A lot of people end up prioritizing on their comfort zones. Due to the corresponding rut that sets in, there is little scope for innovations. In order to free up this space for such business innovation, two steps exist to be taken one-after-another. First is to figure out the yikes zone, outside one’s sphere of comfort. Then one needs to work out ways to ensure that eventually this yikes zone may be tamed, and one is equally comfortable within it. The transition zone between comfort and yikes needs to be identified. The task of downsizing this zone of discomfort needs to be broken down into parts so that disparate solutions may be brought out. A lot of people take brain vacations for this, where the thinking process is simply slowed down. The development of cutting-edge Gillette razors came out as a result of such breaks.

Source:https://www.strategy-business.com/blog/Two-Simple-Concepts-to-Free-Up-Innovation?gko=c1865

Uploaded Date:27 February 2018

The catchphrase “thinking out of the box” emerged out of a board game but is today applied to the process of business innovation. Some tips have been assembled for helping business leaders literally think out of the box. The first thing to do will be to question all known assumptions. A sense of empathy needs to be developed with the actual user. This will provide vital business intelligence which will help in product improvement and plan for the future generations. Similarly, users’ as-yet unknown wants must also be triggered to develop innovative products. A lot of managers make the mistake of trying to find solutions, while instead they must define the problem first-hand. The problem and its derived solution need both be relevant for the customer. Customer perceptions must be leveraged to forgeinnovative value propositions. Any internal politics in the organization, must be nipped in the bud before it grows large enough.

Source:http://innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/02/16/10-tips-for-innovating-out-of-the-box/

Uploaded Date:27 February 2018

In order to cultivate a culture of business innovation within a company, the top management needs to take up certain steps. First of all, the leadersneed be honest enough to admit mistakes being committed when they do. Similarly, the leader must not hesitate to inform the team of not having an answer to a problem or query if that is the case. Addressing the problem is needed before solutions may be drawn out. The leader must try to understand the concerns and requirements of the external clients as well as internal employees into account while taking any decision. As much as management journals advise executives to separate professional from personal lives, a bit of involvement on the personal side helps enliven innovative practices. Sharing incredible personal experiences, builds a sense of connection within the team.

Source:http://innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/02/12/4-things-successful-leaders-say-to-create-a-culture-of-innovation/

Uploaded Date:23 February 2018

A study has been concluded by consulting major BCG on the state of innovations globally. Some companies have been identified as the strong innovators, while other as the weak ones. The ideas for new projects or innovations come from a wide net of sources for the strong innovators as opposed to the weaker ones. Internal sources account for a substantial portion of those. But in addition, strategic partnerships with other collaborator companies also play a part, as do specific incubator projects and employee ideation forums. External business consulting firms hired to generate ideas are another major source, in addition to acquisitions, licensing deals, social media network and big data mining. The strong innovators are also good at leveraging data from multiple sources such as their own proprietary data, patent data, scientific literature, semantic works and natural-language processing. These effective innovators use such data in identifying new themes, revealing market trends, understanding ecosystems, providing the necessary inputs to the ideation process, informing innovation investment decisions and identifying potential external success stories. This external innovation tapped into, helps companies find the next big thing, avoiding being disrupted, establish links with startups, attaining a leadership position in tech and building a network full of collaborators.

Source:https://www.bcg.com/publications/2017/growth-casting-a-wide-innovation-net.aspx?linkId=47934479

Uploaded Date:23 February 2018

The one thing all great innovators had in common was the courage to be different and keep persevering. Inventions are often done parallelly as was the case of relative gravity done simultaneously by Albert Einstein and David Hilbert. Business innovation is not about an ‘aha’ moment but about the perseverance which usually takes a long time before it. A perfect example is that of Chester Carlson’s work which led to the development of the first photocopiers. He received massive help from the Haloid corporation which later developed Xerox and literally minted money. Another is that of Gary Starkweather who nearly got fired for daring to be different. His innovation led to the development of the laser printers, which saved Xerox at a time of much disruption for the company. Beyond being smart, creative and hardworking, these innovators had the courage.

Source:http://innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/02/02/all-great-innovators-have-one-thing-in-common-they-stick-it-out/

Uploaded Date:19 February 2018

The gap between corporate strategy drafted and the innovations to support the same, is an aspect of business troubling several organizations. While companies are willing to try out business innovations for future success, few are aligning the same towards their present business requirements or the company mission. The alignment between the two is missing. That is why a three-horizon framework is needed to bridge the gap. For this, a clarity in purpose needs to be decoded, with proper procedure for tracking and exploring ideas. An innovation master plan needs to be devised by each firm serious at executing it. A matrix system known as the Executive Innovation Work Mat has been developed by researchers with collaboration from Ovo Innovation. The purpose of this is the alignment between innovation and the company strategy.

Source:http://innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/02/06/the-essential-connection-between-strategy-and-innovation/

Uploaded Date:19 February 2018

Disruption is a term much in use across businesses these days. This is because several fleet-footed startups have taken over and disrupted industries all around. Thus, a study was conducted to assess the levels of disruption that any company is likely to face in the upcoming future. A matrix has been prepared to this effect. Four levels have been chalked up here which are – viable, volatile, vulnerable and durable. Durable companies are mature ones which have continuously responded proactively to business innovations, as alcoholic beverages producers have done by acquiring craft breweries such as Goose Island and Lagunitas across Europe and North America to counter evolving tastes of customers. At the vulnerable stage, incumbents are reeling from pressure from newer players, leading to reduced margins. At the volatile state, companies are actually seeing mass disruption such as in taxis. The state of viability exists when traditional industries have already been disrupted, but they have been reborn in differing avatars such as newspapers establishing platforms where others can conduct their digital marketing operations.

Source:https://hbr.org/2018/01/how-likely-is-your-industry-to-be-disrupted-this-2×2-matrix-will-tell-you

Uploaded Date:13 February 2018