Mixing metaphors to explain entrepreneurship [The Guardian, 18 Mar]
A couple of weeks ago I delivered the keynote presentation at the annual gathering of the National Outdoor Events Association. These are the people who make sure that the festivals, concerts and other major cultural events we all attend are safe, secure, accessible and adequately supplied with food, water and toilets.
My brief was to explain to them how "big society" translated into opportunities for their members. It was important to differentiate between the enterprise and the entrepreneur. Many of their members simply provide services in response to customer request. These are clearly enterprises. Others, however, added value, innovation and creativity in ways that enable their client to increase footfall and profit. These are more entrepreneurial. I needed a metaphor and thought about mixers. I compared two pieces of equipment, similar in function but quite different in effect. One was a cement mixer, which arrives on site to pour concrete into holes in the ground. The other food mixer used by a chef to make a cake. The truck is large and expensive to own and operate. The food mixer relatively cheap, yet has the potential to add tremendous value. The majority of events supported by the association's members are commissioned by local government and other public sector organisations. Understandably the future looks challenging as public spending cuts will inevitably reduce the amount of spent on public events. I suggested that members had to move away from behaving like truck drivers delivering wet cement and start lending their own recipes for success. Just as the chef in the kitchen will experiment and select new ingredients to blend and tempt the palate of his or her customers, the most mundane service provider must also spice up their offering. Read more |