Digitally Different

Changing paradigms of innovation

Back in the times when I was still at school, I would often hear my dad talk about Innovation, with his colleagues. He worked at a dairy product marketing firm, and creating a new product or experience was a time consuming activity with high risks and repercussions of failure. In the last 5 years, every industry has seen dramatic changes from external and internal forces and none of these industries look the same. If there is one thing that is common, its the speed of innovation and the impact of the new generation of participants in the workforce. In our discussions with clients, we are often asked as to how the others competitor firms are faring, the challenges they face etc. often only seeking to derive comfort from the fact, that the direct competition is not much ahead. My response to such questions has always ended in the age old tenet, that to stay ahead — organizations need to continuously attack their own products and categories as if they were outsiders. Innovation, after all, is not binary — its analogous.

Below are the 10 things I have shared with my clients on helping them challenge the current and prepare for the digital future:

1. Customers have become used to being wowed by changes — and its an implicit expectations that between now and the next time they use your product, it would have changed — even if just slightly.
2. Opportunities for innovation and change, are now no longer bound to the physical realms of your product or service. Its the customer experience and customer’s participation in that experience that leaves a lasting impact.
3. Co-creating innovative experiences for your customers is real — engage your employees (treating them as founders of their initiatives) and your customers.
4. If you don’t do it — Someone, somewhere is preparing to disrupt your industry. So be prepared.
5. Value is created by bringing things together or taking them apart — this applies equally to digital products and services.
6. Shift the organization culture from that of working for paychecks to innovating for ownership. Treat individuals as value creators and owners, to drive engagement.
7. Automation explosion has resulted in abundance of tools, access to learning new skills, ease of networking and capital within reach — whats holding you back?
8. Consciously choose to manage and foster innovation within the organization or acquire the edge. Both require a different approach, and very few organizations can do both well simultaneously.
9. Experiments lead to fascinating insights. Managing the process of experimentation is the key. Lean Start-up makes a great example.
10. Engaging the local start-up community is great! Try it. You will be pleasantly surprised with what you’ll find or who you’ll meet.