There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of books on innovation. Some describe the philosophy of innovation. Some are prescriptive: this is precisely how YOU should be innovating. Some are chock full of innovation success stories, often from companies that are now on the ropes – or completely gone. Heck, even the definition of innovation is perpetually being debated. I’ve accumulated over a dozen different ones in the last few years. (Spoiler alert: I don’t love any of them.)
Yet, innovation is essential for the health and sustainability of your organization. Bust through these myths:
Myth #1: Innovations magically appear to the lucky few
Edison was right. Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. His great ideas did not instantly appear like a light bulb over his head, and yours won’t either. Great innovators don’t sit in a lab until lightning strikes. They get out in the real world to understand real problems requiring solutions. Innovators turn problems into opportunities and bust their butts to pursue them.
Here’s where it gets tricky: the most transformational innovations solve problems that the people didn’t know they had. Or they solve them in ways that no one anticipated.
Myth #2: Innovation means the next cool product – NEW NEW NEW!
Sure, everyone loves a great new toy, but the many impactful innovations may not include a new product at all. How are you engaging with your customers? How are you creating whole new sets of customers? Is this widely known? CEMEX used the Patrimonio Hoy program to expand their customer base, to have a positive impact on the community and to extend the brand value. GE leveraged its capital strength and product quality to make it easier for customers to buy engines and planes – and to ensure itself a constant revenue stream. Even Apple, the archetypical innovator, derived most of its value not from the iPod, the iPhone or the iPad, but through its integrated systems, revenue models and partner network.
Greg, how about a parallel to the truth you ended Myth 1 with? (same structure)
Challenge yourself: can I solve this problem using only products and technologies we already have?
Myth #3: It’s only innovation if it’s brand new to the world
Know your innovation ambition. If a customer is willing to pay for something that they couldn’t have yesterday (bottled water), finding a way to sell it to them is innovation! Among the definitions of innovation: “Change that adds value.”
Be careful. If all of your innovation is incremental you risk being blindsided? disrupted by a force you didn’t see coming. Be sure that you have a balanced innovation portfolio, meeting the current needs and demands of your customers while preparing for their future needs – delighting them with things they didn’t even know were possible.
So…
Are you ready to put in the work?
Do you know what problems your customers really face?
Can you solve the problem without expensive product development?
Are you being an innovation purist? (Stop it!)
Are you being an innovation incrementalist? (Stop it!)
