Courage Or Crazy

Probably a little bit of both. It's -20 degrees here this morning before factoring in the wind chill and here's a guy riding his bicycle.

It got me thinking that this guy should be the poster child for the radio industry. As we face financial and programming challenges, we need to get on our bikes and ride.

We need to muster the courage and try some "crazy" things--you know what they say: it's so crazy it just might work. Let the creative folks in our industry get to work.

Conventional thought and traditional strategies and tactics may (will) not get it done this time. If the guy on the bike doesn't inspire you, let's try this audio clip from JFK talking about going to the moon. Shaping a positive future for the radio business shouldn't be harder than going to the moon, right?

10 Lessons of Innovation

"Innovation" a word that gets thrown around a lot in the radio business; usually in the context of we need a lot more of it. How do we get to this innovation we all speak of?

How can we push forward aggressive innovation in an industry that values the tried and true? How can we aggressively develop new formats in an industry that always asks the question when speaking of these new formats, "where else is it being done?" How can innovation take place in an industry that likes to categorize and compartmentalize nearly everything?

It's not easy. Let's start with courage, fearlessness, tenacity, and skin thick enough to accept lots of skepticism and the inevitable failure of many, if not most, new and untried ideas and formats. This innovation thing is not for everyone.

I came across a slide show by Idris Mootee, Author, Speaker and New Venture Strategy Advisor from Blast Radius Inc., that offers 10 solid lessons on innovation. There are some very good points to be gleaned from the presentation. My favorite lesson is one that fits our business so well:

#5 Innovation occurs at the intersection of previously unconnected and unrelated planes of thought

Check out the entire slide show and see what you think.

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Chrysler Motoring Forward

Chrysler has announced it will be bringing in-dash internet to Chrysler products...fast.

Initially the user will need a wireless phone subscription to access the Internet, because the system relies on the signal from cellular towers. The company hopes to provide full coverage without a separate mobile phone line in future, however.

But there is more to this story. It's not a radio story, but one of how a troubled company in a troubled industry is changing how it operates and deploys new ideas and technologies.

Working and thinking like a small company is how Chrysler hopes to weather the current economic storm. We told you just last week about Chrysler’s plan to implement new technologies and product updates on-demand rather than waiting for product refresh cycles, and now it looks like one of the first implementations of the fast-moving method with be the addition of in-car web access to its lineup.

Chrysler hopes to be the first maker to sell vehicles equipped with on-the-go access. BMW announced its own in-car Internet access plan in late February this year, but will only be rolling web-enabled cars off its assembly line at the end of 2008, and even then only in Europe. Rather than wait for its factories to gear up for the production, Chrysler will be sending the units straight to the dealers to be installed. Once the factory installation is ramped up, they will take over for the dealers, according to the Washington Post.

The move is not just focused on bringing extra features to Chrysler cars, but also to Chrysler dealerships. Robert Nardelli, Chrysler CEO, said “We’re aggressively moving to capture more of the customer service and parts business by focusing on what dealers need to increase their profitability.”

Bravo!

Chrysler is the first US automaker to jump into what will be a rapidly growing segment of standard equipment--in dash internet. And while that's a story by itself; I think it is noteworthy that this old line company, under new management, is adjusting its operational mentality to try to be nimble and responsive. A move that could change the company's fortunes going forward.

It takes courage and vision to make these moves...the same two words that need to fuel the radio industry in the months and years to come.

You can read this and other motoring stories at Motor Authority