Developing and Implementing Innovation

The Latin root, nova, in the word innovation means new.

Innovation has shaped our human society and daily lives throughout the ages. Without innovation, there won’t be electric lamps to provide light to our homes and workplaces, long distance-call would not be possible, air travel would have taken days and not hours to far reaching destinations, wireless communication would not exist, and the convenience of online purchases probably a figment of imagination. We won’t have the Internet, iPod, iPhone, iPad, GPS, industrial robots, solar energy-generating arrays today.

The world that we live in is constantly changing. It is changing at a very rapid rate. And change is unstoppable. Today’s solutions will be replaced by far more superior alternatives faster – unlike anything history has ever seen – within a few short years if not months. If companies do not innovate, they may be successful with its current products or services but for only a limited time before they are eventually displaced by competition or disruptive technologies.

Innovation takes place almost everywhere. If we look around us carefully, we will find it prevalent in technology, processes, services, marketing and distribution, and supply chains. We can even find it in business models adopted by very successful companies.

We have seen how economic growth was achieved in the past on the back of technological innovations in semiconductors, biotechnology, the Internet, and telecommunications. The next big wave may see innovation in energy technology. The low manufacturing costs of paints, chemicals, petroleum-based products, glass, sheet metals and assembled goods are the result of continuous process innovation over many years that have reduced assembly steps, labor costs and improved reliability. Viral marketing, overnight delivery service, and direct distribution via the Web are all based on innovations in marketing and logistics. And just-in-time supply system assures goods are on the shelf when people want them eliminating costly stockroom inventories and delays.

In business models, Apple found a whole new approach to generating revenue through iTunes downloads of music files, films, and audiobooks. Dell, through an innovative business model, customizes and sells directly to retail customers cutting out the middlemen. Amazon’s e-book, Kindle, is a new model for generating revenues from text content.

Innovation’s starting point is creativity. There must first be creative ideas before we get innovative solutions. Hence, creativity is the fuel that sparks innovation. Only ideas that are commercialized become innovation.

The challenge confronting business leaders today is how to generate creative ideas for their businesses? How to move from ideas to bringing their innovation to the market? How to combine their innovation with a strategic plan that can move their companies forward?

The answer lies in the leadership that is needed to take the effort through idea generation, working through creative groups, recognizing and seizing opportunities, garnering the necessary support, testing it for business potential, placing strategic bets, managing their risks, positioning for market entry, whilst at the same time ensuring strategic fit.