ILLUSTRATION BY HORT
Trend: Plug-and-Play Networks
Creating and managing networks has become an essential skill for executives. Managers are harnessing networks of scientists and engineers outside their corporations for new ideas and solutions. NineSigma.com, InnoCentive.com, and YourEncore.com are just a few. Others are also joining select consortiums to quietly exchange best practices. IBM's Global Innovation Outlook encourages cross-pollination of ideas among peers from different companies. Still others are using new Wikipedia-type tools, including TWiki (used by such clients as British Telecom and Michelin China) and Confluence (Earthlink and Lockheed Martin), to keep the creative juices flowing between managers and workers.