how my interpersonal journey turned into an idea. introducing paper aircrane... a strategic ideation company.

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This past year has been a huge transitional year for me. If you have been following me closely you have witnessed each evolutional step in my career this year, and with patience (hopefully) you have witnessed the transformation first hand. It would be robbery if I did not thank all of my friends, the people who have endured my lengthy phone conversations, and "wayward" actions as I felt things through. I will not name you "one by one" because there are many of you, and you know who you are. I am writing THIS post for two reasons... 1. To illuminate a shift that I experienced, that many of you reading this may be experiencing, so that perhaps you can gain a better understanding of what is going on with you, and 2. To introduce to you what I feel is a revolutionary way of thinking about doing business and just one more step towards design and innovation excellence. 

"It was in that conversation that I sensed a shift coming interpersonally and I knew that from that moment on, things for me would be changing, and they did..." 

For the past 17 years I have actively been working in the creative fields. From hands-on design, to creative strategy and direction to consulting and ideation. I have seen a LOT of amazing things, and I have executed many amazing projects. And for the most part I have LOVED every second of it. However; it was about 2 years ago, I was having a conversation with a very dear friend and Brother of mine, Antwon Davis, a fellow designer, and a confidant. We talked about design,and where WE thought it was going, and how we felt that design is really the cornerstone to any successful organization. AND design being the seat of innovation, that innovation would soon be the new business strategy. It was in that conversation that I sensed a shift coming interpersonally and I knew that from that moment on, things for me would be changing, and they did. After that conversation I started looking at the thinking BEHIND design, and what really fueled innovation. After doing hours of research, I understood that there is in fact a discipline behind how I or WE as designers think... I did not have a name for it, nor did I have any foundational intelligence on how it all really worked.. and I became obsessed with wanting to "know". 

Fast forward 

About a year later, this was about the middle of 2009, I started hearing about an idea that IDEO CEO and Chief Thinker Tim Brown was evangelizing... "Design Thinking". And I knew then that I was moving in the right direction, however; I still did not know where that direction was leading. Well... As all of this was going on, I was losing clients "left and right" because I THINK they thought I was crazy, because all I could do was talk about "thinking for a living" and "ideation". AND this was the same time that I started digging into the work of another AMAZING Thinker, Joey Reiman of BrightHouse in Atlanta, GA (the state I was in at the time), and how his Corporation BrightHouse was and IS the very first Ideation Corporation. They get paid to think. I was BLOWN away, and I think it was in those moments that I REALLY started to understand what my true talent or if you call it a "gift" was and is...

I am a intuitive design thinker. 

I have ALWAYS been an intuitive design thinker. In fact, I am willing to bet that if you ask 20 people who know me, they will tell you the same thing. Have I done work in visual design? Yes. Have I done work interaction design? Yes. But for ME what I create is only the residue of my thinking. And from what I have created, it's clear that my thinking breaks conventional ideas and wisdom all the time. SO my real value proposition, as a professional...

I conceptualize and develop ideas. 

"This has been true since the beginning of time, AND in a Industrial Economy, the value proposition of a DOER is much higher than the value proposition of a THINKER..."

It was scary (at first) coming to this realization, because the question then becomes.. "How do you market thinking...", because if you ask 100 business people about the value of ideas, 90 of them will say... "Ideas are NOTHING without the doing..." and they are 110% correct... However; I challenge and I say... "What are we doing if we are not DOING great IDEAS...?" I know this is novel at best, but there is a deep truth that resonates in this way of thinking. Doer's are often doing only what they are told to do. What they are told to do usually comes from the Thinkers. This has been true since the beginning of time, AND in a Industrial Economy, the value proposition of a DOER is much higher than the value proposition of a THINKER.

Here is the problem...

We are quickly traversing from a Industrial Economy into a Creative Economy, or CREATION Economy, and breakthrough ideas, innovation, and design are the paramount "deal makers" for almost every organization. It's a fact that with the dawn of the Information Intensification age, the vehicle that has moved us eloquently INTO the Creation Economy, there was a "deep blending" going on. This "deep blending" caused businesses to all sound the same and look the same and they started losing market share. For the small business guy (or gal) IF the business model or value proposition looked just like OR similar to the competition then they were "blended" in.

A good example in all of this is the acclaimed story behind Starbucks (one of my favorite places in the world...). Starbucks refused to "blend in" so they not only shifted their focus from solely delivering incredible coffee (doing), but they started focusing on one word... "Experience" (thinking). AND because they made this one simple, yet BOLD move... They are market leaders in the "coffee game". This is relevant... Where they doing? YES!! But it was their shift in thinking that broke them out of the grips of "the blender". 

So THINKING is deeply important. DEEPLY. 

"What I am concerned about however; is the small to medium sized business builders. My concern is that because, for the most part, they are STILL stuck in a Industrial way of doing things..."

So there rest my argument. Who is doing all of the "thinking"? In large corporations there are R&D teams and creative teams, and because design thinking is NOW being recognized as clear business strategy, they are even forming up design THINKING teams. So without a shadow of a doubt, big corporations are embracing thinking in a fresh new way, and though I am concerned with some of the corporate ways that govern creative and disruptive talent, I am NOT so concerned with are they transitioning or not... It's happening. What I am concerned about however; is the small to medium sized business builders. My concern is that because, for the most part, they are STILL stuck in a Industrial way of doing things, they are missing out on one of the greatest economic revolutions we have ever seen... It's what I call the "Post-Industrial Revolution" and it's happening right now!!! 

Right now, small to medium sized business builders are in a very fertile time as it pertains to becoming and being market leaders. More so now, than ever before. BUT here is the problem... 

Small to medium sized businesses don't have access to or the budgets to support advanced R&D departments, dynamic creative teams, and highly sophisticated prototyping and engineering teams. 

However; what the small to medium sized business DOES have, is hunger. Many of the small to medium sized businesses that I have been interviewing over the past six months are filled with ideas, and hunger. The difficulty for them is being able to pursue the ideas they have (for the fear of losing capital in their "mousetrap" business...). SO the question THEN becomes... 

If a small to medium sized business could have access to robust ideation, research and development, could they compete or scale to become market changers and industry leaders?

I would like to think that they could.

I was recently contacted by a passionate Doctor that had an idea for an application that could absolutely change how business for Doctors looks. AND because the Doctor had traditional cost too deal with (mousetrap business) and definitely did not have an extensive R&D team, as well as all of the other creative talent needed to make the idea happen "on deck", he was forced to sit on the innovation... 

Introducing Paper Aircrane... A strategic Ideation Company. 

I founded Paper Aircrane for one thing, to be a company that conceptualizes and develops breakthrough ideas for new products, services and brands. Our value proposition is simple. We are Thinkers. We align ourselves with businesses that have the drive and passion to innovate, to assist in the rigors of ideation. We align talent and resources (funding) to bring innovation to the marketplace while forging strategic relationships that bolster economic strength and sustainability. 

"I evangelize the importance of preserving creativity at every level, while challenging designers to be "design thinkers" first..."

As the Founder and Chief Design Officer, I champion Paper Aircranes pursuit of design and innovation excellence. I evangelize the importance of preserving creativity at every level, while challenging designers to be "design thinkers" first while creating meaningful experiences. Rather it's the design of a "shiny new object", a service that takes the form of a globally accessible mobile application, or a brand that brings relief to a third world country, Paper Aircrane positions its resources to deliver answers. 

Vincent Hunt is the Founder and Chief Design Officer of Paper Aircrane, a strategic Ideation Company tactical in conceptualizing and developing breakthrough ideas for new products, services and brands. A Groundbreaking Thinker, Compelling Speaker and Blogger, Vincent is sought after for his ideas pertaining to an evolving economic shift that he affectionately refers to as the "post-industrial revolution", his research in the area of disruptive innovation and the talent that makes it happen.