Astartup tries to get an engine running. A corporate fine-tunes a well-oiled engine to squeeze out even more horsepower. The difference? One dares to experiment, while the other mainly fears coming to a halt. In Corporate Jamming, Ewout Karel – former Innovation Manager at T-Mobile and founder of the JamClub – reveals how companies systematically suppress renewal. Yet innovation is the key to building a society where people, nature, and the economy can thrive together. Not more of the same, but something radically new. Not a bigger tree, but a healthy forest — that is true broad prosperity.
The Logic of Growth Blocks Renewal
According to Ewout, many companies are stuck in a model of risk management and profit maximization. Everything revolves around efficiency. The engine is running – so why tinker with the mechanics? But that attitude actually makes companies vulnerable. Because standing still means falling behind – especially in a rapidly changing world. Startups and innovators do bring movement, but often from the sidelines. “Innovation rarely comes from within,” Ewout says. “That’s why it’s time for a different approach: corporate jamming.”
Jamming Instead of Planning
Corporate jamming means working together without predefined outcomes – like musicians improvising. No rigid plans, just an open mindset. Room for failure, chance, and the unexpected. Not to tick off a business case, but to create something new that matters.
Ewout advocates for an innovation culture where craftsmanship takes center stage – where companies, governments, and knowledge institutions share their expertise without the pressure of immediate returns. “You don’t need to build a fancy incubator,” he says. “Let skilled professionals join the experiment. That often yields more than an innovation factory.” Big companies don’t have to reinvent themselves – but they do have to make space. Governments can prioritize curiosity over control. Because only when we dare to play, something meaningful emerges.
Take the example of a startup that wanted to improve football commentary for blind fans via FM radio. That solution already existed — so why try something new? Precisely because there was no fixed plan, but room to jam, a better solution emerged: an internet stream that let visually impaired children sit next to their fathers in the stands instead of on the designated tribune. What started as an experiment proved valuable for care homes and people with autism too. No business case, no set goal — but a better solution that would never have seen the light of day otherwise.
A European Innovation Culture
Europe holds a unique position, says Ewout. “Where the U.S. is driven by profit and Asia by production, Europe’s strength lies in craftsmanship, knowledge, and a human-centered economy. We must cherish that. By investing through collaboration, knowledge sharing, and skilled innovation that centers around societal values.”
Ewout is an innovation strategist and founder of the JamClub, a collective that fosters radical collaboration and experimentation in business and society. As former Innovation Manager at T-Mobile and chair of LESS Agency, he advocates for a culture of “corporate jamming” — where improvisation, craftsmanship, and social value take precedence over rigid plans and profit-first logic.
From Tree to Forest
If we really want to build on that European strength, we need to look at growth differently. Ewout sees the innovation landscape as a forest. In a healthy ecosystem, old trees and young plants work together via an underground network of fungal threads – the mycelium. Large trees pass nutrients to the smaller ones. This creates a resilient system where everything is connected. “Innovation is about building a forest,” says Ewout. “Not growing a single super tree.”
Dare to Jam
“If we’re serious about broad prosperity, we need to redefine success,” Ewout says. “Not just more revenue or faster tech, but solutions that make a real difference. That takes courage. Companies that dare to jam. That lend parts of their well-running engines to build something new. And that understand a forest is worth more than one perfect tree.”
