Sometimes the simplest change can unleash the potential of your work force. A case in point is learning how to talk openly with each other at BeyondCurious. After taking a hard look at ourselves during a challenging period, we recently implemented an approach for more open communication that we call "straight talk." Straight talk is not a euphemism for providing occasional performance feedback; it's a simple but powerful way of thinking that encompasses candid communication across the organization at all times. I believe straight talk can help your company become more efficient and effective, as it has with BeyondCurious.

At BeyondCurious, we live on the cloud. Literally. As an innovation consultancy, we work with leading brands helping them solve complex business problems with digital solutions. Yet, we have no servers, no local applications. Everything in our business is cloud based – providing global access to information and enabling us to scale rapidly as we grow.

Excellent client relationships are the foundation of a successful consultancy. But relationship management isn’t always easy. In fact, developing relationships and keeping them strong, even when there are bumps in the road, is one of the hardest skills to learn. 

In this age of the quantified self, a lot of attention has been paid to wearable technologies. From Pebble and Misfit Shine to FitBit and Jawbone Up, wearable devices can track every aspect of our bodies. The quantified self movement isn’t just for fun; a detailed, specific understanding of our own metrics, from how many steps we take to how much we sleep we get, is helping to encourage positive behavioral shifts.

Image © Carrie Yury

I thought he was insane.
The first time I saw someone talking on a mobile phone with a headset I thought he was psychologically disturbed. Or terribly, aggressively rude. Or both. An executive from the company that had just acquired us, he would stand facing nothing in particular in the middle of the office having a loud, animated conversation with himself, obtrusively alienating the rest of the office.

In the movie “Warm Bodies”, zombies move slowly through the world with an insatiable hunger to consume a person’s energy for their own survival. Until one day, a spirited survivor inspires one of the zombies to dream again. In dreaming, the zombie is transformed back into its human state, and sets off a reverse epidemic in a formerly lifeless world.

Being at an innovation company not only provides the opportunity to imagine new products, but also allows you to re-imagine established ways of doing things. At BeyondCurious, we actively look for opportunity areas where we can drive extraordinary results.