Nothing stands Still – Lunch with Ralph Simon

Today, I was fortunate to be part of a small gathering led by Ralph Simon, a long-time music industry executive and mobile technology leader.  Mr. Simon came to Hub Bogota to speak with staff and guests about how technology and social media are being used for innovation and social good around the world.  The talk was not only educational and eye-opening, but inspiring as Mr. Simon acknowledged Hub’s own leadership potential, “The Hub is creating a whole new road for Colombia to move forward.”

After working at the Hub for over a month now, I think it’s quite easy for the novelty of the Hub atmosphere to wear off; the co-creation meetings, the tables covered in scratch paper – to jot down ideas whenever they arise, the ability to suggest virtually any idea without getting an open-mouthed stare.  It was a refreshing to have Mr. Simon remind us that the Hub is a special place – one that you do not come upon everyday.  A work environment that thrives on innovation and change, and works to make ideas come alive.

 

 

As Mr. Simon said, “Innovation is everything because nothing stands still.”  Innovation is not about creating something completely new, but rather about transforming something existing into something  better and fresh.  The sad truth however, is that most firms are not excited by innovative ideas, and do not want to take a chance on something new.  Unfortunately “naysaying” is the norm and until we can break that paradigm, innovative thinking will be considered too risky for the average company.  My director here at the Hub, Paula Gutierrez, raised a good point as we were wrapping up our session; the Hub atmosphere is a space for open innovation, imagination and idea creation, “How can we make this space visible to the public?”  How can we get the community engaged in this open thinking to make real and lasting changes?

Catalizadores del cambio

Working at the Hub has been great.  I have been working with a Colombian and another American colleague in strengthening the support services that the Hub offers to its entrepreneurs; we have called these groups “catalizadores del cambio” (or catalysts of change).  In the last 2 weeks we have set up meetings with Graphic Designers and publicists, lawyers and accountants to put together a brochure of services that can be offered for those working in the Hub.

The meetings were a great way to showcase not just the Hub itself to a greater audience, but also how programs are developed.  In the meetings, we asked the professionals of individual fields in attendance to co-work to create the program with us.  It has been really great to see people who had not met previously to come out of their shell and work together to create a project. These meetings are co-run with a Hub host.

The Art of Hosting is a central concept to making the Hub network work.  The host of the house not only welcomes entrepreneurs to the working space, but also creates opportunities for networking and brings innovators together to work on similar projects.  We will also rely on the hosts to assist in selling the services that we are currently developing with the designers, lawyers and accountants.

Working at the Hub has definitely given me a new view on co-working and co-creation.  It can be a slow process and sometimes painful, but the product that is birthed from the co-creation is generally one that pleases everyone in the organization and one that is fully developed.  I plan on bringing these lessons back to my group projects at MIIS for sure!  Look out future classmates…

So Jen… what the heck are you doing in Bogota?

That’s a great question… what exactly am I doing in Bogota?  Well, I’m working at an organization call Hub, which is part of a global Hub Network.  This week, I am helping Hub and Hub partners with their Social Innovation Week.  I wrote a description about the events happening this week in English to provide to partners around the world:

Meeting at the Hub, going over the schedule for Social Innovation Week

Social Innovation week is a connection of events across Colombia, creating spaces for social innovators and social entrepreneurs to meet, learn, network and collaborate.

Beginning with an early morning hike, and concluding with “La Cosecha” or the Harvest, the week will combine social events, networking opportunities and educational activities to allow social innovators and organizations to explore and expand their concepts within a community of like-minded individuals from Colombia and abroad.  Events throughout the week include social hours, networking nights, TEDx Makers Talk broadcasts and group bicycling throughout the city, an already popular activity with the trendy, young population of Bogotá.

ProAcción Café, a launching event for Hub Bogota, will feature entrepreneurs co-creating projects and will include participants from the public and private sector and from international and governmental agencies.  The final gala of the week will be the Harvest; an event with more than 100 members will be an opportunity for participants from the week to share collective knowledge gained throughout the activities and make partnerships to bring their ideas to fruition.  In addition to the events planned by the partnering organizations, there are self-generated events occurring across the country, as individuals and organizations are encouraged to create and promote their projects through an Internet platform.

Social entrepreneurship is a growing movement in Colombia and Bogotá is becoming an epicenter of development and sustainability in Latin America.  Stay updated on this week’s events online

http://semanadelainnovacionsocial.org/

http://www.nextbillion.net/

First impressions and lessons in Bogota

Here are some first impressions of Colombia:

– You hail a bus, but not a taxi. Most of the bus system in Bogota does not have a schedule or stops. You just go down to the major calle or carretera and hail a bus as it is going by. To get off, you just pull the chain to signal you want to stop. I’ve been told, this is why you hold on tight when you’re on the bus, and you never know when the bus will be stopping. You don’t hail taxis because many are fake and will rob you or worse. Instead, you call for a taxi and they text you a secret code number which you you’re your driver when you get inside. For this reason, I purchased a phone for the short time I’m here, feels pretty necessary. And it was only $49,444 COPA ($28)

– Coffee is beyond a pastime, it is a necessity and generally enjoyed at multiple points throughout the day. Traditionally, there used to be men that carried canisters full of coffee through the streets, on their backs like a backpack, and selling coffee this way, but it is far less common than it used to be.

– Bogotá tiene todas las estaciones en un día. Bogota has all four seasons in throughout a single day. It’s always warm and sunny at noon – that’s my favorite.

– I learned a new expression that I love: “Esa situacion es un chicharon.” – This situation is a mess! Chicharon is actually a piece of pork meat, which is often sold by street vendors. It is fried and very greasy, so after eating it, you’re a mess from the juices. For this reason, Colombians use the term to describe situations that are messy.

– The safest place to get money out of an ATM is inside a shopping mall, which have plenty of ATMs all over and many security guards. Most shops have a security guard out front as well, but I have been surprised that none of them seem to have weapons of any kind. Not sure exactly who they are trying to keep out.

– General custom when you meet someone is to hug them and put your cheeks together with a whiling kissing the air. Like air guitar, it’s an air cheek kiss. And even when you meet for the first time, people don’t say “hello” but rather “Que tal, como estas?” Tu (the informal you) is very common when you first meet people, which threw me off a little, I’m used to using the formal version until invited to use the informal.

– I have never been to a friendlier place, especially when the locals are dealing with a bumbling American foreigner like myself. I’m constantly amazed at how nice and patient people are with me… of course, a smile goes a long way!

Happily Hubbed

I am hoping to surround myself with inspiration and innovation this summer by working with the HUB in Bogota, Colombia.  HUB is a co-working environment that allows entrepreneurs to come together and collaborate. It’s a global network and there are HUBs all over the world – you can check out their website here: http://www.the-hub.net/

I am setting out some goals for myself this summer, the primary one being that I hope to improve my Spanish and especially my comfortably in speaking to native Spanish speakers without hesitation or turning completely red.