RAPID FIRE

ROUND WITH

KARL WEBER

Curated by Prashant Harish Hari

No--in fact, that is one of the reasons that Adrian and I wrote DEMAND. Colleges and business schools do a reasonable job

of teaching subjects like design, technology, innovation,

marketing, and customer service--but creating demand is about understanding how all of these

subjects (and others) are interrelated and affect one another. Most important, it is about

understanding the psychology and emotions of consumers--and since people are the most complex subject in the world, this is a topic

for lifetime study and learning! It would be wonderful if every business school could have a magnificent

course centered on demand creation. However, this probably

will not happen for some time, since it would be difficult even for Adrian and me to create the

syllabus for such a course. We consider ourselves students of the subject, hoping to

advance society's collective understanding of it through our efforts.

DO YOU THINK

DEMAND

CREATORS AND

INNOVATORS

THAT CREATE

DEMAND, IS A

TRAIT WE

TEACH WELL

IN

EDUCATION

TODAY?

Like any creative enterprise, the movie industry faces the challenge of transmuting the intellectual, emotional, and artistic gifts of its employees

into products that will somehow spark recognition and excitement in the minds and

hearts of millions of customers. This is an

inherently risky and challenging business. In an

effort to reduce the risk, Hollywood production companies tend to fall into certain systematic traps--for example,

producing movies according to formulas (super hero movies, romantic comedies) that gradually lose their luster and

excitement. And like other businesses, they also tend to come to closure prematurely, rushing films to market to meet arbitrary schedules rather than devoting the incredible

amounts of time and energy actually required to make a truly

captivating film (something that Pixar, today's most successful studio,

has repeatedly done).

YOU MENTION

"EXPERTS

SAY THAT

60% OF

HOLLYWOOD

MOVIES FAIL

TO EARN

BACK THEIR

COSTS": WHY

DO YOU THINK

THAT IS?

We hope so--but it's probably unlikely, since this is in large part a function of human nature,

which is fairly unchanging. History suggests that innovation tends to find a home in

specific segments of the business universe, and that these segments shift and change from time to time. There is usually some

corner of the world where new thinking is happening--most often, in small start-ups where people feel they have nothing to

lose. The world at large only recognizes these "centers of

genius" after the fact, and it's probably nearly impossible to

predict where they will appear in advance.

YOU MENTION

"IN MOST

ORGANIZATIONS

, OUTSIDE-THE-

BOX IDEAS TEND

TO GET SHOT

DOWN QUICKLY

BY PEOPLE

POINTING OUT

THEIR

WEAKNESSES

AND

EXPLAINING

WHY THEY

DON'T WORK"-

DO YOU THINK THIS

CULTURE IS LIKELY

TO CHANGE IN

COMING YEARS?

Some of the traits that make for great demand

creators are great listening skills, ruthless honesty, impatience, insatiable curiosity, and fearless experimentation. The

quickest way to learn these traits is (of course) to read DEMAND and then start practicing at

home!

..."WE DISCOVERED

THAT DEMAND IS

OFTEN CREATED BY

A SPECIAL BREED

OF PERSON WITH A

NUMBER OF UNIQUE

INSIGHTS AND

BEHAVIOURS -YET

THE SKILLS THESE

PEOPLE PRACTICE

CAN BE LEARNED

AND PRACTICED BY

ANY LEADER AND

ANY TEAM":-

WHAT ARE

THE TOP 5

TRAITS

POSESSED BY

THESE

PEOPLE? AND

WHAT WOULD YOU

SAY IS THE

QUICKEST WAY TO

LEARN THESE

TRAITS?

Absolutely--provided they are willing to ignore tradition, question assumptions,

and really study their business from the outside in (that is, adopting a

customer's perspective). They may also have to be willing to cannibalize themselves by launching a new

business model with the potential of destroying their traditional

enterprise. All of these are very difficult to do--intellectually and emotionally--which is why so few

companies manage to achieve this kind of transformation.

IS IT POSSIBLE FOR

AN EXISTING

COMPANY FROM

THE 20TH CENTURY

WHICH MAY BE

UNDERPERFORMING

TO ENHANCE

ON AN

EXISTING

BACKSTORY?

To purchase a copy of DEMAND click the following link:

http://www.amazon.com/Demand-Creating-What-People-Before/dp/0307887324 To check out the website click the following link:

http://www.demandthebook.com/

Thank you!! Twitter: @prazhari Email: prazhari@socialwizz.com