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JD Meier

Inspiring the World with Innovation

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Latest


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …


    • Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      Why So Many Ideas Die or Don’t Get Adopted

      “Don’t die with your music still inside you. Listen to your intuitive inner voice and find what passion stirs your soul.” – Wayne Dyer I didn’t know whether to call this why adoption fails, or why ideas die, but regardless, they are deeply related. After all, one of the main reasons ideas die is that …

    • How To Kill Innovation

      How To Kill Innovation

      “The only way you survive is you continuously transform into something else. It’s this idea of continuous transformation that makes you an innovation company.” — Ginni Rometty A few years back I was working on a culture change effort for Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. To prepare myself for the challenges ahead, I reflected …

    • How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      How To Keep a Team Together Using Shared Values, Principles, and Practices

      “It’s better to have a great team than a team of greats.” – Simon Sinek As a leader, you can go a long creating clarity, generating energy, and driving results when you boil down the essence of a team’s values, principles, and practices. You’ve probably heard the saying, “it takes teamwork to make the dream …

    • The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      The Change Benefits Canvas — Visualize the Benefits of Business Change

      “The brightest stars are those who shine for the benefit of others.” — Anonymous Business value is simply the benefits generated for its stakeholders. Here’s a simple visual tool I’ve created to help visualize and communicate changes and benefits better. I call it the Change Benefits Canvas. I’ve coached enough innovators and change leaders through …

    • Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      Why Innovation Is Tough (Your Brain Shuts Down When You Think About the Future)

      “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi. We’re disconnected from our Future Self.  We don’t have empathy. We don’t relate to how our Future Self, is really us in the future.   We can’t imagine. I always wondered why it seemed so hard for some people to imagine how things …

    • Dream Big, Start Small

      Dream Big, Start Small

      “Dreams come in a size too big so that we may grow into them.” — Josie Bisse As Goethe, put it, boldness has genius and power and magic in it.  That’s true. People can do great things, but they need great things worth doing.  That means starting with big dreams.  Bold dreams. If you win …

    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) Capabilities at a Glance

      “Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.” —Ginni Rometty What kinds of things can AI (Artificial Intelligence) do?  That’s one of the first things I wanted to know when I dove into AI a while back. …

    • The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      The People I Worked with on Amazing Projects

      “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu For Friday Reflection, I took a look back through the project teams I’ve lead through some big challenges and even bolder ambitions.  I listed out the people …

    • How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      How To Use Email Memos to Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” — David Newman Have you ever read an inspiring email or a memo from one human to another that helps you see a whole new world of possibility? I’m sure you’ve read lots of bad emails, too, just like there are …

    • How To Innovate Like Einstein

      How To Innovate Like Einstein

      “Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.” — Theodore Levitt Innovation is a game everyone can play. But you need innovation tools and techniques to be more effective. What if you could innovate like Archimedes, Einstein, or Edison?  What new process would you create, what new product would you design, or …

    • The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      The Best Innovation Quotes of All Time

      “The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.” ­– Arthur C. Clarke Innovation is a new idea, method, or device.  This is my hand-crafted collection of the best innovation quotes. It’s a comprehensive collection of great thoughts on innovation by great thinkers including Edison, Mozart, …

    • How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      How To Build a Better Business Case for the Cloud

      “Get your facts first. Then you can distort them as you please.” — Mark Twain I learned a lot about business cases over the years, simply by working in the space of enterprise strategy and digital transformation. I want so share what I learned at Microsoft about building business cases for the Cloud to help …

    • The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      The Most Productive Teams Have These 5 Dynamics

      “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” – Mark Twain You can create a better stage for high performance teams if you know how.   The key is to know what dynamics actually underpin high …

    • How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      How To Use Threat Modeling to Explore Threats and Countermeasures

      “Those that are the loudest in their threats are the weakest in their actions.” — Charles Caleb Colton You can learn the basics of Threat Modeling to help you evaluate threats for any situation. Simply remember the following mantra to whittle any situation down to size: Map out the threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures. Whether …

    • How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      How To Brainstorm Better with Information Models

      “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling I wanted to share a simple way to brainstorm and come up with more scenarios for digital transformation. There are a lot of very simple ways to come up with more scenarios.  But the real trick is to …

    • 3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      3 Ways Share Your Big Ideas Better

      “To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed.  They are just a multiplier.  Execution is worth millions.” — Steve Jobs I learned a lot last year in terms of how to share and scale big ideas better.   I really wish I would have learned these lessons earlier on so that I could have gotten more …

    • Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      Example Narrative Memo: The Rise of the Business Evangelist at Microsoft

      “What is coming is better than what is gone.” — Arabic Proverb Here’s an example of a memo I wrote to try and paint the vision and idea of business evangelism at Microsoft as a way to accelerate and de-risk Digital Transformation. Well, it’s really focused on the idea of building the business innovation capability …

    • How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      How Satya Nadella Helped Microsoft Rediscover Its Soul

      “Longevity in this business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future.” — Satya Nadella At the core of every company is its soul – the motivation and inner direction that drives the company to do what it does uniquely best. Figuring out the soul of your company is key to driving …

    • How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      How Satya Nadella Outlined the Future of Microsoft in an Email

      “A leader must see the external opportunities and the internal capability and culture—and all of the connections among them—and respond to them before they become obvious parts of the conventional wisdom.” ― Satya Nadella Down below is a version of Satya Nadella’s famous email that has been shared on the Web many times. I think …

    • How I Created Super Successful Software

      How I Created Super Successful Software

      “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” — Babe Ruth It’s nice now and then to take a look back, and really figure out the core of what worked (and what didn’t). I reviewed my model for how I shipped super successful software back in patterns & practices. I learned a …

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