Reference no: EM133256307

How to respond to the following DQ answer

Although I admire stories about start-up companies that break onto the scene and become relevant overnight, I also enjoy a good story about companies that have been around for a while and remain relevant. In a Progressive Grocer article, M. Troy (2021) highlights the family owned business Jel Sert and its newest innovation of SLIQ liquor infused popsicles. These liquor infused popsicles weren't made overnight (metaphorically speaking) and this innovation was made possible by Jel Sert being the outlier, practicing experimentation and methodical timing. If you've ever read Malcolm Gladwell's book entitled, "Outliers", you may be familiar with the term and the examples Gladwell uses to define the individuals who seem to be in the right place, at the right time, doing the right things. Jel Sert's first-generation owner was the outlier when he took advantage of an opportunity to work with gelatin and put that knowledge to use. Jel Sert is still putting that knowledge to use four-generations later by practicing experimentation. Practicing experimentation is dedicating time and resources to test new products. Jel Sert has been "...working on SLIQ for two years..." which has given sufficient time to experiment with the product, its marketing and plan the next steps. This is where methodical timing comes into play - innovation is about seizing an opportunity and being ready for the opportunity before it occurs - timing is everything and Jel Sert is being methodical about SLIQs release.

My workplace is not unlike Jel Sert. Some of my colleagues have been employed with the organization for over 20 years. The organization was, at one time, truly innovative and wrote much of the legislation for a sector of Education in Arizona. This organization, to me, is now a dinosaur - their systems, admissions processes, and organizational structure to not support the new demands in Education. Mistakes are being made, frustrations are mounting, and it's time for change. I believe the organization is an outlier and that the timing is good; however, there is little to no room for experimentation. What I have observed is that processes are slow-to-change; however, when/if they change, the changes happens overnight. There is no beta-testing, no testing timelines provided and practicing experimentation can get the organization back at the forefront of Education.