IBM Innovation Jam was the largest ever event to promote the idea of the network generation. More than 150,000 employees of IBM, stakeholders and suppliers participated in two three-day online events to foster innovation and help IBM bring products to market faster. The use of Web sites, wikis, forums, and other interactive tools, Jam participants generated hundreds of thousands of new business ideas. With those ideas, IBM focused on several key topics for the second part of Jam and invited its employees, based on the ideas in these topics. As a result of this process, 10 different companies were funded. However, it was not these successes, which make an interesting Jam, say the authors, it was the difficulties faced in the implementation of IBM Jam. Given the unique access to Jam, the authors discuss the difficulties associated with collaborating with so many people. In particular, it was difficult to maintain a separate "conversations" in the process of cooperation. Instead of building on each other's ideas, many of the participants - the excitement about his own ideas - will "hijack" the thread or take it to the unintended direction. Some great ideas were left to dry on the vine. The authors discuss other attempts of large-scale cooperation, including by Dell and Starbucks. They include the use of tools for promotion to the "good" ideas are seen and captured as many eyes as possible. Pros and cons of these methods are also discussed, and the authors provide a framework for thinking about how the organization can work with interested parties. "Hide
by Oswald M. Bjelland, Robert Chapman Wood Source: MIT Sloan Management Review 11 pages. Publication Date: 01 Oct 2008. Prod. #: SMR291-PDF-ENG
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