To succeed in business, we must change the meaning of the word ‘failure’ and that takes courage.

If there’s one message that day-1 of the Boston Innovation Festival made sure cut through with delegates, it’s that Disruptive Innovation is so much more than simply the act of being disruptive. 

There has been an emphasis on the human at the Boston Innovation Festival 2019. The trends are moving away from technology being the star. We are realizing that technology is here to better serve humanity. 

A self-confessed nerd, Steve Wozniak built the Apple 2. With his hands. Wozniak’s key note on Day 2 of the Boston Innovation Festival was full of human story. As a young computer nerd all he wanted was to play computer games. And to have fun. 

As part of the SingularityU Australia Global Impact Challenge, we held a two-day Bootcamp at the Sydney School of Entrepreneurship. Our cohort worked on pitch decks and presentation techniques. They worked hard and fast, with commitment and determination.

As the Christmas season approaches and you are left wondering where the year went, please stop! Stop measuring time. 

Just as Greece needs to aim high and find a united vision, so do we.

Here are four quotes that have played themselves into my business. 

Unleash collaboration for a global cause and anything is possible. Bring like minds together to highlight issues and change follows. 

Our brains have come to expect constant change and the result of all the extra stimuli, is the incomplete formation of brain pathways in children.

In the past 20 years we have made incredible advances in technology that have seen the sick healed and the lost found. 

Design Thinking Workshops

Design Thinking

I’m writing this article from San Francisco. It’s appropriate that SingularityU is based here.

We aren’t as averse to change as ‘experts’ would have us believe.

Why develop a new product rather than spend the allocated funds on traditional advertising methods?

What will it mean to live in an ExpONEntial society? Is ‘one’ a singular or a collective? 

I often wonder what changes people make to their businesses, organisations and lives once they leave the confines of a shared space of like-minds.

In order to live an effective life, we should ask ourselves. “Did I make a difference today?” 

I am a Pixar tragic! I’ve cried watching some movies and cried at my children’s delight in others. 

Day one of the Front End of Innovation - there is so much information to absorb and share.

Q&A Panel at the 2018 Top Shots Newcastle business breakfast event. With Lockie Cooke from Splend, Deb Morrison from PetCloud, Stephen Dudgeon & Eli Burger from Avenue Dental, and Christina Gerakiteys from UtopiaX.

Stephen Dudgeon 7 Eli Burger of Avenue Dental speak about building award winning workplace culture, at the 2018 Top Shots Newcastle business breakfast event.

Deb Morrison, founder of PetCloud, shares her journey of entrepreneurship in launching her Startup, at the 2018 Top Shots Newcastle business breakfast event.

Lockie Cooke from Splend speaks about enabling drivers in the ride-sharing economy, at the 2018 Top Shots Newcastle business breakfast event.

Andrew Beattie from PKF gives the opening presentation of the 2018 Top Shots Newcastle business breakfast event.

In this group of interviews we cover Telsa, Vivid, Netflix, autonomous vehicles, most innovative companies, and so much more!

You are invited to an amazing, intensive business and self-development experience on a glorious Greek island. This week is for those with a fire in their belly and passion in their heart. 

Christina Gerakiteys from Ideation at Work talks about managing and embracing change and innovation at the Zoom forum in Newcastle.

Growing up I wondered when the increasing value of ‘things’ would outstrip the dollars available. As an adult, I am still wondering. 

With thanks to the crew at Eluminate and Brian Daly from the Proverbials for their awesome talents in putting this together.

Ben Cooper, ‎Founder and MD of Tricky Jigsaw (an M&C Saatchi Group company), encourages us to "Live More Lobster" at the Top Shots Melbourne Breakfast. 27th June 2017. Presented by Ideation at Work and PKF.

Roger Langsdon, Marketing Manager at Planet Innovation, speaks on innovation in business at the Top Shots Melbourne Breakfast.

Jennifer Holland, Founder of Throat Scope, talks us through her journey as a start-up business at the Top Shots Melbourne Breakfast.

Ben Cooper, Roger Langsdon, Jennifer Holland & Christina Gerakiteys take questions to close the 2017 Melbourne Top Shots Breakfast at Smart Artz Gallery, 27th June 2017.

Ken Weldin, Parter at PKF Melbourne, speaks on innovation in business at the Top Shots Melbourne Breakfast.

What difference can you make? How can you make life easier for others? 

Last week at Vivid Sydney we started a movement, #creativityequals.

David Leask presents the latest challenges and educational directions in advanced manufacturing at the Smart Ideas Forum, Hunter Innovation Festival.

Smart Ideas Competition at the Hunter Innovation Festival facilitated by Christina Gerakiteys

Justin Hales talks through the development and growth of Camplify at the Smart Ideas Forum, Hunter Innovation Festival.

Rob Coorey talks us through his method of business development and expansion at the Smart Ideas Forum, Hunter Innovation Festival.

Melinda Smith & Susan Hart present The Male App

Inspiring Business Growth through Creativity, Innovation and Ideation.

If the dreary staircases in train stations and public places in Newcastle and the Hunter were brightly painted and even made music when you trod on them, would people use them more?

I have just returned from the Front End Innovation Conference in Boston. After three days mixing with ‘the tribe’, immersed in innovation, I have the courage to believe anything is possible.

I have ‘heard’ myself say to several people lately, “I would rather lose my wallet than my phone”. I know better. I know we get what we ask for. 

Craig Sawyer, Senior advisor/ Director PKF Wealth speaks at the Top Shots 2017 Newcastle Breakfast

Don’t we all wish it existed? That book that holds within its pages the elusive magic formula that weaves its way from Ideation to Execution and results in a successful venture.

Where do you start selecting the books to add to your bookshelf – or device?

A few years ago, there was talk about laying the Hunter Innovation Festival to rest.

Entries are open for the Smart Ideas competition, in its third edition and a part of the Hunter Innovation Festival in May. 

Last week I experienced the brilliant mind, charisma and inspiration of Simon Sinek.

I confess that I am a musical tragic and some time ago took my daughter to see Matilda The Musical. I found myself relating the story to my work in innovation and entrepreneurship.

What difference can you make? How can you make life easier for others? When was the last time you took a stand against something you believed was not acceptable? How does your business serve your clients?

There is no ‘perfect plan’ to start on January 1. Good habits can be started and bad habits dropped on any day. Make today count!

How many times have you sat there and watched someone else get ready to do something and procrastinate and thought to yourself, or muttered, or said out loud – Come on – Just DO It!

So did you read Open Your Mind or Mind Your Open in our graphic? Either way the message should resonate! Here we go with Habits 3 and 4…

On the podcast with Heidi, I share my personal mission of opening people's hearts and minds to possibility, playing backgammon on a Greek island, singing in front of the mirror and why Dyson is my hero.

You are invited to an amazing, intensive training and self-development week on a glorious Greek island. This week is for those with a fire in their belly and passion in their heart. Nail your purpose, strengthen your sustainability and build your resilience. Be inspired and inspire your collaborators to have the courage and daring to transform.

You are invited to an amazing, intensive training and self-development week on a glorious Greek island. This week is for those with a fire in their belly and passion in their heart. Nail your purpose, strengthen your sustainability and build your resilience. Be inspired and inspire your collaborators to have the courage and daring to transform.

What an amazingly fast and furious year. While everyone is in evaluation and planning mode, here are five essential points to consider and execute for success in 2017.

What an amazingly fast and furious year. While everyone is in evaluation and planning mode, here are five essential points to ponder then execute.

Christina Gerakiteys is in the business of opening hearts and minds to possibility. As Chief Enabler and CEO of Ideation At Work, she is an innovation and creativity consultant and trainer.

Einstein knew it. He also knew that “Creativity was intelligence having fun”. Creativity and Innovation require Imagination. Futurists, science fiction writers and Hollywood have always flirted with the impossible and in doing so, seeded the possible.

Creativity and innovation require imagination.

I have been working lately on limiting beliefs, others and my own.

I have been working lately on limiting beliefs, others and my own.

Hunter Headline provides timely business news and information specific to the Hunter region. #HunterEntrepreneur interviews are designed to get a better understanding of how local entrepreneurs got where they are and any advice they would give to other entrepreneurs.

On a small island or village, your word is your bond. Once trust is gone, your name is mud. 

Human beings have been innovating since time immemorial.

This is a memorial where the old village church used to be.

There are lessons to be learnt everywhere we look if we have our eyes and our hearts wide open.

Here I am on the island of my ancestors. I am a fanatical walker and discover whatever I can on foot.

This year, the Hunter Innovation Festival (HIF) saw a record number of entries for the Smart Ideas competition.

This year, the Hunter Innovation Festival (HIF) saw a record number of entries for the Smart Ideas competition. 

This year, the Hunter Innovation Festival (HIF) saw a record number of entries for the Smart Ideas competition.

Neil Lindsay pitches his E-Circuit invention at the Smart Ideas launch event of the 2016 Hunter Innovation Festival.

Graham Baker pitches The Brain Train concept at the Smart Ideas launch event of the 2016 Hunter Innovation Festival.

Chad Ramage pitches his Accessibility in the City 360 degree virtual reality video concept at the Smart Ideas launch event of the 2016 Hunter Innovation Festival.

Zappos has a workplace culture worthy of bottling and delivering to every organisation on the planet! 

As we move further into the 21st century, life is all about the people. 

There’s a lot around theses days about finding your why, your raison d’etre, following your heart, doing what you love.

Christina Gerakiteys on creativity & innovation, failure & success.

Speakers from some of the nation’s most innovative companies are set to descend on Newcastle.

I am always dismayed when I hear that a workplace has anything less than an empowering and effective culture, particularly when you consider the research that has been conducted.

If you have got a bright idea for a product or service that could benefit the Hunter, the Smart Ideas competition is open for business. 

If you’ve got a bright idea for a service or product to benefit the Hunter, the Smart Ideas competition is now open for business. 

Steve Jobs knew how to make connections.

ORDINARY people with extraordinary ideas take note...

Be brave enough to be exactly who you want to be, one hundred percent of the time.

Top of the list: Be brave enough to be exactly who you want to be, one hundred percent of the time.

Blending work and play, The Unlocking Creativity and Innovation retreat will be held on the Greek island of Kefalonia, the largest of the Ioanian islands.

The words authentic, honest and purposeful are becoming increasingly valued in today’s business world. And they are qualities that are not easily demonstrable on an on-line platform.

As much as technology has connected us through video conferencing, Skype and countless equivalents, there is nothing as productive in the short term as face-to-face contact.

Successful teams are ‘backed’. They get a ‘hearing’. Our innovation team was guaranteed the opportunity to regularly present their ideas to the company directors.

Female entrepreneurs will own thirteen trillion dollars of business by next year. 

I once heard the term ‘Innovate Like an Israeli’. It wasn’t until I attended the Creative Innovation Conference in Melbourne earlier this year that I truly understood what that meant.

The concept of driverless cars has been around since the 1920s, so perhaps Hollywood isn’t making all the predictions but rather increasing their momentum.

Thursday November 19 was United Nations Women’s Entrepreneurship Day. According to figures from EY, female entrepreneurs will own thirteen trillion dollars of business by next year.

I confess that I am a musical tragic and took my daughter to see Matilda The Musical last Saturday.  I found myself relating the story to my work in innovation and entrepreneurship. 

The Hunter Manufacturing Awards held in October acknowledged world-class companies operating in the region.

In case you missed it, last week was the 25th Anniversary of Back to the Future, and focus was on ‘predictions’ that had woven their way into our reality.

A little inspiration from Ideation At Work and UQ Power...

Ever felt the electricity of the group in an idea building session? That’s what true collaboration feels like.

Entrepreneurs have come to be defined as those who start a new business.

Ditch the Pitch at Hunter Collective 15. Entries due September 1. Go to www.huntercollectove.com.au for details.

In order to tend your innovation team, firstly ensure you have a diverse ‘brains trust’ in the group.

The Industrial Age was about mass production  and mass consumption. 

Close your eyes and think about the last time you travelled to a different country, state, city or even suburb.

Ever felt the electricity of the group in an idea building session? That’s what true collaboration feels like.

Close your eyes and think about the last time you travelled to a different country, state, city or even suburb.

The possibilities opening up to businesses at this time of incredible change are exciting, though it will be challenging for some to release old beliefs.

They call NYC the City of Ideas. There are banners everywhere reminding you of that.

Always ask with gratitude for any response. And make sure your motives are honest and authentic.

At its heart NYC, just like any other city or town, is the collective energy of its inhabitants.

I’m sitting on a plane, almost at the end of the first leg of my journey, heading for New York City.

At first I was miffed that Orange had become the new Black! Why were all these converts moving into Orange territory?

We constantly hear about ‘cuts’ to business, mining, manufacturing, health and education.

At first I was miffed that orange had become the new black. Why were all these converts moving into orange territory? 

We are constantly hearing about ‘‘cuts’’ to business, mining, manufacturing, health and education. 

Helen Barclay, Invetiologist at Inventium, speaks about innovation in business at the 2015 BRW Most Innovative Companies Breakfast Event in Newcastle.

Q&A Session from the 2015 BRW Most Innovative Companies Breakfast Event in Newcastle.

Take-Out Session summarising the key learnings from the 2015 BRW Most Innovative Companies Breakfast Event in Newcastle. Facilitated by Paul Siderovski from SiDCOR Chartered Accountants and Christina Gerakiteys from Ideation at Work.

Roger Langsdon, Marketing Manager at Planet Innovation, speaks about innovation in business at the 2015 BRW Most Innovative Comanies Breakfast Event in Newcastle

Ben Cooper, Group Innovation Director at M&C Saatchi, speaks about innovation in business at the 2015 BRW Most Innovative Companies Breakfast Event in Newcastle.

Paul Siderovski, Founder and Managing Director of SiDCOR Chartered Accountants, speaks about innovation in business at the 2015 BRW Most Innovative Companies Breakfast in Newcastle.

Chris Ridd, Managing Director of Xero Australia & New Zealand, speaks about innovation in business at the BRW Most Innovative Companies Breakfast Event in Newcastle on 19/3/2015

Christina Gerakiteys, Creative Director at Ideation at Work, interviews Lisa Messenger, Chief Editior of the Renegade Collective.

Christina Gerakiteys, Creative Director at Ideation at Work, interviews Laurence Schuberth, Head of Digital Media & Online Integration at NBN Television.

Christina Gerakiteys, Creative Director at Ideation at Work, interviews Paul Siderovski, Founder & Managing Director at SiDCOR Accountants.

It’s a no brainer really – isn’t this what we all want – to get to the root of a problem? 

Innovation should be like those other “in” words – innate, intuitive, indefinite – it should be a “given” that everyone should be involved.

So the term Mental Contrasting popped up again the other day in a newsletter from Inventium.

Human beings are adaptable creatures. Maybe we should ask more often how we can adopt and adapt ideas from one industry into another industry. 

How we perceive things is really coloured by the sum of our life’s experiences.

How many times have you been in a meeting and someone has piped up and said, we are going to brainstorm, and you either think oh no not again or right, I have to turn on the brainstorming part of my brain and hope it works…

There is a plethora of articles being written at the moment about retail – chains are closing, David Jones and Myers have had profit slumps, the internet is killing the sector etc.etc.etc.

As the Hunter Innovation Festival enters its the sixth consecutive year, it is timely to investigate the origins of Innovation and why we bother to celebrate Innovation during the month of May.

Brazilian company Semco made its debut on the Internet in July 2005. 

A friend of mine keeps coming up with great book discoveries!

I have just returned from the USA in awe of the role that Creativity and Innovation play in businesses, companies and organisations.

There are a plethora of articles written about Innovation in the Workplace. 

I have a problem with measuring – sometimes we get so caught up in the measuring and the explaining and the reporting and the justifying – that we forget what it was we actually started out trying to achieve.

Creativity can be consumed by assumptions.

“Technology should be a means rather than an end”, says neuroscientist Susan Greenfield, who warns that our addiction to social media and devices will come at a cost to our skills and productivity.

I was impressed a couple of weeks ago. Returning home from my early morning walk I passed a new business venture that was about to launch – Pure – a retail outlet for clothes, shoes and accessories for sporting enthusiasts.

Every now and again it’s also good to be inspired by businesses closer to home – and this is  a little less awe-inspiring and international.

Rather than adhering to routine and micro management techniques, Ricardo Semler, CEO at Semco, is more concerned with the productivity in any given month and a concern around the gratification employees will receive from their work?

Well I had a little chuckle to myself as I headed to Wikipedia for a definition of micromanagement. Chuckle soon turned to choke as I read it, eyes widening and mouth gaping!

Of course, the best risk takers are the ones who have nothing to lose…

Bread has been a staple part of the human diet since the Neolithic era…so it’s been around for a long time. 

Academics often talk about little ‘c’ and big ‘C’ creativity. If that’s the case, Newcastle in May was blazing INNOVATION.

Western cultures have largely solved problems by establishing rules, rules that inflict limits on situations and confine behaviours to what is deemed to be acceptable.

There’s been much talk lately in quite a few different circles I’ve found myself in, about putting all our eggs in the mining basket.

And I don’t mean – increase the percentage off or give me more for less…I mean as consumers, we aren’t duped by the term SALE anymore.

I have noticed a huge shift in the customer service being rolled out at Coles. 

Finally – research to back up what we already know from the University of Newcastle – your gut instinct is right! 

I went book mad this Christmas! And I’m not talking the Kindle variety – although I do love the convenience of a Kindle – my mother used to say a time and place for everything. 

There’s no doubt that NOT having to worry about money ALL the time certainly helps remove barriers! 

HUNTER women are joining a rapidly growing cohort of working mothers who are creating a new model for ‘‘having it all’’.

The Hunter Collective featuring four powerhouse women! Lisa Messenger, Jane Huxley, Pinky McKay & Pip Stocks answer questions from the audience at The Hunter Collective lunch in Newcastle on 11/11/2014.

Jane Huxley – The Shaker

Lisa Messenger – The Renegade Lisa started her business life in sponsorship and events, brokering international deals for the likes of The Wiggles, Barry Humphries and Cirque du Soleil, before expanding into PR (managing her own firm) and book publishing (where her company produced more than 400 books for others with a disruptive new approach). 

Pinky McKay – The Liberator Our Liberator, Pinky McKay is a best-selling author, speaker and lactation consultant. Her books include Sleeping Like a Baby, 100 Ways to Calm the Crying, Toddler Tactics and Parenting By Heart.

Pip Stocks – The Maven Pip is the founder of BrandHook, an award winning Keynote Speaker and Thought Leader. She often appears on ACA as their retail expert (not developing insight into why neighbours are at war) and offers her opinion in press and radio.

FOLLOWING in the footsteps of the design, innovation and green technologies festival, a new event aims to mark Newcastle as a hot spot for entrepreneurs and innovators.

If you read business books, participate in workshops or seek advice from a business adviser or coach,  there will always be a ‘‘case study’’, or a ‘‘mention’’ of businesses and organisations doing well, even ‘‘punching above their weight’’.

As any entrepreneur will tell you, you won’t get far without determination, commitment and collaboration. 

Amantha Imber, founder of Inventium, inspires people around the globe to think innovatively and implement those innovations in workplaces. She has many interesting stories to tell. Here's one of them...

SiDCOR hosted the BRW Most Innovative Companies Breakfast in September 2013. CEO Paul Siderovski explains the process and importance of innovation to any business in the 21st century.

Why did BRW agree to partner with Inventium and create a list of Most Innovative Companies? Who came in at number one? James Thomson is the editor of BRW...

Coca Cola came in fourth in the BRW Most Innovative Companies list in 2012. Watch James' presentation to find out what made them stand out in their field.

Blue Chilli came in third in the BRW Most Innovative Companies List in 2012. They were placed in the 2013 list as well...find out what they do to keep the innovation wheels spinning...

ComBank came in second in the BRW Most Innovative List in 2012. Find out how a major bank encourages and implements innovative practises as part of their every day routine...

Hear what Amantha Imber (Inventium), Marcus Judge (ComBank), Stephen Dunn (Blue Chilli), James Thomson (BRW) and James Brazier (Coca-Cola) had to say in response to the audience questions on innovation and implementation.

BRAZILIAN company Semco made its debut on the internet in July 2005. Prior, it was a manufacturing company in decline. The April 2013 issue of Forbes reported  Semco had grown 900percent in 10 years. 

 As the Hunter Innovation Festival enters its  sixth consecutive year, it is timely to investigate the origins of innovation and why we bother to celebrate it  during the month of May.