The 8th Drucker Forum was a milestone in many ways. It focused on the core of what will create the GDP of tomorrow and the actions to take – entrepreneurship and innovation. New GDP will not come from governments or from large corporations, even if they are an important part of a system necessary for growth, they’re not in the driver’s seat.
Many speakers, including myself, focused, discussed and elaborated upon the prerequisites for innovation and entrepreneurship as well as the lessons learned from the past. Clayton Christensen opened his speech by sharing his thoughts about data. He said that data is not created by God and it is not the truth, it is most likely to be found in hell, so he will not ask for data in the afterlife. Tim Brown from IDEO, continued the following day by saying that great scientists are bookkeepers and poets at the same time, something I would agree on and that it is also valid for entrepreneurs, innovators and great business leaders as well. A cross disciplinary mix of insights from human behaviors, creativity and curiosity with data from experiments and past experiences is a winning concept.
Generally I would say most people agreed that studying human behaviour (anthropology) and leading Horizon 1 (with spiral staircase leadership style) in parallel with and a more nurturing style in Horizon 2 (Caldron or Fertility Field) and explorative style in Horizon 3 is a way to mitigate risks and maximize growth.
Another interesting discussion was the one I had with Philip Kotler where we agreed, based on data and our experience, that innovation clearly drives market growth but not always profit. Innovation can drive profit but also hinder it. Profit comes from innovation and growth, but short-term it can hinder profit whilst misused innovation can lead to a lack of profit, potentially decline and bankruptcy. Innovation and entrepreneurship are most likely the most important aspects to address the grand challenges we face on earth creating a sustainable and healthy world for us, our children and future generations – and therefore this conference was a marker for the future.
Clip from Magnus Penker speech on Drucker Forum 2016
