Stop Reinventing Wheels – BusinessWeek
My latest article for Business Week is now up:
Stop trying to Reinvent the Wheel:
Right now, in meetings at corporations around the world, the wise are suffering. They are trapped in rooms where debate rages over how to solve a problem. The rub is that the problem has already been solved, just not by someone in the room—and solutions from outside are ignored. This is the disease known as “NIH,” or “Not Invented Here” syndrome, and it’s alive and well in 2010. Despite our many technological advancements in communication, none have eliminated this perennial waste of time. Why is this problem so hard to shake? Will we always be confronted with people who insist on reinventing wheels?
There’s another reason for “Not Invented Here”: paranoia. If you make it yourself, it’s yours, no one can take it from you. It’s flawed reasoning, but stems from the idea that innovation comes not from the curation (as you call it) but from inventing everything from the ground up.
I love your example with the chef. I plan to steal…er…use that one. I have the feeling that I am going to need it in the future.
Great article.