Again, What is Innovation?
Does it mean that for the sake of being ‘in’ and sounding like we get it, we re-invent the wheel? Do we do the same stuff in a different way? Do we reach the same results using different-from-normal methods?
To innovate, do we reap the same rewards by sowing different seeds?
All organizations want more profit.
So what’s new? Should they think up new ways to cut costs, fire people, manufacture something different or sell differently? Is that what innovation is?
Or is it just another way of ‘doing it right’?
But there never is a way of doing/getting it right! Because all organizations have peculiar problems that are indigenous only to them.
Instead of looking for tailor-made solutions and innovation, organizations would do much better to look within and use their everyday knowledge. Processes and systems only work well till they allow work to be done. Slowing down and obstructing work means that the process needs to be changed or gotten rid of.
What is innovative about that?
It’s common sense.
But most of the times, it takes a third person to come in and tell you that your processes need to change. I still have to understand why one needs to hire external help when your own internal team has been telling you about the problems AND suggesting solutions.
It is all about trust and communication.
1 comment
Having worked with innovation processes for almost 30 years, I’ve learned the real value of working with existing company content. Putting that content into new contexts allows the company to leverage its investment and create new value with that. It also makes it much easier to rework the business model to adapt to new processes and opportunities.
IBM is king of this behavior.
Comments are closed.