(Stacy Lynch) -- Talk to any media executive and it isn't long before the discussion turns to how to generate new ideas for revenue, audience and product portfolio growth. It seems everyone is on their way to, or are back from, an off-site brainstorming session. So, why is it so hard to find companies with a real pipeline of good ideas that actually get to market?

We took a look at one company that's succeeding at innovation: Hanley Wood, which focuses on the housing industry and is one of the 10 largest business-to-business publishers. A look through the company's recent history shows a series of product launches across media. Since the start of the year - and amid the worst housing market in decades - they launched an online video platform channel, Architect TV (part of Build TV), Ecohome magazine and the companion ecohomemagazine.com. The company's $250 million in total revenue for 2007 included 50 percent growth in its online revenue line.


(Hanley Wood's CEO Frank Anton will share the secrets of Hanley Wood's approach at MMC's upcoming Newspaper Change Seminar June 16-19.)

The Hanley Wood portfolio has grown to 30 print titles with a network of companion websites; Build TV, an online video platform; e-build.com, a building products sourcing website; web video/webinar products; more than a dozen e-newsletter products – and that's just in their publishing division. They also have a conference and event division, a market intelligence division and a full-service marketing division.

How have they managed to find and develop so many new ideas? By building ideation into the core of the company's culture and developing a disciplined process for making those efforts smarter.

"Since 1994 we have a rolling three-year plan for the company that's built from the bottom up," said CEO Frank Anton. "It's formalized in an annual meeting called, ‘The Idea Factory.'"

Created in 2002, the Idea Factory is the brainchild of Peter Goldstone, president of Hanley Wood Business Media. "I decided to exploit the culture that was already in place but I wanted something that was more far-reaching and that involved a broader range of people."

The Idea Factory concept is simple: bring together a wide variety of talent to focus on the company's greatest areas of opportunity. Use the collective expertise of the room and across the company to identify, explore and vet ideas with the end result being a short list of ideas that the senior leadership can quickly act upon.

Anton and Goldstone have learned as they went and consider these elements essential:

• You must have a long-term vision for your strategy.



• Areas considered likely high-potential zones should be targeted in advance and brainstorming should focus there.



• Metrics for success must be made clear from the start.



• Idea proponents deserve quick responses (yes/no).



• Each idea that gets the nod for development needs a champion responsible for owning it.

The value of their approach is clear. Since its inception, 63 ideas have been implemented, bringing in $88 million in new revenue since 2002. (Recently, Anton was named one of BtoB Media Business magazine's top innovators of 2008.)


"It's the most important thing we do each year," said Goldstone. "Think about how empowering it is to have an idea from any level of the organization acted on."

Leadership has to be prepared for a big commitment, Anton said. "It's the resolve to change and grow that really leads to success."

How it works

The structure and emphasis of the Idea Factory process varies each year and has evolved since its inception.

"In the early years we started with a clean slate. As we've become more sophisticated about where we want to take the company, we've become more focused on specific areas each year," said Goldstone.

One Idea Factory process developed by Boiling Point, a branding and innovation consultancy, demonstrates the discipline Goldstone suggests. Prior to the meeting, senior leaders identify seven areas of focus they believe have the greatest potential. They also develop specific criteria the ideas will be measured against. These could include timeframe for launch, minimum revenue requirements, maximum capital investment required and fit with core business strategies.

"This isn't a completely democratic process," said Goldstone. "We take into account all the ideas that people want to pursue and then top management thinks about which of those fit with the long-term strategy of the company."

Then a broad cross-section of the company is invited to the Idea Factory off-site retreat.

"The goal is to keep it very simple and engaging so that participants aren't encumbered by the process at all. It is a creative and empowering experience for the participants but at the same time it is very, very serious work," said Boiling Point's Founder and Creative Director Jerry Shrair. Among Shrair's tips for successful innovation meetings:

• Avoid onerous pre-work or lengthy kick-off presentations ­– cover key facts, core assumptions and goals beforehand.



• Broaden the diversity of people taking part to achieve a richer set of possible ideas.



• Keep the process focused, fast-paced and highly interactive.



• Create an efficient process to review and rank ideas leading to a set of "finalists."



• Build and communicate a specific follow-up plan.

The morning session of an Idea Factory workshop is spent brainstorming against the seven opportunity areas. Participants are led through a variety of creative exercises that help spark ideas. Boiling Point's process is fast and intense, yielding 30-50 ideas before lunch. In the afternoon session, the group breaks into seven teams, each focused on one of the seven opportunity areas. Each team combines and further develops what they believe are the most promising ideas coming out of the morning session, bearing in mind the success criteria already established. They create a set of "semi-finalist" ideas. At the close of the workshop each team presents their ideas to the entire group.

It's what comes next that distinguishes the Hanley Wood process from most others.

The night after the workshop, Boiling Point posts all of the semi-finalist ideas on the password-protected web site. All meeting participants, as well as selected others throughout the company, then vote anonymously for the ideas they consider most promising based on the success criteria.


The result is list of three to five ideas that are put up for funding consideration. Both Anton and Goldstone emphasize the importance of taking action on those ideas very quickly.

"The worst thing in the world is not knowing if an idea has a yes or no," said Anton. "So, within weeks or months you get a clear answer. You know very quickly if your idea has made the grade."

"A lot of the challenge that I have as an executive who values this kind of work is making sure that there's the right kind of follow-up afterward," said Goldstone. "I want to know that there's a champion behind the idea and an action plan to follow up."

The culture component

Both executives emphasized that having a company culture that values innovation, change and growth is essential to the success of the Idea Factory.

"I think you really have to know what kind of company you are," said Goldstone. "You can't say you value ideas if you're not ready to invest in them. You run the risk of introducing a program and then not supporting it, which creates a lot of cultural anxiety. If you really do value organic growth then you have to walk the walk a little bit. And it's totally fine to say you're not that kind of company. It doesn't make you a bad company, it just means you shouldn't waste your time on this kind of work."

Leaders want that drive for growth and change to show through in every aspect of the business, including its hiring practices. "The people we want are ambitious, they want to make things happen," said Anton. "We don't hire people who want to do the same thing in five years. We tell people when we interview them that if you want to do the same thing forever, don't work here."

As Goldstone puts it: "Hanley Wood wouldn't be Hanley Wood without ideation."

What do you think? Please share your thoughts, experiences and reactions by clicking on the comment button below.

Stacy Lynch is an independent consultant based in San Antonio, Texas. She focuses on customer insight and innovation research. Lynch teaches in the Media Management Center's Newspaper Change and Digital Strategies for Media Executives seminars. She is also directing the MMC seminar "Beyond Commodity: Customer-Focused Strategy for Digital Media."