All posts tagged Innovation

How Collaboration Works At THECUBE

By Araceli On December 12, 2011 In Blog With No Comments Permanent Link to How Collaboration Works At THECUBEPermalink

We asked CUBER Jonathan Lister to tell who he has collaborated at THECUBE. Below is his story.

Who have you collaborated at THECUBE?
I have collaborated with a wide range of people from digital to coworking, below are some of the projects.

Richard White – SeenOnScreenFitness.com
Charlotte Hambly – SweetSpot.com print brochures
Alison Coward – a project proposal Alison was working on
Adam Austin – SEO proposal for SweetSpot
Araceli Camargo – Coworking plans

Would you collaborate again?
Yes!

Why do we encourage our members to collaborate?

THECUBE’s reputation is highly founded on its community. We have worked meticulously to create a space that supports collaboration. Our members generate business leads, bid for jobs together, and share skills. When you are starting a business it can be a lonely process and you need people around you to stimulate ideas and help you generate contacts.

How we create collaboration
1. THECUBE is small and open plan, this helps take  away anonimity and thus encourages people to introduce each other

2. We set up curated introductions amongst our members and outside contacts

3. We hold monthly lunches and roundtables where members can meet each other and share ideas.

About THECUBE

THECUBE is coworking space in Shoreditch, East London dedicated to collaboration, building sustainable businesses, and driving innovation.

Virgin Media Teams Up With THECUBE To Kick-Start Innovation Lab

By Araceli On November 10, 2011 In Blog With No Comments Permanent Link to Virgin Media Teams Up With THECUBE To Kick-Start Innovation LabPermalink

Virgin Media and THECUBE, a start-up incubator based in East London today announced a partnership that will see THECUBE members test and develop new products and services across superfast broadband, next generation digital entertainment, mobile and business services.

Unveiled during a Prime Ministerial visit to the area, marking one year of Tech City, ‘The Innovation Lab’ will see THECUBE members help evolve Virgin Media products, before they are launched to customers. Bringing together entrepreneurs, tech start-ups and experts from across the Virgin Media group, the collaboration aims to push superfast connectivity to its limits with new applications and services, make the most of Virgin Media’s new TiVo Service and its innovative apps line-up, develop ground-breaking consumer mobile platforms and new propositions that will enable organisations across the UK to innovate and grow. The partnership will also see Virgin Media’s marketing, technology, commercial and business teams hold seminars and workshops at THECUBE to share their expertise and experience with the community.

From this month, THECUBE will begin to trial a secure business-grade internet connection from Virgin Media Business, reselling the dedicated 1Gb/s internet access on a flexible commercial basis to its members. THECUBE will be enabled with a dedicated, carrier-grade 1Gb/s internet access, made available to start-ups on flexible commercial terms. The trial will run throughout the next year and is provided to THECUBE free of charge. During this time, the incubator will explore a range of commercial models and package the service so its users can benefit from superfast and dedicated internet connections without the need for long-term contracts.

“The start-up community has a lot to offer to British business and, with technology and innovation at its heart, our partnership with THECUBE gives us a fresh, informed and alternative point of view on how to take our products and services forward”, said Dale Barnes, Director of Advanced Technology and Innovation at Virgin Media. “We’re making the most of our unique fibre-optic network to deliver the connectivity start-ups need to get their venture moving in the right direction and it’s an exciting time to explore new ways of working.”

Araceli Camargo, Founder, THECUBE added: “Spaces like THECUBE are pioneering a new type of business in the UK and we can take our approach even further by partnering with one of the UK’s leading digital companies. Virgin Media is bringing new services to our members, providing entrepreneurs with previously inaccessible technology, and we’re working with them to make the most of the talent at THECUBE and the experience and expertise at Virgin Media.”

THECUBE’s new connection will be delivered via Virgin Media Business’ Big Red Internet proposition which will provide unconstrained bandwidth and lightning speeds, meaning that as THECUBE’s internet connectivity demands increase it will have the bandwidth there ready and waiting, without any costly upgrades.

About THECUBE London

THECUBE was founded in September 2009 as a direct response to the Lehman Brothers collapse. We hypothesised that it would catalyse an economic and societal shift, we wanted to be part of the solution. The most obvious and direct solution was to tribe people via social media and then provide a physical space from which to brainstorm, innovate and collaborate.

The space was designed using neurological and psychological principles. From the height of the ceilings, lighting, colours, textures, to the size of the space have all been chosen with a specific neurological and psychological outcome.

About Virgin Media

Virgin Media is the first provider of all four broadband, TV, mobile phone and home phone services in the UK.

The company delivers ultrafast broadband connections to over half of all UK homes, with speeds of up to 100Mb, and is expanding this cable network – the result of a multi-billion pound investment – to reach thousands more people across the country.

Virgin Media has developed the most advanced interactive television service, bringing together broadcast TV, thousands of hours of on demand programming and the best of the web in a single set-top box powered by TiVo. The company was the first to offer HD TV and 3D on demand to millions of UK households.

Virgin Media also operates the most popular virtual mobile network in the UK which, when launched, was the world’s first such mobile phone service. It is also one of the largest fixed-line home phone providers in the country.

Virgin Media Inc. is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market and the London Stock Exchange (VMED).

About Virgin Media Business

Virgin Media Business has the UK’s only nationwide fibre optic network, carrying 35 per cent of all business broadband traffic. Already able to reach 85 per cent of businesses in the UK, Virgin Media Business has the ability to connect to all organisations. The largest business-to-business brand in the Virgin group, it prides itself on delivering innovative, high quality solutions that breakdown the barriers facing UK businesses today.

Staff are located at 40 offices across the country, meaning that Virgin Media Business really is closer to its customers. Organisations working with Virgin Media Business include London City Airport, Nottingham Building Society, Arqiva, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Partnership and South West Water.

To see analysis on the current issues surrounding business-to-business telecoms please visit our blog or get involved and tweet us @vmbusiness.

What is a Collaborative and Diverse Workspace?

By Araceli On April 1, 2011 In Blog With No Comments Permanent Link to What is a Collaborative and Diverse Workspace?Permalink

There are a couple of words that we would like to define in regards to who we are.

Collaborative

For us this means a space the hosts individuals who are looking to build a strong knowledge based community.  It means that people are open and willing to share knowledge, contacts, and experience to build their business faster and more sustainably.

Diverse

There are many examples on how important extrapolation is for innovation. From the printing press to the airplane they were invented through being exposed to a wide variety of knowledge and systems.

In our space we have members that range in age, industry, gender, and background. They are all learning from each other’s industries and sharing solutions, clients, and opportunities.

The more diverse your knowledge pool the more diverse your ideas and solutions will be.

Workspace

THECUBE is deliberately choosing the word workspace as it is a more open than office space or coworking. For us it refers to both a physical and mental space. Our space uses brain technology to both provide a space that is neurochemically primed but also provide new tools to make better use of our brains.

We are moving to a new ‘humanist economy’ which means that we have to re-learn how to work together, create businesses that offer value, and solve complex humanitarian problems. The old tools, which were used to build the past economy cannot be transferred and we need psychical spaces that encourage the sharing of new knowledge plus brain technology that offers new tools.

THECUBE is a place to learn, collaborate, and grow a sustainable business.

WHY!Create produces first Behance Meet-up

By Araceli On January 26, 2011 In Blog With No Comments Permanent Link to WHY!Create produces first Behance Meet-upPermalink

Fellow member of THECUBE Coworking space, WHY! Create brings the first official Behance Network meet up to London, UK.

Our aim is to mobilize the creative community and make it as vibrant as possible. We encourage everyone to get off computers, meet up offline and connect. It is a chance to start some real-life conversations with other creatives that live and work in London. Meet professionals to collaborate with, get feedback from, and have a good time with!

WHEN: 26 January 2011

WHERE: Plastic People, Shoreditch

The night brings creative inspirations and insight from some of Behancers’ world.  The event will feature a great line-up of speakers that will be sharing their work and stories:

  1. Seif Alhasani: Design & Visual Communication

www.seifalhasani.com

http://be.net/seifalhasani

  1. Ronaldas Buozis: Cinematographer

www.ronaldasbuozis.com

www.behance.net/RonaldasBuozis

  1. Factory 311 – Image Licensing Agency

www.factory311.com

www.behance.net/Factory311

Also Sai, an upcoming illustrator will be exhibiting her work during the event. Her drawings are known for their elegant and subtle line work and also their gentle humor. http://www.behance.net/abetterhell

Join us for an evening of inspirational talks, music and drinks.

About Behance Network:

It is a Creative Professional Platform. The world’s leading platform for creative professionals to gain exposure and get hired. They empower creative professionals to make ideas happen.

About WHY! Create

WHY! Create is an official Behance Network Ambassador in Great Britain. It is also a creative network and showcasing platform for emerging talent. (N.B. we are not employees of Behance, we just believe in their message)

For More Information, contact Candy Willems at: 07889559754

candy@why-create.com

How to Use Coworking Spaces

By Araceli On January 24, 2011 In Blog With 1 Comment Permanent Link to How to Use Coworking SpacesPermalink

Our members were recently asked by mashable to say what it is like to be a coworker. In the process one Alex O’Byrne from WeMakeWebsites gave us a little quote on how to best use a coworking space and what it means to him.

“Co-working is about achieving economies of scale without being a big company. Be prepared to share your skills, contacts and experience with other co-workers and you’ll find they do the same for you. The result could be a new contact that becomes a client, or discovering a new tool that helps make your company more efficient. In short, it’s about being open and part of the community by treating each other as comrades and not competitors.”

Create an industry specific discussion group:

We champion diversity and even within industry you can gather a diverse group of people. Alex created this group to help members in the Web industry solve problems, innovate, and create work, below is what he says about it…

“Try and create a niche group within your co-working space, such as a group for web developers or one for physical product designers. This is a great way of aggregating knowledge and experience within a particular industry, effectively allowing you to improve your business faster. You might learn a killer tip for gathering new clients or for improving your design process, or it may just mean you can learn from others’ mistakes without having to make them yourself.”

About THECUBE Coworking Space
THECUBE was set up in September 2009 and we focus on creating economy through innovation. Our members come from varied industries, age groups, and different levels of experience. Our role is to provide events which stimulate thought, a highly aesthetic space, and professional meeting spaces.

If you would like an info pack, please email info@thecubelondon.com

One To One Innovation Workshops @ THECUBE Coworking Space

By Araceli On January 18, 2011 In Blog With No Comments Permanent Link to One To One Innovation Workshops @ THECUBE Coworking SpacePermalink

As THECUBE continues to move towards generating innovation within its community. We have been testing this process for a couple of months and we are now ready to launch it amongst the enterprise community.

The innovation workshops are part of the membership program for THECUBE, we hold them every Tuesday and Friday. The workshops consist of innovation theory based on neurological and psychological research followed by an implementation strategy.

The innovation workshops are also available to the general public and for more information, contact hello@ideaengineeringagency.com.

For more information on the theory behind the workshops, please look at Idea Engineering Agency, which  is the innovation agency behind THECUBE.

Coworking at THECUBE London

By Araceli On December 27, 2010 In Blog With 1 Comment Permanent Link to Coworking at THECUBE LondonPermalink

Coworking has not yet launched in the same way as Europe, so there is still plenty of scope for definition in the UK. One of the main reasons we switched from calling the space a conceptual workspace to co-working was because it gave us clear semantic meaning. We were finding it hard to define what we did in less than a sentence, so when we learned about coworking we were happy to start using the word immediately.

As we continue to observe our members, we are moving towards more purposeful use of the word, it is not just about desks in a space, but a community. And it is not just about ideas but creating sustainable economy. It is not an overnight process but one that we tweak nearly everyday, finding new knowledge, tools, and examples to help  provide our members with the best possible space.

We are committed to helping entrepreneurs and feel that it is everyone responsibility to kick start the economy.

Our space also offers the regular office tools like meeting hire, virtual office plans, deskpsace, wifi, etc. however it is the innovation tools and community chat really make THECUBE unique space to work from.

Web Developers Round Table: What Type of Marketing Are You Using?

By Araceli On December 17, 2010 In Blog With No Comments Permanent Link to Web Developers Round Table: What Type of Marketing Are You Using?Permalink

Every first Wednesday of the month web- developers get together at THECUBE and discuss pressing issues facing their industry. It is a great platform to air problems as well as get feed back from peers. Below is this month’s discussion and some of the points that were brought up. The discussion is led and developed by the team at WeMakeWebsites

  • Customer referalls are an easy and powerful way to generate new warm leads that are in a similar market to current customers and that you have domain knowledge of (assuming the referred customer is in the same market as the existing customer).
    • No reward required, most people will simply pass on or provide details when asked. They don’t do it without prompting simply because it’s not on their mind.
    • Referalls can be asked for informally, verbally at the end of a project, or as part of an end-of-project/feedback form (or both)
  • Use LinkedIn to find possible leads in second-order network. Ask for an introduction from people in your immediate network. Set the right psychology, if you expect to receive the expect to genuinely give, people are always more prone to help if they are feeling happy. If you introduce people through your linked in, people will naturally feel inclined to introduce you as well. When asking people for an introduction give a specific reason.
  • Attend networking events, not necessarily those related to your industry. E.g. attending a fashion or marine biologist networking event can provide a rich source of new contacts. Increase your ‘luck surface area’ through activities such as this.
  • Find a niche, create a story, show that you have knowledge and passion in a given domain and use this as part of a marketing campaign to appeal those within that market.
  • Write a book, send it out to a select set of contacts. Shows expertise, is out of the ordinary and provokes interest from the other party. Demonstrates domain knowledge.
  • Approach journals in a target industry and offer to write an article on something that you know about. Write objectively so that it doesn’t come across as an ad-vetorial. Make sure you a credited.
  • Give away some part of your service for free to let prospects get a taste of how you can help them.
  • Umbrellas! On a rainy day this have exposure to a large number of people and, well, everyone needs an umbrella at some point.
  • Use social networking tools like Dribbble to promote work without revealing all (either because you’d rather keep the product in stealth mode or because you can’t how all due to NDA). Use this technique on your own website to show work that isn’t launched yet for example.
  • Comment on blogs which are read by your clients to spread the word about your expertise.
  • Write a list of your most connected contacts and then ask them to introduce you to relevant people. Again be specific about how your service will help.
  • Network everywhere as everyone has connections, on the plane, at the gym, book club. Be strategic and find where your clients ‘hang-out’ and engage with them in a more casual level. An article based on networking from CFO of leading company.

About THECUBE

THECUBE is a coworking space which focuses on innovation and enterprise. We help our members by giving them tools top help catalyze great business ideas, which in turn creates innovative and sustainable business.

We also offer the standards of office life such as, desk- space, boardroom hire, fax, photocopying, tea and coffee. We are conveniently located in Shoreditch on Commercial Street E1, so its perfect for City and Creative access.

Innovation in Art

By Araceli On December 14, 2010 In Art With No Comments Permanent Link to Innovation in ArtPermalink

Art by Benjamin Buckley

Being creative is using imagination. Being creative is about trial and error. Being creative is noticing an issue and taking the initiative and courage to address it, voice it, change it or fight against it. Innovation is the carrying out of combined ideas. It is the process and the result, the production line that assembles ideas and ensures they are successfully intertwined to make something new, relevant and working. The results of innovation are not final nor is it the end. The result remains open for innovation to happen again.

Being open, is a valuable trait when generating ideas. Openness allows the unusual and the unconventional to intrude on the thought process, for influences to travel to and come from all areas of the globe. Openness allows you to contemplate on a range of choices whilst it gets you to break away from pattern and to embrace all forms of collaboration.

With art, the initial thought process starts with ideas that stem from emotion, opinion, situation and expression. These headings will produce an idea which will be unique to each artist, but sometimes projecting that idea in a visual way, and needing it to appeal to others may not represent or express individuality. This is where innovation is needed. The artist combines influences and ideas to make themselves and their visual voice stand as a unique one.

In my personal opinion I believe the process of innovation has to be a genuine one for it to be successful. There are artists who lack sincerity in their work and it shows. In a previous article What Should Art Do? I briefly touched upon on the thought that of late there had been a lot of art that was being produced for the reason of attention and not because it delivered a message, emotion or opinion. It is a though only half of the innovation production line is being used, the first half: The Idea. Art which has been designed with intent to exist for the sake of being new isn’t genuine art. Innovation should be the process of creativity and a result that works, not an idea that stands alone.

Our resident artist Benjamin Buckley’s has worked against conventional painting. He has chosen to paint without the physical brush. The technique he uses is one which involves drawing the images on a graphic tablet and is then printed off onto canvas using the Giclée fine art printing method. The images are then stretched and are followed by coats of Ketone resin and acrylic. Benjamin’s uses this technique so that he can make the images more intricate when looked at, and turns the digital process into a more delicate one. It means the images can be blown up to an incredible scale. He uses this labour intensive method as it uncovers the intricacy and detail in his “daydreams”. Ben’s intentions were to create a utopia formed from his imagination and dreams that doesn’t fit within reality but appeals and can be understood and rebuilt by the viewers imagination. Through his work you can see the evolution of several ideas. It has purpose,  it makes the viewer drift away into their imagination.

What is amazing about innovation is that it will constantly remain an ongoing process. We will see inventions go through transformation and evolution to become a product of someone’s creativity.

By Gabrielle Cooper

ABOUT THECUBE Gallery

THECUBE Coworking space acts as a platform for emerging artists. We showcase an artist on a monthly basis both to help young talent and to give the workspace a sense of change. We choose the artists based on their innovation and creativity rather than shock or monetary status.

During the day people are welcome to view the art and see it within the context of an office space or during a private view where they can interact with the artist. It is important for art to stimulate our members and be part of the space.

CUBER, Alex O’Byrne Launches New Kingsland Road Studio

By Araceli On November 22, 2010 In Blog With No Comments Permanent Link to CUBER, Alex O’Byrne Launches New Kingsland Road StudioPermalink

Studio_02

The new photographic studios are in a perfect location for local artists, right between Hoxton and Dalston on Kingsland Road. The space offers a spacious 2,500 square feet of space for a great value of @ £220/day.

There is also various photographic, video, and lighting equipment available plus extra facilities such as catering kitchen, shower, and delivery/pick-up.

The space was designed and created by Alex O’Byrne, Brendan Olley, Christopher Fields, and Ian Higginson

To view the studio, please contact  christopher@kingslandsroadstudio.com

Studio_01

About THECUBE Coworking Space

THECUBE is a coworking space located in East London and offers entrepreneurs a highly aesthetic place to work, meeting hire, and innovation consultancy.

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