Publishers Must Adapt (Or Die)
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One of the models for innovation that Harford examines in Adapt is that of the skunk works,
which he
describes as “a small, unconventional team of engineers and innovators in a big corporation,
deliberately shielded from a nervous corporate hierarchy”. Named after Lockheed Martin’s
famous
Skunk Works, such departments “can be a quasi-independent division, or even an entirely
new
organisation. It can focus on core business in a new way, as the original skunk works did, or
it can
branch into totally new lines of business.”
Of course, without enough independence, the right talent and structure, or enough budget or
time,
skunk works projects can go horribly wrong. The Economist’s flawed Project Red Stripe, for
example,
didn’t deliver the goods.
But inspiration can come from strange places and a great example of the institutionalisation
of
innovation, which is what the skunkworks concept is ultimately all about, is Farm Journal
Media. Their
134-year-old title, Farm Journal, has “built a broad multi-platform portfolio consisting of
websites, data
products, e-newsletters, mobile apps, events, and even TV shows, all focused on the
agriculture
industry.” Through doing so, “the business is on track to grow by 80% during its current five-
year
planning period”.
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