The Crowd’s Reach: Unlocking the Power of Open Innovation with Steve Rader

Today, we sit down with Steve Rader, who leads NASA’s efforts to leverage crowd-based platforms for open innovation and bring value to NASA’s programs, as well as innovation efforts in the U.S. government. Steve is also the Founder and CEO of Crowd Resources Consulting, where he speaks and consults on innovation, crowdsourcing, and the future of work. Listen in as Steve explains how open innovation at NASA around mitigating human risks in space “came out of necessity” a little over a decade ago due to budget cuts. He speaks in particular about the often underestimated value of tapping into the power of a crowd rather than relying only on deep expertise. Emphasizing that open innovation is “totally voluntary,” Steve shares how to best incentivize a diverse range of enthusiasts to offer their best ideas and solutions to your organization's problems when crowdsourcing challenges. Finally, Steve discusses how future technology can leverage the power of bringing together teams of people to solve virtually any problem. Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: [02:25] The history of open innovation at NASA [06:09] The value of tapping into the power of the crowd [08:05] What motivates people to volunteer their time-solving problems for NASA [15:31] The future algorithm that can assemble teams to solve any problem [19:44] A highlight of the most eye-opening challenges NASA has put out so far [23:22] What astronauts will eat on the moon Key Quotes by Steve: A crowd gets you that kind of diversity you can’t get with just deep expertise. The crowd was just effective when you’re trying to find the right skills, technologies, and the latest and greatest ways of doing things. Open innovation is voluntary. Innovation challenges are a few places in your life where you can fail without consequences. Get in touch with Steve Rader at https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-rader-92b7754/