Where Did All the Skunk Works Go?

Remember the heady days of skunk works? When the most innovative companies stealthily pushed the envelope, and developed their most advanced products?

Covert teams at Lockheed Martin and IBM used this method of development to create game-changers in their respective fields. In this day and age, however, the idea of skunk works doesn’t seem to be tossed around much anymore.
So what happened?

Skunk Works in New Clothes

The fact of the matter is, skunk works never really went away. On the contrary, it’s a way of life for seemingly every organization.
Just look at the prevalence of the term ‘disruption’ in business conversations today. Everyone wants to have the next big thing, and no one wants to give it away.

That’s why every company, from the largest corporations and the tiniest startups have to behave like skunk works. They just don’t have a dedicated team for secret projects anymore– it’s the whole organization that behaves that way.

Skunk Works at its Core

That brings us to the essential part of what makes skunk works so different than the traditional way of working. It is all about getting that first draft out into the world.

It doesn’t have to be perfect right from the get-go. Nor does it even have to work, actually. But it has to be an attempt, one that lays bare all the obstacles that keep an idea from being a viable product, while also coming together at speed. This process of rapidly going from idea to prototype is the draw of skunk works.

That doesn’t just come together out of nowhere, though. These rapid iterations are built through top-notch teamwork. At the very center of that teamwork is clear communication about what needs to be done, and when. A way to transfer knowledge effectively among committed, focused and creative team members.
When a problem comes up during the most recent testing phase, everyone needs to know about it. If calculations are off, or hypotheses are proven incorrect, there needs to be a log of what went right and wrong. Without effective communication, there’s no foundation for a team to do its best work.

Technology as a Blinding Light… and a Beacon,

We’ve only become more connected since the advent of skunk works in the late 1980s.
That’s both a good and a bad thing. Modern technology enables us to keep in touch at an unprecedented level– sometimes to excess.

Being this connected can be hugely distracting, to the point where having a rare in-person meeting becomes less effective than it once was, as team members get pulled away in different directions through emails, texts and social media.

To put it succinctly, there is such a thing as too much communication, or the wrong type of communication through technology. How can true skunking get done in harmony with all of this raw power?

It has to be harnessed. There needs to be a channel beyond the email threads and cacophonous group chats. A way for people to share ideas fluidly and clearly, without having to be in the same room. A method for taking the best parts of the skunk works mentality, and applying it to business today.

That’s TurtleWise. It’s a tool for teams to innovate at skunk works speed by communicating without the noise of traditional social media.

Mentors and mentees don’t need to be in the same place at the same time. Information can flow freely, but with intention. This time delimited arena provides the flexibility for members to ask and answer questions on their own time, but in a way that propels the conversation forward.

TurtleWise also allows teams to maintain a clear and private connection, no matter how far apart they are physically. This gives peace of mind to team leaders, and anyone responsible for keeping company secrets. Imagine contributing to skunk works-level projects without having to be in the same building as your teammates.

Code names are optional, failures can be discussed frankly. Achievements can be celebrated openly. Best of all, you’ll be able to work more quickly, and transfer knowledge more quickly, because nothing will be lost in translation.

In today’s business world, innovation is everyone’s responsibility. To truly disrupt your field, your organization must seek to change the game over and over again.

This should be the singular vision held by every team member. Achieving it isn’t easy, of course, and it takes more than just a mere appreciation for the skunk works of old. It requires a dedication to put the old politics and protocol aside, to roll up your sleeves and be willing to fail.

And fail again. But perhaps most importantly, it takes explicit belief in one another through it all. With TurtleWise as your communication platform, your team can communicate that, and more.