Graham Hitchen provides strategic management advice on the development of major programmes for cities, cultural organisations, universities and government agencies.
He works with clients to manage complex challenges - specialising in relationship building, and high-level facilitation and negotiation.
The recently published Bazalgette review of the creative industries made much of the importance of creative clusters. But, despite using the term on a regular basis, there was a surprising lack of commentary or policy recommendations relating to the ‘creative economy’. Continue reading “Creative-led innovation and growth”
This piece draws on work being undertaken with Innovate UK, Arts Council England and the Knowledge Transfer Network. Continue reading “Thinking like a creative innovator”
It’s been both a depressing and a fascinating couple of weeks…… Continue reading “Post-Brexit reading”
The first in a regular series of posts highlighting a selection of recent articles and stories on creativity, innovation, culture and the like…. Continue reading “Creativity, Innovation, Culture – May”
The programmes being piloted by MadLab, Makerversity and NearNow are aiming to test an approach to the development and support of innovation across arts and technology. They are different takes on an ‘innovation-intensification’ process – providing space to develop and test new products and services, and guiding innovators towards a sustainable business model – including the potential for ongoing investment. Continue reading “Experimental innovation across arts and technology”
Further to my earlier blog on the topic of ‘Failure’ I’ve recently been re-reading Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea.
On the face of it, this is a book about a sailor whose dream of catching the biggest Marlin is sadly dashed, his failure captured by every mouthful the sharks eat of his catch, as he slowly tries to guide it back to land.
But is it really a book about failure?
It’s sad, for sure. Santiago, the fisherman and sailor, is a sad and – by the end – a distressed and fragile figure. His catch, strapped to the side of his boat, is now just a fleshless skeleton and he, surviving for days without food or water, is sick and weather-beaten. But, that skeleton – all 18 feet of it, with a “handsome, beautifully formed” tail – is itself evidence of his achievement and of the battle he fought. As the last sentence states all too clearly: he is still “dreaming about lions” and, indeed, through the boy sitting by his bedside, he has a companion through whom he can share and pass-on his experiences.
As my earlier blog stated, identifying and celebrating ‘failure’ risks privileging the notion of being wrong and being right (in the same way that ‘perfect’ is the enemy of ‘good’). Innovation and improvement are not always about getting things right or getting things wrong – there’s a learning process here and even when one feels beaten, it’s important to acknowledge achievements and to learn. And of course, one should never give up dreaming about cats!
The theme of ‘Failure’ was bravely taken up by Gemma Bull of Save the Children, in the 2nd of 3 Breakfast discussions being run by The Social Innovation Partnership, in partnership with Hub Westminster and °directional thinking. Continue reading “Failure and Innovation”
Graham Hitchen 