Speakers:

Jules Goddard, CEDEP Faculty, Fellow of London Business School, Member of the Council of the Royal Institute of Philosophy and author of recently published books on both philosophy and business experimentation.

Kate Chauviré, Director, Academic Planning and Coordination, CEDEP

Von Frisch’s famous discovery about bee behaviour can teach us valuable lessons about exploration in business. Most bees use a ‘waggle dance’ to direct their fellow bees to the best pollen sites. But a small minority operate more like mavericks. They ignore the signals of their fellow bees and reject conventional sources of pollen. Instead, they take the risk of exploring further afield, often with no luck, but just occasionally, discover a new treasure trove of pollen.

Mavericks in business are the eccentrics challenging the status quo. Rather than being risk-averse, mavericks provoke, stir up debate and explore. And in today’s uncertain world, we need more bravery, curiosity and experimentation. 

Part of the skill of business is to get the balance right between exploitation and exploration. When firms underperform, it is often because they play too safe. They exploit their cost base by cutting back on expenses wherever they can and neglect the braver option of exploration.

The big question is: do you have enough mavericks to make a difference? If you need more, what do you have to do to recruit them or, better still, bring out and liberate more of the maverick within those you already employ?  

By encouraging the intrapreneurial talents of mavericks, companies would become more entrepreneurial, restoring the balance between exploitation and exploration. 

 

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