Lessons From Steve Jobs

I find the method of innovation of state-related functions very interesting. This is not restricted to Colorado, by the way, but recent experience allows me to refer to Colorado. For example, there are leaders who believe that innovation requires stakeholder participation, customer participation, and end-user participation throughout the innovative process. I am familiar with statements such as, "Nothing about us, without us." This is particularly relevant to the disability community. Professional advocate organizations are available and often desire to participate throughout an innovative process.

While thinking about this, I came across an article in "The Harvard Business Review," The Real Leadership Lessons of Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson. One of the highlighted lessons in this article is is Don't Become a Slave to Focus Groups. In explaining this lesson, Issacson notes that Jobs often invoked a quote from Henry Ford, "If I'd asked customers what they wanted, they would have told me, 'A faster horse!'" Isaacson went on the explain, "Caring deeply about what customers want is much different from continually asking them what they want; it requires intuition and instinct about desires that have not yet formed. Our task is to read things that are not yet on the page, Jobs explained. Instead of relying on market research, he honed his version of empathy - an intimate intuition about the desires of his customers. "

Coincidently, I have recently questioned people with whom I work, "Have we learned nothing from Steve Jobs?" I wonder if there are not some lessons for us in our field of intellectual and developmental disabilities. I wonder if we really expect innovative practices to emerge from full stakeholder groups. Do we really expect solutions for new systems design, wait list issues, financial shortfalls, and a whole host of service and support shortcomings to be resolved in stakeholder groups? Stakeholder groups, advisory committees, and commissions that study often grow to unmanageable size, and often include subordinate groups and task forces. By the time groups of this size can even assemble, opportunities for innovation may have passed. One has to wonder if groups’ attention spans are inversely proportioned to the number of members.

That being said, is it more likely that true innovation is found elsewhere? Is it possible that new and different life improvements for people with disabilities will more likely emerge from the periphery? Jobs suggested that systems change is most effective with focused, responsible, A-Players leading the way. Those that know both The Big Picture and The Details. It’s a great article.

Then again, what do I know?