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I caught up with some colleagues last night to say goodbye to two friends that are leaving NAB to move on to other things. This is sad as these are both public, renowned members of the innovation community and they’ll be sorely missed.

I met one particular person last night who I knew only through online communication in the past (yammer, twitter) and she introduced me to a concept that I found completely fascinating, that inside every large corporation there is an Innovation Underground. A small community of people who care about shaping the future and have that drive to seek out like-minded people.

Think about it for a minute.

The Innovation Underground!

I have spent the last 12 hours thinking about what this means and why it even exists. What is the common theme amongst these people?

Here’s what I think. Firstly everybody in this little community seems to find their own way in. They seek out those who share similar values and are motivated individuals. Secondly I now aware of how many working groups and discussion forums these people are involved in. How they are involved in projects that generally have nothing to do with their functional role.

This group numbers maybe thirty or forty that I have met so far and I’m sure there are more.

What do you think the common theme I observe is? It is that every single one of these people is committed and passionate about improving the organisation as a whole. Whether it be for our customers, our employees or our community. Whilst everyone has day-to-day responsibilities and goals to meet at a functional level, they are also (more?) concerned with the greater organisation.

Wow! This realisation has caused me to feel a little humble as I realise I’ve been embraced with open arms. What a wonderful group of talented, passionate people to learn from.

Do you recognise this within your organisation? Are you a part of such a group? What good have you achieved?

2010 really is looking awesome!

Jordan xxoo

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