<ul><li>During the World Business Forum this week in New York City, Jon McNeill presented insights into building innovative companies, a method Tesla CEO Elon Musk calls “the algorithm.”</li><li>McNeill’s key lesson: Start by identifying the problem you’re solving, then aim for massive (not incremental) goals.</li><li>He recounted Tesla’s 2017 “production hell” when the company, facing bankruptcy, sought to boost digital sales of the $100,000 Model S by 20x.</li><li>Five steps of innovation by subtraction:</li><li>1. Question every requirement</li><li>2. Delete every step in the process that you can</li><li>3. Simplify and optimize</li><li>4. Apply speed; maximize cycle time</li><li>5. At the very end, automate it</li><li>McNeill’s three secret ingredients are to expand the view to include the entire customer journey, inject urgency and accountability by identifying the two or three things that matter to a company at any given time, and to experience the product as your customer experiences the product.</li></ul>

Jon McNeill’s lessons on innovation through subtraction

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