Customer-Centered Innovation  

As customer expectations change faster than before, innovation and the ability to update your products and processes are more important than ever. Maybe you’ve already recognized the need for a strategy refresh. Innovation and strategy go hand-in-hand. Innovation is a collection of techniques that can uncover what a new strategy ought to be. 

If you see the need for innovation within your organization, but don’t know how to get started or build traction for your ideas, this workshop is for you.

Customer-centered innovation is a problem-solving process that seeks to understand the user’s point-of-view, generate several relevant and creative ideas, test the best ideas before going all-in, and fine-tune on the way to success.

This interactive workshop will give you a framework and creative techniques which you can apply to your organization right away.

Learning Topics:

·       Innovation requirements: desirability, feasibility, viability

·       Inspiration: how to uncover problems worth solving

·       Design Thinking methods for uncovering customers latent needs and preferences

·       How to measure innovation progress

Our approach is to offer both strategic concepts and practical techniques. This is both a 'why and how' workshop. Business people at any level can walk away with practical knowledge to apply immediately.

Facilitated by:

Jen Reiner, Founder at Align
Joel Kline PhD., Innovation Consultant at Align 

Click here for facilitator bios.

Registration is $30. Register on Eventbrite

Location: 
Ben Franklin TechCelerator at The Candy Factory, 2nd Floor
342 N. Queen St.
Lancaster PA 17603

With Support From

The Candy Factory & The Ben Franklin TechCelerator

A business model is a simple 1-page tool for seeing the big picture of how a business creates value.  It helps reveal customer and operations opportunities you may be missing.

Jen Reiner will share the Business Model Blueprint she developed to make it easier to see the big picture of how all the ‘moving parts’ of a business fit together to serve customers, create value and fulfill a meaningful purpose.

It’s a crisp, clean 1-page template for organizing the 12 main drivers of a business’s strategy, beginning with a unique way of framing the problem it solves for customers. It’s a starting point for evaluating, innovating and prioritizing. 

It includes 10 questions to assess the strength and relevance of the business model, and help uncover opportunities for new customers, new products, revenue streams or ways of operating.  

Unlike other strategy tools, there’s no wonky jargon that makes your head spin. The questions are straightforward prompts to think differently and work strategically. 

Join us! Bring your lunch and see what new ideas you can generate for your business or your clients. 

RSVP on Eventbrite.

Before updating your strategy, (which you probably need to do if you haven't dug into it in the past year or so) you should revisit your business model.  Working on your business model should be like solving a riddle.  It should be challenging, but engaging and rewarding!  Solving a riddle also taps your logical brain, as well as your creative brain--just like the work of business model innovation! 

Whether your business is young and still finding its sweet spot, or whether success is pushing you to scale up and expand into new opportunities, now it the time to innovate!   If you're working to grow the business, add something new, or go in a new direction, your business model is the place to start!  

Business Model Innovation starts with a snapshot of how the business currently operates--from the 10-thousand foot view.  Then we conduct a simple assessment to uncover the areas where the business model could work better.  In this webinar, we'll dive right into some creative thinking exercises to spark ideas about how things could be different in your business.  By the end, you'll have started a practical, easy-to-use process to guide your thinking about how to tap new opportunities. 

Stand-out businesses work on their business model.  Leaders who focus on business model routinely get out of the weeds of implementation and look at the business from several perspectives.  Join Jen Reiner, president of align, for this 60 minute webinar! 

Register on Eventbrite!

a presentation for the Kick-Ass Female Entrepreneurs of Lancaster

Are you getting everything you deserve out of your hard work and passion towards your purpose? 

Ladies we have work to do! You can’t afford to not have every effort count toward your goals.  So, if you don’t have a serious business strategy, now is the time to make one. Join Jen Reiner, president of Align, a human-centered strategy company, for a light-hearted, result-oriented interactive session.

Building a strategy should reflect your passions, personality and expertise. It doesn’t need to be a complicated or lengthy process. It’s also gotta’ be customer-focused and designed to differentiate you in your customer’s mind.  Jen has a unique ability to bridge the analytical and creative minds.  In this session, she'll provide a high-level walk-through of her 12-piece Business Model Blueprint.  You can use this to assess and organize the major drivers of your business performance.  Then, we'll do some brainstorming and creative thinking to apply creative imitation to our business model in search of stand-out ideas! 

Sign up through Meetup.

This talk is part of the networking Meetup for the Kick-Ass Female Entrepreneurs of Lancaster and will be held at The Candy Factory on 342 N. Queen St. in Lancaster PA. 

Designed for Growth – the Art & Science of How Your Business Performs

If you want to grow your business, go in a new direction or operate more effectively, you need to change your approach within some of the major components of how your business works.  A smart strategy will pull together the most important objectives for moving forward. 

In this workshop, you'll learn how to use a straightforward template for visualizing and assessing the major drivers of sales and operations. It will help you develop a strategy consisting of the main factors that affect differentiation and growth. 

You’ll be better able to see the big picture objectively, while narrowing your focus to the right areas for improvement. You'll learn how to apply creative thinking to generate new ideas, as well as how to identify key progress indicators.

You may uncover opportunities for new customer groups, new products, new revenue streams or new operations priorities.  Or, you may discover a way to unify and better leverage a variety of separate initiatives, under one strategy. 

WHAT TO EXPECT:  

We’ll walk-through the 12 key elements of an aligned business model and how they work together to produce a competitive strategy. Then, we’ll apply the model to your own business. You’ll learn how to create strategic objectives by comparing how your business operates today, and what you need to do to grow.

We’ll also look at a few examples that may inspire new ideas. You’ll leave with a draft version of your Business Model Blueprint, which you can use later to develop an executable strategy.  You’ll also be eligible for a one-hour post-workshop session to prioritize and improve key strategies.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:

*  Business owners serious about growing or going in a new direction.
*  Leaders of promising businesses in competitive markets.
*  Executives navigating change, new offerings or uncertain times.
Those with decision making at a strategic level will benefit the most. 

Registration is through The Lancaster Chamber.    

Attend a Strategy Studio Session!

Do you carve out enough time to work on improving, implementing and assessing your strategy? This 'studio session' provides a dedicated time to reflect on your business from a high-level view. There will be brief opening instructions, including focus questions and topics suggested from attendees.  Some small groups may spontaneously emerge to work together.  You may discover new potential partners, or may simply benefit from brainstorming with peers and accessing new perspectives.  Additionally, I'll offer feedback and ask challenging questions to help you push your strategy to greatness! You can work alone, get help or bounce ideas off others. Think of this as a combination of an un-conference session and yoga class.  You can create a monthly routine for your strategy practice, soak up the Candy Factory's creative vibe, and enjoy the collaboration and energy of others in the room.  Plus, it's always helpful to have a guide to help adjust your approach when necessary.   Look for sessions each month. 

The Candy Factory, 342 N. Queen St. Lancaster PA

No cost - only benefits!

Open to all!  You can RSVP on the Candy Factory Facebook page or email jreiner@alignltd.com. 

Training Title

Business Model Thinking

Date & Time

Sept 19, 9:30 am – 11:00 am

Location

Northeast Berks Chamber of Commerce, Kutztown

Register and Learn More

http://www.nineoclockclub.com/