth of the carbon footprint, and is compostable, gone in a matter of weeks. More exciting is the inventor’s quiet comment that he can be more radical yet with the bottle’s design – so far he’s stuck to the conventional shape to stop wine shoppers going into shock. I say mix it up – stun me!

This is the unreasonable power of creativity at work, rescuing the world one idea at a time – here are a few more eco-innovations, movements and machines to bend your mind, saving space and resources: e-paper; cardboard vacuum cleaners; lawn couches; virtual water; Boeing’s new Dreamliner.

Image credit: Green Earth Blogs

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

Edward de Bono recently made an appearance on ABC down under, sharing some typically flamboyant thinking, mostly around the subject of thinking itself. I’ve been a de Bono fan for years and this was fresh as ever. Among his key insights were:

1. For too long the world has majored purely in thinking for the purposes of analysis, forming judgments and finding the truth, rather than thinking for creating value. Some inventors and entrepreneurs have broken the mold, but culturally we haven’t developed this type of thinking. This is a problem bigger than climate change.
2. At an everyday level, thinking can help to unravel the problems that make us miserable – become better thinkers and we’ll be happier people.
3. Teaching creative thinking puts wayward young people on the right track (de Bono cites the outcomes 20 years after a UK school started teaching his approach to thinking) and reduces recidivism rates when taught in prisons. Happy thinkers are less likely to turn to crime.

Like or lump the train of thought, there’s no denying we need out of the box ideas to solve problems where the usual approaches have failed. For the unfiltered version check out the full interview here (fast forward the first 20 minutes to get straight to de Bono).

Image credit: Benedict Campbell

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

Scientists are notorious for using sledgehammers to crack nuts, but an astrophysicist has solved a modern conundrum with brilliant simplicity. Stuck in a long queue while boarding a plane a few years back, Jason Steffen thought there must be a better way.

His idea was to start boarding alternate rows from the back of the plane, from the window seat in, rather than the usual block-by-block approach. A trial of The Steffen Method by the producers of an upcoming UK TV show found that it works: passengers boarded a mock 747, baggage in tow, in half the typical time.

Frequent flyers rejoice! After 60 years of convention – the first commercial flight took off in 1962 – Steffen has surprised with the obvious. Who will lead the way by taking on the new method? Air NZ? Emirates? As well as making people’s lives better by taking some of the endless waiting out of air travel (check-in, security, boarding, getting off, customs, baggage claim) it could be a real edge in an industry where minutes matter everywhere.

But the real lesson for airline execs isn’t that it takes a rocket scientist to add more value – just a passenger who wants a better experience. Time to tap the customer for inspiration.

Image credit: Psyberartist

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

Glen Jeffries, a fellow alumnus from Lancaster Royal Grammar School back in the UK (albeit one 30 years my junior!), has founded a charitable initiative with an aspirational take on fundraising.

Pro Dono is a not-for-profit organization arranging one-to-one conversations with famous figures in aid of charity. Ambassadors, as they are called, give a couple of hours of their time to meet a member of the public for a donation to the ambassador’s charity of choice.

Pro Dono has over 100 ambassadors ranging from cricketers to Michelin-starred chefs, politicians to the editor of The Economist, the “godfather” of the hedge fund industry, and founder of Wikipedia.

You can sign up for some face time with your hero and leave it at that, or dial up the experience with back to back power meetings: a tour of Lord’s with Geoffrey Boycott could be followed by a coffee in the Houses of Parliament with Alastair Campbell and a cookery course with Raymond Blanc at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons.

Check out Glen’s new website www.prodono.co.uk. Find someone you’ve always wanted to ask a burning question and support a good cause at the same time. Dare to dream and dig deep.

Image credit: Pro Dono

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

New research highlights that while many workplaces encourage creative thinking, organizational behavior often kills a creative idea before it gets a chance to fly.

Jack Goncalo, a member of the research team from University of Pennsylvania asked:

“How is it that people say they want creativity but in reality often reject it?”

Jack et al’s research paper found that creative ideas are by definition novel, and novelty can trigger feelings of uncertainty that make most people uncomfortable. These ideas are often dismissed in favor of the tried and trusted, and that even supporting objective evidence may not help break down barriers.

Jack says that the anti-creativity bias is so subtle that people are often unaware of it. This can interfere with their ability to recognize a creative idea, perhaps when they need it most. It also suggests that the field of creativity may need to shift its focus from identifying how to generate more ideas to how to help innovative institutions recognize and accept creativity.

This is really a gut thing. People often associated creative ideas with negative words like “poison”, “vomit” and “agony”. All of which says that it takes an adventurous spirit to free creativity. It can feel right without feeling safe. Want to change the game? Embrace discomfort. Now go make people sick.

Image credit: opensourceway

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

Yesterday I posted five super shifts redefining planet humanity, from globaltrends.com. Here are the second five.

1. New Power Brokers

• BRIC
• Social networks
• G20, which gives developing economies a greater voice in global issues.
• New financial power brokers – RDE central banks, sovereign wealth funds, private equity and hedge funds – and stateholders bearing stimulus funding along with their constituent tax-payers.
• The relative influence of the US, Japan and Europe is likely to decline under the burden of heavy national debts, driving more internal focus and reducing their ability to fund international projects of all types whether aid, military or scientific. The age of the “superpower” is giving way to an age of multiple power brokers.

2. Blurring of Industry Boundaries

• Value spaces are increasingly being defined by consumers, not firms.
• Example: health and wellness – in the consumer’s mind this extends well beyond pharmaceuticals and doctors to food, fitness, beauty, online services and more.
• As boundaries blur and everything becomes mobile, firms are increasingly interdependent, having to balance how they compete and cooperate with others, potentially fulfilling multiple roles in a network or across industries.
• This extends to interactions with society, where new forms of networks and smart partnerships are emerging.

3. The New Consumer

• More consumers globally with more wealth.
• The new consumer wants more involvement and personalization, wants it all anywhere, anytime, and wants it to be cheap and chic as the climate of frugality bites.
• Businesses at all points in the value chain are trying to connect with the consumer to build reputations, trust, loyalty, returns, and market position.

4. Generational gaps

• For the first time, four distinct generations are present in the workforce in many developed countries. The resulting differences in generational ambitions, attitudes, technology skills and ethics are impacting management styles, how work is done and the ability to attract talent.
• In developing economies, traits and values are becoming more similar within generations across borders (i.e. globalizing), than between generations within a country or region.

5. Tensions of globalization AND fragmentation

• Globalization and integration continues, but there is also a growing, opposing trend towards fragmentation – tribalism, nationalism and cultural conflict is on the rise (e.g. anti-globalization protests or the break up of states).
• Governments are increasingly seeking to erect national boundaries to block or monitor internet content, and technology providers develop proprietary “clouds”.

Image credit: tuppus

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

Yesterday I wrote about the world’s booming population, a big undertow changing the way the world works. Here are five more super shifts redefining planet humanity, from globaltrends.com. Another five tomorrow.

1. Mobility in resources, people, products and services, capital, knowledge, beliefs, opinions

• The ongoing revolution in global communications technologies offers organizations the ability to work 24/7 across time zones.
• Companies in emerging economies are benefiting from faster knowledge flows to rapidly catch the leaders in many industries.
• Mobile broadband penetration outstrips fixed broadband, billions of people are permanently “on,” able to work from whatever location they happen to find themselves in, blurring the boundaries between work and personal time.
• Data has become a deluge and information can be disseminated globally in minutes with a “tweet”.
• An ever-expanding array of digital entertainment and social media compete for our time.
• With mobile expansion, time is being compressed.

2. Potential of food and water scarcity

• In last 50 years, world population rose from 3 billion in 1960 to 6.9 billion in 2010 – and is projected to reach 9.1 billion by 2050. Population and affluence increases will significantly strain critical resources.
• By 2030, the water gap could be as much as 40% between demand and supply. Geopolitical and social tensions may rise, along with negative economic impact.

3. Global race to be at the forefront of technology

• BRIC and industrialized nations will race to become leaders in critical technologies – nanotechnology, biotechnology.
• China is actively pursuing clean technologies.
• India is building global nuclear power knowledge.

4. Beyond the BRIC Economic Power

• In 2010, China’s economy surpassed that of Japan to become the world’s second largest
• India is forecast to be the fifth largest consumer economy by 2025.
• These countries will account for the majority of the emerging global middle class.
• The playing field in BRIC is getting crowded both by multinationals and home-grown global challengers.
• Companies need to start looking beyond BRIC to the next tier of attractive future markets.
• Based on size, growth potential, natural resource positions and global influence over the next 30 to 40 years, these markets are likely to include: Indonesia, Mexico, Turkey, Iran, South Korea, Egypt, South Africa, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Argentina.
• BRIC companies are already moving to compete in these regions – the question for firms from advanced economies is how to balance their focus between advanced economies, BRIC and beyond.

5. Democratization of Communication

• People worldwide have seen their ability to make choices increase beyond imagination.
• Communications advances have allowed people find their voices and exchange ideas, knowledge and experiences.
• Communities of choice, including social networks and buying groups, are changing how we interact and behave.
• Trust and dialogue are critical to building and maintaining relationships with and among these communities.
• New tools to track the dynamics of influence, organizations that actively understand and manage influence have tremendous opportunities to broaden innovation, co-create with consumers and tap into the value of networks.

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

World population from 1800 to 2100, based on UN 2004 projections (red, orange, green) and US Census Bureau historical estimates

The planet’s booming population is a mega trend reshaping everything. Over coming decades our growing presence and rampant appetite for resources will shake up every form of life on earth.

At current birthrates, the world’s seven billionth inhabitant will join the rest of us very soon (some say the end of October – Halloween!). It took us a while to get to this point, but now we’re putting the pedal to the metal. For the first thousand years of the current era the world’s population was a mere 300 million. In the early 1800s we hit one billion. In the next 150 years we added 1.5 billion more. Over the last 60 years we have gained another 4.5 billion.

Writing for The Guardian, Robert Engelman paints a grim picture of what population acceleration means for the planet. Plants and animals are condemned to extinction. Food supplies get stretched. Fresh water is spread thin – so much so that in just 14 years two thirds of the world’s population will be living in countries facing water scarcity or stress. We’re not running out of space, but we are running out of the basic stuff we need to live, and squeezing other life out of the picture as we go.

Compounding these issues is the fact that as the global population grows, consumption per capita is also on the rise. More of the world’s economies are evolving into consumer societies where people move beyond basic necessities and enjoy the privileges of modern life. So more of us are consuming more.

There are two ways we can respond to the problems that come with global population growth. The first is to slow it down. Engelman points out that many of the world’s pregnancies are unintended by the women who experience them, so making sure that women have greater freedom over whether or not they choose to have children, or how many they might choose to have, could make a huge difference. It’s liberating to think that dealing with this aspect of the population issue isn’t about forcing people to make decisions they don’t want to (such as asking people who want to have children not to), but rather empowering those who don’t have a choice.

The other way that we can respond to the pressures of population growth is by becoming much more productive. If we agree that everyone has the right to pursue higher standards of living – whether that’s enjoying different kinds of food or owning a TV set – the challenge is to deliver more products and services with the same limited resources (or less). This is where enterprise holds the key to a better future, improving lives while preserving the planet. It’s the definition of True Blue, the call for business to turn an environmental crisis into commercial solutions that deliver for the greater good. More on one of the biggest areas of opportunity tomorrow.

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GUEST POST from Kevin Roberts

Chances are when you’re wandering around your local store doing your weekly grocery shop there are brands you gravitate to. Without a second thought your trolley fills with brands that have a familiar spot in your cupboards at home. And you feel happy about that – happier than if you’d actually bought the exact same products under a different label, because these are the brands that mean something more to you. They fire positive emotions that inspire loyalty. Some may even be Lovemarks.

BBC food journalist Alex Riley recently dug deep into the emotional connection we have with our favorite food brands (check out Alex’s blog). With a simple experiment he confirmed what we’ve known for some time – if you love the brand, the product actually tastes better. Effectively, your mind has seasoned it with love.

He then sought the help of Professor Gemma Calvert of Neurosense – a research group in the UK – to see just how close to our hearts our most cherished brands are. Using MRI technology, the pair mapped a volunteer’s brain’s reactions to two different sets of images – one of his loved ones, the other of familiar brands. The results showed the same area of the brain lighting up for both sets of images – the region associated with happiness. The reactions mirrored right down to the brain area associated with facial recognition.

It’s another line under Lovemarks and the power of emotion, science affirming what the heart knows is true and market leaders build sustainable premiums on. The brands that bring us the greatest joy are like calling home, meeting a friend or turning through the pages of a photo album. In at least some way, Lovemarks are part of the family.

Image credit: CX Partners

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