The secret to innovation is …. that there is no secret! There are a few things to consider but these are definitely not secret. Also, please do not believe that Innovation is the preserve of a select few, the Innovation Gurus that have sprung up everywhere. As the great Charles Handy once said ‘guru is just an American word for charlatan’. Once you have worked out what works for you, simply practise and repeat. There are however a couple of things to remember.
A process – You can ‘wing it’ or adopt some sort of process. I must admit to being a fan of the former as long as there are guidelines. Beware of rigid processes though as you can end up just copying what someone else has done. If you don’t completely understand the context you may get nowhere fast. It matters less what the process is and more that there is a process. This means everybody has to know what happens next and what role they must play to make innovation happen. Communication is key as with Strategy.
To be Cross Functional and Team Based – Innovation is not the responsibility of any single department or individual. Innovation touches every part of a company (hence the link to strategy) and needs the broadest possible understanding from every part of your business.
To have Customer Focus – Winning companies are tuned in to the needs of their customer. There is a huge difference between providing a customer with what you think they want and what they actually need or want. You need to step into their shoes.
And here are four top tips for anyone getting to grips with Innovation:
1. There are no short cuts, the world is littered with those who have tried something similar to you but have tried the short cut. .
2. Complacency is your enemy. If you are doing something ground breaking, don’t stop when it ‘sort of works’. You will be optimising mediocrity. Be willing to experiment to get what you want.
3. Life will get uncomfortable (very). Thomas Edison’s quote regarding the ratio of inspiration to perspiration within genius. Be ready to perspire once you have been inspired.
4. To succeed you will need a lot of ideas. In my workshops, I find that out of every 10 really crazy ideas there is only one weird idea that is worth thinking about further. And out of every 10 weird ideas, there may only be one worth devoting resources to. In reality, the overall ratio might be nearer 1000 to 1 than 100 to 1.
I hope that none of the above has scared you at all. You can do all of this without the help of ‘gurus’. A sounding board might help though!
No I am not pretending to be the Grim Reaper and I am not referring to you, simply your business. How long do you think your business can carry on without some sort of change? With business lifecycles getting shorter you may not have as much time as you think!
Looking at the title you might be forgiven for thinking that I have gone mad. Please bear with me for a few minutes. Recently I attended an online lecture all about Smart Cities which also touched on technologies such as IoT (Internet of Things just in case you missed this acronym). We have a tendency to fixate on technology because it apparently gives us something such as speed, connectivity, big data or simply control. The main learning point for me was not the technology, although it can help. The main point was about the systemic nature of smart cities.
Calling all business people, scholars and all round nice people I have something for you – The Anti Plan. Despite the title, I am not proposing complete anarchy. Please keep listening. Many who know me will be familiar with my dislike of plans and planning. I realise the need for it and do create them but often they are created because someone has decreed that a plan shall be made. There is a way forward though!
