Proving Collaboration Works At 3M

© 2011 IBM Corporation

CUST106Proving Collaboration Works – to EveryoneJohn Woodworth | IT Lab Collaboration | 3M

© 2011 IBM Corporation 2

Agenda● About● Opportunity● Serendipity● Challenge● GO!● Curtain Call


http://about.me/johnwoodworth


About 3M

Electro and Communications Business

Consumer andOffice Business

Display andGraphics Business

Health CareBusiness

Industrial and TransportationBusiness

Safety, Security and Protection Services Business


Solving Problems Everywhere

● Operate companies in more than 65 countries─ 35 international companies with manufacturing operations,

35 with laboratories─ In the United States, operations in 28 states

● R&D and related expenditures total $6.861 billion for the last five years

● More than 75,000 employees worldwide● “Innovation through collaboration”


High-Performance Culture

We respect the dignity and worth of all individuals, encourage the initiative of each employee, challenge individual capabilities and provide equal opportunity for development.

-- 3M Human Resource Principles


Opportunity


December, 2009● 3M Connections launched earlier that year● Some awareness, strongest at US HQ● Skepticism around enterprise collaboration

Roger’s ‘Diffusion of Innovation’

Checking it out


December, 2009

● Gloomy news, everywhere─ Economy─ Government─ Personal life …


How to …

prove business collaboration can work …

globally, ...

ramp up our ‘engagement’ game and …

bring JOY to 3M employees?


Serendipity


Shorewood High School Shows How It’s Done


Motivation and Creativity

Complex tasks requiredifferent motivationDaniel Pink proved people will rise to a challenge if given:

AutonomyPurposeA chance to Master technique


Bravery, Choices And Locked Doors

Alice had to make choices with very little informationShe made mistakes, but she figured it outPeople are intrigued by mysterious things


Challenge


Yikes! Do A Video? Really?

Can we really pull in global participation?People are busy.Who are the global ‘connectors?’Who has video expertise?‘Permission?’Was this a career risk?

I needed help!


Getting Started

Found some conspiratorsBrainstorming: what did we want?Gave ourselves ‘permission’After-hoursSECRECY


”In The Margins?” What does that mean?

Leonardo da Vinci's ''Codex on the Flight of Birds''

This became our project name


Project Goals

Surprise the company“Bottoms - up"Raise the spirit of each person who watches itShow 3M executives how 'cool' the employees areProve collaboration can happen with the new 3M social tools. Teach innovative people how to use them.


Some Simple Rules

Only 3M employees. All video had to internally developed.No sponsors. McKnight had to be in each video segment, somewhere.Theme: “Show McKnight how far we've come.”Encouraged: subtlety, things off to the side, mystery, exuberance.


Some Simple Rules

Each team to develop a 15-second clipA common sound trackProtect 3M – no infringement, no confidential informationEach team had a captainEveryone has a voteCore team to assemble and render final video


How we would do this?

Use ConnectionsDiscussionsWiki (plans, voting, ‘team pages,’ storyboards)Blog for weekly newsletterFilesBookmarks for video clips

Use 3M Video Library (new)Clips, playlists, drafts

Sametime for global chat

Very little e-mail!


Getting Ready

Project charter and planSamples of storyboardsPre-seeded discussionsTopics ready to goInitial invites


Go!


Who to Invite?

Creative, connected people…Who will accept a challenge, and …Be comfortable joining a stealth project.


The Power of Connectors and Salesmen

The Power Of Little Things

Robust Social Networks Most effective if the ‘Right People’ are in the network


We Sent an Obscure Invitation

Sent via e-mail from me.

Clicking the button launched a video invite

I did not know most of the invitees


It Worked!

“Hell yes, I’m in!” “Count me, in!” “Tell me more.”28 accepted, 24 no responseThe first wave recommended other people.They sent ‘the button.’Invitees formed their own teams. Total of 75 people, worldwide


But This Approach Wasn’t Effective Everywhere

China and Japan did not reply. Can you guess why?


Keeping the Energy Going

Encouraged competition – cooperationWiki-based storyboards with comments and starsTeam photos, team pagesTeams uploaded files and templates for others to use

Discussions – debates on approachAllowed rules to adapt

Weekly video messages


Roadblocks, Cliffs and Potholes

Perfectionists vs. impatientMusical scoreCritical pathChirping cricketsSummer slowdown

Had the project stalled?


How To Reignite the Project?

What were the teams doing?Lost two monthsNeeded a spark

Made a clip and invited comments


What happened?

Many comments on the clipSuddenly, new clips arrivedMade the music track into a voting contest

Creativity sparks creativity!


Complete!

Burst of activity in final four weeksLaunched internally Oct 25.Viral – each team member could disperse as they choseBlog post “What is this? Where did it come from?”Requests for copiesAttention of top executivesPermission to take it to YouTube


Curtain Call


What Did We Learn?

‘Bottoms – up’ projects work, but require flexibility Community management is essentialStealth is funViral works; it leads to the right peopleCollaboration is a clear path towards creativity


Daniel Pink Is Right

Team members taught themselves how to make videos. They spent their own money and personal time (Mastery)

They aligned strongly on the ‘gift’ theme (Purpose)

The team members adjusted the scope (Autonomy)


Who were they?

75 people17 teamsMost have never met…… and most never will

The team chooses to remain anonymous


Reference: Videos

The Team Video (YouTube) “Yes, IT Does Continue” The Shorewood ‘LipDub’ videoDaniel Pink's “The surprising truth about what motivates us”

Proving Collaboration Works At 3M

Business

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