Nicholas Himowicz

Innovation Coach

My YouTube channel is the number one place on the internet for entrepreneurs and corporate innovators.
This is where I share educational content that helps you go from chaos to clarity with your business.

YouTuber

Strategyzer

Our purpose is to unlock millions of people’s potential to create value for themselves, organizations and society. We succeed when people find the clarity to drive healthy growth and build invincible companies worldwide. To make this happen, we design the global standard methodology for business strategy and platform for solving universal business challenges. We shift mindsets to transform strategic innovation, organization, and culture.

As an innovation coach at Strategyzer, I help large multinational organizations create new business models that generate value and growth. I use Strategyzer’s tools, methodology and tech platform to guide teams through the innovation process, from ideation to validation. I work with clients on various innovation initiatives, such as venture building, innovation incubators and accelerators and training. I also help them measure the impact of their innovation investment, using data and evidence to make better decisions. I help teams save time and money on projects that don’t have potential, and scale up the ones that do. I help teams design and test value propositions and business models that solve customer problems and create competitive advantage.

Strategyzer Coach

As host of Strategyzer webinars, I have the privilege of facilitating engaging and insightful conversations with some of the world’s leading experts on corporate innovation. We explore topics such as business model design, innovation culture, leadership and strategy with guests like Hubert Joly (Former CEO of Best Buy) and Garry Ridge (former CEO of WD40). I work alongside Alex Osterwalder, the inventor of the Business Model Canvas and a best-selling author, and Tendayi Viki, an award-winning author and innovation consultant. My role is to ensure that our webinars are interactive, fast-paced, informative and fun and that our audience gets the most value out of them. I enjoy connecting with our community of innovators and learning from their experiences and challenges. You can watch recordings of previous webinars by clicking the links below.

Host of Strategyzer Webinars

As a content creator at Strategyzer, I am responsible for producing high-quality and engaging video content for our online academy and our social media channels. I plan, shoot, edit and post videos that showcase our products, services and thought leadership in the field of corporate innovation. I have helped grow our online community to over 200,000 followers across all platforms. I also write blogs and design webinars that provide valuable insights and tips for our audience. Additionally, I create content for our live virtual masterclasses led by Alex Osterwalder, the inventor of the Business Model Canvas and a best-selling author. My role is to deliver compelling and educational content that helps our customers and prospects learn and apply the tools and methods of Strategyzer.

Content Creator

University of Exeter

Associate Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship

General Assembly

I teach the Rapid Innovation workshop at General Assembly.

Course Instructor - Rapid Innovation

Google

I delivered facilitator training to more than 1,500 people from all around the world to enable them to deliver this life changing workshop themselves.

#IamRemarkable is a Google initiative empowering women and underrepresented groups to speak openly about their accomplishments in the workplace and beyond, thereby breaking modesty norms and glass ceilings.

Learn more at g.co/IamRemarkable


Contracted via Chesamel.

Program Facilitator for #IamRemarkable 

Founders of the Future

Founders of the Future is an invite-only community of the most promising entrepreneurial talent in technology in Europe. It is made of talented young individuals who may not be currently founders or recognised leaders in the technology ecosystem, but exhibit strong signals that they will be someday. 

Founders of the Future grew out of Founders Forum which believes in the power of technology, entrepreneurship and collaboration to make the world a better place.

Ambassador & Member

CIM | The Chartered Institute of Marketing

Course Director

Lightbulb to Launch

Host & Event Organiser of Lightbulb to Launch

Freeformers

I was responsible for generating and implementing are go to market strategy for the services part of the business. I exceeded my personal and team revenue targets and massively contributed to the growth of the business. My clients included Santander, John Lewis, RBS, 3i, Barclays and Sky.

Head of Sales

I supported companies with the people part of their digital strategies by assessing their needs and developing and implementing effective learning & development programmes including online training, design sprints and innovation labs.

My clients included Barclays, John Lewis, RBS, E.ON Energy, 3i and Santander.

I spoke in front of audiences of senior executives at international conferences and interviewed industry experts as part of the Digital Heroes initiative.

Innovation Consultant & Trainer

Dell EMC

As part of the Business Operations Leadership Development programme, I experienced working in various departments across the organisation including Business Reporting, Business Planning & Control, Professional Services, Pricing, Learning and Development and Go to Market.

Business Operations Leadership Development

I work with everyone from the CEO to front line teams, in large corporates and SMEs/startups to help them really understand what innovation is and how they can make it happen in their organisation. 

I cover a wide range of methodologies including Lean Startup, Value Proposition Design, Business Model Generation, Design Sprints and the Six Thinking Hats.

The results come in the form of better new products, services, business models and processes which have generated millions of dollars in revenue.

Previous clients include Google, Novo Nordisk, American Express, John Lewis, Santander, Prince’s Trust, Multiplex, Imperial College London and Barclays.

Website: https://www.nickhimo.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nickhimo
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nickhimo

A common myth about innovation…
Innovation = building new products + tech

As you can see 👀
Innovation is really about:

1️⃣ - Learning about your customers
↳ Identifying their jobs, pains & gains

2️⃣ - Testing ideas & collecting evidence
↳ Reducing risk & uncertainty 

3️⃣ - Killing ideas at an early stage
↳ Only invest more time and money in ideas
↳ when you have evidence
↳ that they are going to work

Don’t start by building new products + tech

I spoke to the CEO of a software firm yesterday
↳ he spent 1 year working on a new product idea
↳ he doesn’t have any customers for it yet
↳ he needs another $40K investment
↳ and another 3 months to finish it

He still doesn’t know if it’s going to work. 😨
This is why people say “innovation is risky.”

The CEO is a smart guy. He's an engineer.
He's spent his whole life building stuff.
He just needs to learn one thing.
Innovation isn't about building stuff.

Instead, only invest more time and money
↳ when you already know that:
✅ Customers have the problem
✅ They have money to spend on it
✅ You can build a business model for it

♻️ Share this with someone who should see it.

P.s. What do you think innovation is really?

Nick Himowicz

The Business Model Guy → Innovation Coach → enabling entrepreneurs to have more "aha" moments → to build business models that work and products customers care about

19 simple questions for CEOs & Entrepreneurs
that you don’t have all the answers to… 😮

First let’s zoom out.

1️⃣ - Key Trends
What are the key trends shaping your space?
e.g. tech, legal, social, work…

2️⃣ - Industry forces
Who are the key actors in your space?
e.g. competitors, suppliers, value chain actors…

3️⃣ - Market Forces
What are the key customer issues in your space?
e.g. growing segments, changing needs…

4️⃣ - Macroeconomic Forces
What big-picture changes are affecting the whole economy?
e.g. access to resources, commodities prices…

Now let’s zoom 🔍 into your business model.

5️⃣ - Key Partners
Who do you need help from?
e.g. regulators, suppliers…

6️⃣ - Cost Structure
What are the main costs?
e.g. salaries, advertising costs…

7️⃣ - Revenue Streams
How do you make money?
e.g. one-off, recurring, subscription…

8️⃣ - Channels
How do customers find out about you?
e.g. LinkedIn, your sales reps…

9️⃣ - Customer Segments
Who are your target customers?
e.g. mass market, cat owners...

🔟 - Value Proposition
What benefits do you provide customers?
e.g. 1,000 songs in your pocket…

1️⃣1️⃣ - Customer Relationships
How do you interact with your customers?
e.g. long term, transactional, fans…

1️⃣2️⃣ - Key Resources 
What things do you need to make your business run?
e.g. factory, IP, expertise…

1️⃣3️⃣ - Key Activities 
What do you need to do to make your business work?
e.g. marketing, sales, production…

Lets zoom 🔍 into your value proposition

1️⃣4️⃣ - Customer Jobs
What do your customers want to accomplish?
e.g. look after my cat, water my plants…

1️⃣5️⃣ - Pains
What difficulties, frustrations obstacles do they have?
e.g. allergies, not knowing anyone in the area… 

1️⃣6️⃣ - Gains
What desired outcomes, results do they want?
e.g. last minute cat sitter, healthy plants…

1️⃣7️⃣ - Products & Services
What are your products & services?
e.g. a cat sharing app…

1️⃣8️⃣ - Gain Creators
How do they help create gains for customers?
e.g. easy to use, millions of users…

1️⃣9️⃣ - Pain Relievers
How do they relieve pains?
e.g. connect with people you don’t know…

We used 3 tools 🛠️:

1. The Environment Map
↳ to understand the business context

2. The Business Model Canvas
↳ to create value for you business

The Value Proposition Canvas
↳ to create value for your customer

♻️ Share this post with someone who needs to see it
P.s. did you have all the answers?
P.p.s. credit to Strategyzer, Alexander Osterwalder, Yves Pigneur et al for creating these tools.


I work with everyone from the CEO to front line teams, in large corporates, SMEs and startups to help them really understand what innovation is and how they can make it happen in their organisation. 

I cover a wide range of methodologies including Lean Startup, Value Proposition Design, Business Model Generation, Design Sprints and the Six Thinking Hats.

The results come in the form of better internal processes and new products/services, which have generated millions of pounds in revenue.

Previous clients include American Express, John Lewis, Santander, Prince’s Trust, Multiplex, Ap Tap, Touch Video Academy and Barclays.

Website: www.nickhimo.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickhimo/
Medium: https://medium.com/@nickhimo
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nickhimo

Alexander Osterwalder

5 Tips for Designing Strategy Tools
I learnt from Alexander Osterwalder 
and Yves Pigneur → the creators of 
The Business Model Canvas

If you want to make a business tool,
these tips will help you:

1️⃣ Keep it Visual and Simple: 

↳ The tool should be easy to look at.
↳ It should also be easy to understand. 
↳ Use visuals to help people grasp complex ideas faster. 
↳ This makes it easier to collaborate and share thoughts.

2️⃣ Encourage Interaction: 

↳ Design the tool carefully.
↳ Make sure it encourages 
↳ people to interact, 
↳ both with the tool 
↳ and with each other.
↳ Create spaces on the tool 
↳ where team members can
↳ add their own notes
↳ and move pieces around 
↳ as ideas change

3️⃣ Make it Adaptable: 

↳ The tool should be flexible.
↳ Don't make the tool too specific. 
↳ It should work across various industries.
↳ It should work for different types of problems. 
↳ Notice that all of Strategyzer's tools are process agnostic.

4️⃣ Facilitate Collaboration: 

↳ The tool should make team work smoother. 
↳ It should help clarify everyone’s contributions.
↳ It should also build a common understanding.
↳ Design the tool in a way that prompts discussion.

5️⃣ Support Creative Exploration: 

↳ The tool should help people come up with 
↳ and test new ideas.
↳ This means it should be easy to modify ideas.
↳ Or try out different scenarios.
↳ And visualise the outcomes.

⭐️ Bonus tip ⭐️

↳ Don't break the old tools to build new ones
↳ Make sure any new tool you make 
↳ integrates well with existing tools
↳ e.g. the BMC builds on top of:
↳ Design Thinking
↳ Lean Startup
↳ Desirability
↳ Feasibility 
↳ Viability

♻️ Share this with someone who will find it useful.
P.s. Have you tried building your own strategy tool?

Ian Pilon

Ten Tools 🛠️ for Corporate Innovators 
Number 5 is my favourite 👀

1️⃣ Culture Map
2️⃣ Portfolio Map
3️⃣ Team Contract
4️⃣ Ecosystem Map
5️⃣ Customer Profile 🏆
6️⃣ Environment Map
7️⃣ Assumptions Map
8️⃣ Business Model Canvas
9️⃣ Value Proposition Canvas
🔟 Value Proposition Messaging Canvas 

Each tool serves a different purpose.
Now let’s see what makes each one special. 👇

1️⃣ The Culture Map 
↳ makes it clear what people do in your company 
↳ that leads to positive or negative outcomes 
↳and what you can do about it.

2️⃣ The Portfolio Map
↳ most businesses that are 10+ years old change over time. 
↳ They develop new business models
↳ The Portfolio Map helps you show what ones are coming up 
↳ and what ones need a refresh.

3️⃣ The Team Contract 
↳ helps you get clear on how your team will work on a project
↳ great to do before kicking off a new project

4️⃣ The Ecosystem Map 
↳ helps you identify all the innovation programmes 
↳ that you have in your company 
↳ are they making you money?
↳ and/or are they helping change the culture?

5️⃣ The Customer Profile 
↳ helps you understand your customers' jobs, pains and gains
↳ This means you can build better products 
↳ They will be more likely to satisfy customer needs. 
↳ I like to use the single customer profile canvas 
↳ as opposed to the value proposition canvas 
↳ when I’m at an earlier stage.
↳ I use A LOT of these with my clients.

6️⃣ The Environment Map
↳ Stuff outside your control can destroy your business
↳ Do research and spot it early with this canvas
↳ Also use it to spot opportunities in your industry/market

7️⃣ The Assumptions Map
↳ There are loads of guesses in your business models
↳ Get clear on what they are
↳ Systematically prioritise and test them

8️⃣ The Business Model Canvas
↳ The most important business tool of the last 30 years
↳ Use it to map existing businesses models 
↳ Use it to create new business models

9️⃣ The Value Proposition Canvas
↳ Zoom into your customers’ jobs, pains and gains
↳ Get clear how your products alleviates pains
↳ and generates gains

🔟 The Value Proposition Messaging Canvas
(The only one not by Strategyzer! 
So it must be good FletchPMM!)
↳ Get super clear on your messaging
↳ helpful before building your website
↳ It works with all the other tools seamlessly

♻️ Share this with someone who needs to see it

P.s. what’s your favourite tool?
P.p.s. credit to Strategyzer Alexander Osterwalder Yves Pigneur Stefano Mastrogiacomo, PhD, MBI Dave Gray David Bland FletchPMM Anthony Pierri 🎸 Robert Kaminski 🎯 et al for creating such great canvases.

5 books are a permanent fixture on my desk.
The tech changes, but the books stay the same.

1️⃣ Business Model Generation
2️⃣ Value Proposition Design
3️⃣ Testing Business Ideas
4️⃣ The Invincible Company
5️⃣ High Impact Tools for Teams

I constantly refer back to them.
I always find new answers.
Or see things in different ways.

That's why I love introducing people to these books.

♻️ Share this with someone who needs to see it.
P.s. What books are a permanent fixture on your desk?

P.p.s Big credit to Strategyzer, Alexander Osterwalder, Yves Pigneur and David Bland et al.

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