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Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Expanding Your Business Innovation Capacity

(Image courtesy: www.techmankanata.com)

"The sudden awareness of the urgent need for change and looking into the future in a more structured way, made this little sexy word (innovation) very popular, trendsetting and chic. However, how would you define innovation? What makes a company innovative?"

According to Mariana Ferrari Quijano, it is better not to define it (the word innovation), but to accept all it's synonyms: change, alteration, revolution, upheaval, transformation, metamorphosis, breakthrough; new measures, new methods, modernization, novelty, newness; creativity, originality, ingenuity, inspiration, inventiveness, shake up.

Selected references:
Leading eBook on Creativity and Innovation in Business
Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
Creativity and Innovation Case Studies
The Innovation Index
Top 50 innovative companies in the world

Mariana has authored a significant article on innovation, titled Innovation: what's in that little, trendy, sexy word, wherein she examines an innovator's determinant factors to survive and grow in downturns. She believes cash flow and balanced (or lean) costs are the two significant factors that can either make or break a company. Further, she alludes that during such periods, a company's capacity to innovate takes its maximum weight, as it supports and increase in productivity based in the human capital.

Which brings us back to the image that I have shared at the beginning from her article wherein she defines a company's Innovation Capacity.

Innovation Capacity =

Employees' Brain Preferences + Innovative Work Behaviors + Innovation Practices

Mariana has conducted extensive research on each element that will induce large Innovation Capacity - by encouraging employees to be more creative and providing them opportunities to experiment, rewarding innovative work behaviors that result in successes, and implementing real innovation practices that allows you to build an innovation factory.

Mariana postulates that innovation is about looking ahead, projecting the future, identifying future needs and creating solutions for those needs. By doing so, a company leads the future in its sector, leaving competitors behind. In other words, innovation is about creating the future.

A pertinent example provided is of PROCESOi:

"At PROCESOi we consider innovation to be a strategy, to increase a companies' present value, keep it ahead of its competitors and create sustainable growth.

Innovation is a three-phase process:

Phase 1: Spark: innovation surges due to an interest, inquisitiveness or concern about the present situation.

Phase 2: Creation: unrest or problems can lead to brainstorming, and the unleashing of imagination to reach a solution or identify an opportunity that had not previously been apparent.

Phase 3: Implementation: when the solution or opportunity is identified, an investment is made to make it happen with the aim of generating new income."

I commend Mariana and her team for the work she has undertaken, and creating a benchmark for measuring the Innovation Capacity. She even defines an innovator (although earlier she did not want to define innovation): "An innovator is defined, as an individual, who has a global way of thinking, is intuitive, takes risks, is imaginative, and often breaks the rules."

In short, this article by Mariana is a must read for CEOs, Innovators, Entrepreneurs and Leaders, and is sure to provide you key takeaways towards driving innovation in this tough economic environment.

Would you like to become an innovator? I invite you to participate in the Innovation Bootcamp workshops:

The Innovation Bootcamp consists of Six Engaging Online Workshop Sessions (details below):
1. Benchmarking and Leading with Innovation
The Business Case for Innovation
2. Unblocking Creativity and Innovation
The Essential Processes and Skills
3. Unleashing Team Innovation
Great Teams Deliver Great Innovations
4. and 5. Business Innovation Case Studies
Learn how Top Innovators Lead with Innovation
6. Building an Innovation Factory
Create a sustainable, scalable Innovation Process

Or, download my leading eBook on Creativity and Innovation in Business used by over 1,000 professionals, faculty and innovators at educational institutions and businesses all around the world including EDS, Ericsson, Center for Sales Strategy, IdeaChampions, Acara Global, Byrne Dairy, Cleveland Clinic, Magpie, DOJ/FBI, HP, Hewlett Packard, Intervista Institute, Fryett Consulting Group, Satellite Shelters, ProductVentures, Speakeasy - a Best Buy company, Jarden Consumer Solutions, Hallmark, Infinium, DeakinPrime - Deakin University, Lucas-TVS, McCann Worldgroup, S.P.Jain Center of Management, Suffolk University, RiCoMan, AmpControl, Craig Rispin, Momentive, Champion Laboratories, University of Phoenix, University of Washington, SFR - Neufbox, Attwood as Edison, Academy of Sport, Ideogenesis, Principled Innovation, Meridian Partners, Ananzi, Tangibility, Syngenta Global, Speedy, The Business Lab, Deloitte, Lane Management, University of California at Irvine, Wharton Business School, Babson University, Larsen & Toubro, Nokia, Credera, Pfizer, Bilkent University, Indian Institute of Science and many more.

This eBook is a 212-page collection of over 55 best practices, case studies, and insights on the current state of Innovation in Business at Top Innovators including Apple, Google, Netflix, 3M, Proctor and Gamble, Johnson and Johnson, Toyota, GE, BMW, Deloitte, Frito Lay, IBM, Nike, Starbucks, Southwest Airlines, Microsoft, Dell, Intel and more. With pertinent articles from the award-winning Creativity And Innovation Driving Business Blog, this Faculty eBook provides real-world examples on how the Top Innovators innovate and grow their business successfully time and again, especially during economic cycles. Creativity And Innovation in Business is a definitive guide that will help you unblock creativity, uncover and create game-changing innovations, and make exponential business growth a reality. Learn more...

Mariana sums up her article with these lasting words: "innovation is a synonym for Joy and Happiness, and should not be made a "serious business strategy". Joy, because creating, learning, making mistakes is fun, and happiness because achieving far-fetched, almost unbelievable results makes everybody happy. Don't just take my word, ask Steve Jobs."

References:

http://www.techmankanata.com/ar-104-pg-1/Innovation-whats-in-that-little-trendy.htm

Selected references:
Leading eBook on Creativity and Innovation in Business
Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
Creativity and Innovation Case Studies
The Innovation Index
Top 50 innovative companies in the world

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Creativity And Innovation in Business Definitive Guide, Book, eBook

Creativity And Innovation in Business is a 175-page collection of 45 best practices, case studies, and insights on the current state of Innovation in Business at Top Innovators including Apple, Google, Netflix, 3M, Proctor and Gamble, Johnson and Johnson, Toyota, GE, BMW, Deloitte, Frito Lay, IBM, Nike, Starbucks, Southwest Airlines, Microsoft, Dell, Intel and more. With pertinent articles from the award-winning Creativity And Innovation Driving Business Blog, this eBook provides real-world examples on how the Top Innovators innovate and grow their business successfully time and again, especially during economic cycles. Creativity And Innovation in Business is a definitive guide that will help you unblock creativity, uncover and create game-changing innovations, and make exponential business growth a reality.

Creativity And Innovation Driving Business

Creativity And Innovation Driving Business

1) Innovation and growth is not (just) a fuzzy process of screwing around vigorously (SAV) but can be a systematic process,
2) Innovation and growth is not (just) something that happens in a department like R & D or product development,
3) Innovation and growth is not just about products or solutions - it is about creating a transformational change in the way people live, work and play.
- Chapter 19

Your contribution of only $9.99 towards buying the eBook will help support the no-nonsense mission of this blog.

Download the Creativity And Innovation in Business eBook Now

Creativity And Innovation in Business asks questions and obtains answers on generating, managing and growing business creativity and innovation through proven processes. It details case studies, insights and stories on top innovators of The Innovation Index creating disruptive innovations and growing market leadership.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - Top 50 Innovative Companies in the world
Chapter 2 - Failures Driving Innovation
Chapter 3 - Blocking Creativity And Innovation
Chapter 4 - Six Ways to Find Innovation
Chapter 5 - Five Principles for Successful Innovation
Chapter 6 - Is Innovation Cyclical?
Chapter 7 - Can Leadership Create Innovation?
Complete Table of Contents (opens in new window)

Who should buy?
If you are a product manager, marketer, product marketer, sales operations manager, sales director, sales consultant, business consultant, product designer, brand manager, marketing manager, VP of products, VP of marketing, VP of technology, research & development director, product director, product marketing manager, marketing consultant, brand consultant, business school professor, business school student, innovation consultant, chief innovation officer, engineer, engineering student, technology student, technology consultant, design engineer, consultant, management consultant - this definitive guide is for you! If you are one of the key executives of the company or the CEO, buy this guide for your company!

Table of Contents of Creativity And Innovation in Business eBook

Table of Contents - Creativity And Innovation In Business
Chapter 1 - The Top 50 Innovative Companies In The World
Chapter 2 - The Innovation Index
Chapter 3 - Failures And Stumbles Driving Innovation
Chapter 4 - Blocking Creativity And Innovation
Chapter 5 - Six Ways To Find Innovation
Chapter 6 - Five Principles For Successful Innovation
Chapter 7 - Is Innovation Cyclical?
Chapter 8 - Can Leadership Create Innovation?
Chapter 9 - Top Ten Creative Leadership Traits
Chapter 10 - Creating Team Innovation - Seven Characteristics
Chapter 11 - Creating Team Innovation - Effective Teams
Chapter 12 - Creating Team Innovation - Ten Principles
Chapter 13 - The Future Of Management, Creativity And Innovation
Chapter 14 - How Much Creativity Is Enough?
Chapter 15 - Co-Creation Driving Innovation
Chapter 16 - Marketing Innovation Creating Market Leadership
Chapter 17 - Consumer Innovation Best Practices
Chapter 18 - The Innovation Gap
Chapter 19 - Ten Answers For Driving Innovation And Growth
Chapter 20 - Strategic Innovation At Deloitte - The "Apple" Of Services Innovation
Chapter 21 - Toyota's Innovation Factory
Chapter 22 - Ipod - Apple's Best Innovation
Apple Iphone Rising - Top Ten Innovations
Chapter 23 - Google Versus Yahoo - A Tale Of Two Cities
Youtube - $1.65 Billion Innovation And Counting
Chapter 24 - Blockbuster Versus Netflix - Winner Takes All?
Chapter 25 - GE And P&G ? Innovations Driving Growth ? Six Growth Principles
Chapter 26 - Can Dell Turnaround Dell? Seven Answers
Chapter 27 - Innovations Brewing At Starbucks ? Five Takeaways
Chapter 28 - Southwest Airlines Flying High With Ten Innovations
Chapter 29 - Innovations At Microsoft ? Four Business Pillars
Chapter 30 - Direct Marketing And Direct Mail Innovation At USPS
Chapter 31 - Disruptor Zune Versus Innovator Ipod
Chapter 32 - 100% Electric Ultra Fast Innovation
Chapter 33 - Nike Versus Adidas - The Innovation Game Is On
Chapter 34 - People Innovation - We Think
Chapter 35 - Intel - Exponential Innovations
Chapter 36 - Five Innovations In Software Industry
Chapter 37 - Google Versus Microsoft - The Enterprise Battle Heats Up!
Chapter 38 - Doubleclick A Smart Buy For Google
Chapter 39 - Microsoft Walk-Off Home Run With Aquantive
Chapter 40 - IBM's $5 Billion Cognos Acquisition
Chapter 41 - Top Acquisitions By The Top Innovators
Chapter 42 - Will Yahoo merge with Microsoft?
Chapter 43 - Innovation And Stock Performance Correlation
Chapter 44 - The Innovation Index Annual Report
Chapter 45 - $1 Billion Or The Future

Download the Creativity And Innovation in Business eBook Now

I am forever grateful to Creativity and Innovation Leaders, Innovators and Bloggers for helping me drive the readership on my blog, and I am looking forward to my blog readers and fellow blog writers downloading and referring this relevant resource on Creativity And Innovation in Business.

Good Luck Innovating!

Sincere regards,
Sanjay Dalal

Download the Creativity And Innovation in Business eBook Now

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

China and India driving Innovation

Chinese Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan, in a key address at the 14th World Productivity Congress (WPC) held in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, emphasized the role of technology and innovation in China towards developing productivity and realizing sustainable development.

Selected references:
Leading eBook on Creativity and Innovation in Business
Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
Creativity and Innovation Case Studies
The Innovation Index
Top 50 innovative companies in the world

Zeng proposed that in order to "realize sustainable development, China should institute an advanced system of productivity which considers new technology industries as the pioneers, basic and manufacturing industries as supporting players, all of which will help the service sector develop to its fullest". Zeng even called for implementing the strategy of reinvigorating the country through science, education and trained personnel and building a system of innovation. Zeng proclaimed that such innovative systems will "ensure scientific development which help transform the mode of economic growth to achieve harmonious and sustainable development." Zeng also wants to reduce pollution and energy consumption so as to create a safer and cleaner environment for productivity to thrive.

The China drive towards innovation and productivity is consistent with Friedman's assessment in "The World is Flat."

In a separate news story, The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is planning to create a National Innovation Grid in India. CII in a partnership with Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning (CFEL) of Cambridge University is proposing to set up a virtual network of information to drive innovation in Indian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The National Innovation Grid would act as a facilitator and driver for SMEs who can leverage the knowledge gained from CFEL and infrastructure capital from CII to create innovative new businesses. This has the potential to accelerate growth in the Indian SMEs.

"CII`s alliance with East of England International, a hi-tech cluster with Cambridge is focused at developing a model for linking small entrepreneurs and individual innovators with linking academia, research and development institutions, businesses as well as the government to facilitate innovation in the SME sector in India", CII President R Seshasayee said.

CII also launched a new program: "Towards 100 Indian `Billion $' MNCs" in partnership with Infosys. The program has a lofty goal of helping 100 new Indian Multi-National Companies achieve One Billion Dollars in revenue within the next ten years through an "ecosystem" of partners.

Bottomline

China and India are driving Innovation to develop productivity, create sustainable development, and achieve new business growth. Both countries are realizing the strategic importance of Innovation as they seek to create new economic growth in the future. New technology industries, SMEs and even Billion Dollar MNCs are on the horizon.

Selected references:
Leading eBook on Creativity and Innovation in Business
Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
Creativity and Innovation Case Studies
The Innovation Index
Top 50 innovative companies in the world

References:
Xinhua online
Zee News
Hindu

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Education driving Innovation in The World Is Flat

In his bestseller, "The World Is Flat", Thomas L. Friedman elaborates on the role of our style of Education driving Innovation.

Bill Gates View

Specifically, when Friedman asked Bill Gates, the Founder of Microsoft, about the the "supposed American Education advantage - an education that stresses creativity, not rote learning", Gates dismissed this entirely. Gates believes that it is a sad mistake for the (American) people to think that the rote-learning systems of China and Japan can't turn out Innovation. Gates even goes on to say "Who has the most creative video games in the world? Japan! I never met those 'rote people' ...Some of my best software developers are Japanese."

Race to the Top

Friedman stresses that "Young Chinese, Indians, and Poles are not racing us to the bottom. They are racing us to the top." Further, Friedman claims that they want to dominate the world "by creating the companies of the future, ones that people all over the world will admire and clamor to work for." He gives an example of a Chinese American who was working for Microsoft, and accompanied Gates on visits to China. According to him, Gates is the equivalent of the modern rock star in China. The young people in China would do anything to hear Gates speak, including scalping tickets. Jerry Yang, the co-founder of Yahoo!, is also in the same category.

And then Friedman makes a statement that reverberates with a loud echo (and bass) throughout the entire book:

"In China today, Bill Gates is Britney Spears. In America today, Britney Spears is Britney Spears - and that is our problem"

Indeed.

Our Production

According to most statistics, the number of foreign graduate students in the U.S. colleges in Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering are greater than 60%, in some cases even more than 90%. Most graduate students are from Asia. We are not producing the high number of Scientists, Mathematicians and the Engineers of the future, as we used to throughout the Twentieth century, to create future Innovations. It appears that the world is producing more intellectual talent, and will continue to produce more in the immediate future - and the irony is that the world is coming to the U.S. colleges to learn to become Innovative.

Growth of Education in China

Friedman observes that China today is becoming increasingly confident of their K-12 education system, of their fundamental strengths in Math and Sciences, and the Chinese youth are getting ready to "unleash their creative, innovative juices." Wu Qidi, China's vice minister of education, believes that nurturing more "creative thinking and entrepreneurship are the exact issues we are putting attention to today." Education overhaul is undergoing a massive movement in China. Large number of scholars, teachers and professors who have been educated in America and Europe are returning and are imparting changes to the classrooms and learning in China - even Arts is now getting taught. China believes that Education will pave the road to the future. And China has the roots of inventions dating back to the compass, papermaking, printing and gunpowder to back this claim. It is just a matter of time. And according to Gates, the Microsoft Research Asia based in Beijing has become the most productive research arm in the Microsoft system "in terms of the quality of ideas that they are turning out. It is mind-blowing."

Questions, Questions

These raises some important questions about the future of Education and Innovation here in the U.S.:

Do we need to change our Education system to compete versus the world, and create more Innovation in the future?

How do we create more Scientists, Mathematicians and Engineers today and in the future?

Do we believe that we can simply "outsource" the intellectual talent from abroad and create the type of Innovation that we have been known for?

In thirty years, which Innovative companies in the world will be in the Top 100 list?

There are no easy answers to any of these questions as our policy makers will ascertain.

But at least this much is certain: The role of Education, and in particular, Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering, is fundamental to Innovation. And the more Scientists, Mathematicians and Engineers we produce, the more Innovation we can expect in the future.

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Ten Percent of Sales from Innovation

Here's a great story that appeared in Ireland's Top Business Site, Business World.

According to the Irish Industrial Policy Body Forfas, "Firms in Ireland reckon that 10 percent of their turnover (sales) is due to product innovation."

This is a great testimony to the role of Creativity and Innovation in Business.

"A total of 34.6 Billion Euro was estimated to be a result of product innovation between 2002 and 2004," says Forfas. "This amounted to 10.1 percent of total turnover (sales) in 2004."

Forfas further revealed that:
"29.1 Billion Euro of this came from firms in the industrial sector, and 5.5 Billion Euro from the services sector."

Industrial sector is big on innovation since it contributed 17.1 percent of its sales from Innovation, whereas the Services sector of the business only contributed 3.1 percent of the sales owing to Innovation.

This further validates the successful role that Innovation and Creativity plays towards topline sales growth.

Forfas further claims that 52.2 percent of all businesses were "Innovation Active", meaning that some portion of their sales resulted from successful product innovation.

What were the top issues that blocked or compromised innovation?

Companies surveyed indicated "lack of funds, high costs of innovation and lack of skills." This could mean that some companies are either not profitable, have minimum profits or perhaps losing money that they are not able to fund innovation. Or some companies have done their homework and believe the cost of innovating is considerable, and perhaps detrimental to their current growth plans. Finally, companies may not have sufficient creative talent that can help fuel the innovation.

Forfas defined Innovation quite broadly to include R and D, engineering development work, purchases of machinery, software acquisition, purchases of external knowledge and training, and design and marketing - essentially new development or new investments that fueled new growth.

Forfas rightfully claims that "The percent of total turnover from new-to-market product innovations is an indicator of creativity and novelty across the economy." Indeed.

What percent of your sales are contributed by Innovation? Is it more than ten percent? Do you even track your sales to Innovation? And what hinders Innovation at your company?

Friday, September 22, 2006

Hackers, Controlled Chaos and Innovation

When was the last time you associated a hacker with a badge of honor! And believed that a hacker can help your company innovate amidst controlled chaos for 24 hours. Look no further. Internet giant Yahoo! is hosting an overnight "hack-a-thon" for hackers, aka computer software experts next week, and it is "Free".

Yahoo! network developer director Chad Dickerson not only equates Hackers within his Yahoo Development Community with carrying a badge of honor, but also provides such attributes as "someone who really knows how to build things with computers, not destroy things."

In a story reported today by AFP writer Glenn Chapman, Yahoo! is hosting a 24-hour programming free-for-all as its first public "Hack Day" next week - perhaps taking a page out of the Google annual competition. Dickerson claims this as a natural extension of events that engineers inside the company routinely hold.

Why host an event like this?

"To inspire new twists on Yahoo services as well as reclaim "hacker" as a name for those adept at manipulating software in creative, not malicious, ways," said Yahoo network developer director Chad Dickerson.

Which brings us to our central point?

Are Innovative companies such as Yahoo! and Google looking for creative ways to become even more innovative? Or is this event just to create some noise and awareness in the software community?

About 500 Software developers (hackers) from the United States and Canada are expected to arrive, live in a tent for 24 hours at the Yahoo campus in Sunnyvale, California, on September 29 and hack away at the company's programs, which would be provided. They can work in teams, work solo, work in whatever style they wish and produce results within 24 hours.

Dickerson even claims that "We find that the most creative ideas come from hackers who have no previous idea of what to do. It is a surprise even to us what they build."

If Yahoo! is indeed successful in finding "new twists on Yahoo services" through a controlled chaos of an event such as this with all the hackers, it would certainly be a first in their long page of innovations.

Beyond the innovation that such an event can potentially bring, Dickerson also wants to portray an "openness" culture of his company and perhaps give the hackers the positive limelight that they crave for - at least for one day.

Download market leading Creativity and Innovation in Business eBook. 212-page collection of over 55 best practices, case studies, and insights on the current state of Creativity and Innovation in Business at Top Innovators including Apple, Google, Netflix, 3M, Frito Lay, Johnson & Johnson, Proctor & Gamble, Toyota, GE, BMW, Deloitte, Southwest, Nike, IBM, Dell and more. "Your report from the eBook and definitive guide was the primary reference that we used." Used by over 500 leading organizations including HP, Pepsi, EDS, J&J, Nokia...Learn more
Download Now

Selected references:
Leading eBook on Creativity and Innovation in Business
Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
Creativity and Innovation Case Studies
The Innovation Index
Top 50 innovative companies in the world

For the complete story, click here

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Can Ambiguity and Chaos create Innovation? You Bet....

In the latest issue in Fortune, Adam Lashinsky, Fortune senior writer, writes about "Chaos By Design" at Google.

He talks about how "disorder, disarray and uncertainty" are all "part of the plan" at Google.

This raises the question: Can Ambiguity and Chaos create Innovation?

Google, with over 8,000 employees, and over $10 Billion in annual revenue, is producing new innovation faster than your eyes can blink.

For instance, Google is the world's largest search engine and responds to more search queries than any other service online. Google.com is one of the 5 most popular sites on the Internet and is used around the world by millions of people. Google has released at least 83 full-fledged and test-stage products, including recent successes such as Gmail, Picasa, Finance, Earth and Blog. And Google's AdWords and AdSense programs innovated the business of search and created a windfall.

How does Google do this?

According to Sheryl Sandberg, vice president of Automated Advertising Systems: "We don't always have an answer. We're willing to tolerate that ambiguity and chaos because that's where the room is for innovation."

Google's senior vice president for business operations, Shona Brown, who is also the author of book that talks about "structured chaos" sums it up: "The way to succeed in "fast-paced, ambiguous situations," is to avoid creating too much structure, but not to add too little either. The company's goal, is to determine precisely the amount of management it needs -- and then use a little bit less."

According to writer Lashinsky, "That (approach) sheds light on all kinds of blunders -- which Google likes to explain away as its Googley approach to business. The company is figuring things out as it goes, and not quite as effectively as you'd expect from its stellar financial results."

The key question that the article discusses is on whether Google can come up with a second act? Can they create something tangible and huge as "Google.com"? Can Google continue to innovate, and how?

What's amazing is Google continues to innovate using what is described as "spaghetti method of product development (toss against wall, see if sticks),", requiring all Engineers to spend at least 20% of their time on new ideas.

Perhaps Writer Lashinsky best sums up Google's grand plan: "It should come as no surprise that the plan is as irreverent, self-confident, and presumptuous as the company itself."