Dr Nicholson, an illustrious alumnus of Imperial College gives an entrepreneurship lecture.
"The Challenge of a new idea is that very few people want to go first"
Seth Godin, Unleashing the Idea virus.
Dr Nicholson, an illustrious alumnus of Imperial College is among one of our most active and supportive. He has attended and contributed at a number of Imperial College forums and debates in the US and Canada and generously given much of his time to spreading the college's reputation internationally. Durham born Dr Nicholson retired last year as 3M's Vice President of International Technical Operations, having developed with Art Fry what is the now the ubiquitous 'Post-It' Note, and now lives in Texas and Minnesota with his wife.
The lecture gave a fascinating insight into the prevailing culture of innovation at 3M, a culture that made the 'Post-It' Note possible. Like many new innovations, this product was born from a combination of serendipity and dogged initiative at the 3M labs, in what has gone on to become a classic tale in the business world, recounted this evening in an amusing and informative way by Dr Nicholson.
3M is evidently an extraordinary place to work. Down at the labs, there are always funds for blue-skies researchers and the onus is on innovation rather than measured productivity. Clearly the company learned before most others that this kind of environment produces better results and more unusual products that the 'quick-fix' policies of its peers. At 3M, 15 per cent of research workers' time is spent pursuing their own projects.
Dr Nicholson showed us the latest in 3M's impressive range of products to illustrate the effectiveness of their research strategy - a new reflective material with countless applications, since it is not a conductor of heat or electricity. Lively questions followed Dr Nicholson's lecture and the reception was also enjoyed greatly by all. Rod Rhys Jones, new Director of Development was present to introduce the lecture and lead the vote of thanks.
"Innovation is the transformation of knowledge into money - Research is the transformation of money into knowledge" - Geoff Nicholson, 3M
Ben Stephenson
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