Monthly Archives: May 2010
I am working hard to create a strong vibrant innovation and marketing community here on Blogging Innovation, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. This includes bringing you the best articles, book reviews, interviews, and conference coverage coverage that I can, in-between consulting and speaking engagements. This month we have introduced a new site design that allows for much better searching and commenting and our Continuous Innovation group on LinkedIn has 3,000+ people now actively sharing articles and engaging in lively discussions. We invite you to ask your innovation questions and also to help provide feedback to others there. If you haven’t tried exploring the site using the random posts feature at the bottom of each page, you might want to check it out. You never know what you might find! In order for us to continue making innovation and marketing insights accessible for the greater good, we could use your help spreading … Continue reading
If you are reading this blog, you’re probably already aware of the fact that open innovation (OI) has not yet reached its prime across all industries. In fact, many business leaders still haven’t heard of it yet, or want nothing to do with it. So why is it that some companies swear by it, and have reached a point where OI is completely embedded in their internal organizations and processes, while others are afraid to play? I have a theory about this, which boils down to two key points: market leadership culture and reward systems. Companies with a culture of market leadership have traditionally relied on strong internal innovation competencies in order to develop and maintain market share for their products. These leaders have recently realized (sometimes the hard way) that achieving and holding on to market share is no longer reliant upon the old first-to-patent …
The Reason Behind the Success of Reverse Innovation by Yann Cramer Thanks to a number of spectacular successes obtained by blue-chip companies in recent years, Reverse Innovation is becoming a popular trend. Examples include GE’s portable ultra-sound equipment designed in China and sold worldwide, LG’s low cost air conditioner designed in India and sold worldwide, Renault’s Logan low-cost model designed for Eastern European markets and now selling on Western Europe, etc. In an enlightening article, Vijay Govindarajan outlines a historical perspective from globalisation to reverse innovation, and highlights the key driver behind this evolution: the revenue gap between developed and emerging markets. But there are other drivers that may be less visible but no less powerful. The road to reverse innovation In his article What is Reverse Innovation, Vijay Govindarajan outlines the following historical phases: Globalization: companies designing and manufacturing in developed markets products that are “de-featured” for export to … Continue reading
This is the sixth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘How should firms collaborate with customers and/or value chain partners to co-create new products and services?’. Here is the next perspective in the series: by Mark Roser With some apologies to Braden, I reconfigured this question to focus on the notion of “when” do you really need to collaborate & co-create to achieve new products or services? When is it better to manage it all in-house? When is collaboration the right idea? Let’s start with the null hypothesis: projects that lie squarely within an organization’s “sweet spot” are better off developed in-house. In other words, for incremental improvements to a company’s existing product line it is better for division and group leadership to tell their internal teams to “just do it”. I assert that this internal-only decision is … Continue reading
This is the fifth of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘How should firms collaborate with customers and/or value chain partners to co-create new products and services?’. Here is the next perspective in the series: by Mike Brown Questioning Your Collaborative Innovation Efforts For various reasons, more companies are discovering strong insights and strategic inputs for innovation reside outside their own walls. While this realization can be challenging, establishing the successful strategic relationships necessary to do something about collaborative innovation is even trickier. Using consistent checkpoints and rich questions throughout the collaboration process can improve results. The following six keys for successful collaborative strategic relationships, whether with customers or value chain partners, will help gauge your readiness and pave the way for success: 1. Strategic relationships are about people; start by making sure your own people are ready. Begin … Continue reading
I found it interesting yesterday to see that IBM’s Institute for Business Value, a think tank and research organization, has surveyed CEOs of major corporations to try to understand the key characteristics that leaders will need in the near future. I guess I should be more specific – I didn’t think it was interesting that they asked 1500 CEOs about the important attributes and skills necessary for future leaders to possess. I found it interesting that the number one skill they recommended was “creativity”. This is interesting on so many levels. Mention creativity in most corporate environments and eyes roll so dramatically you’ll be concerned that someone could actually lose one. An eye that is. Creativity isn’t just scoffed at in most organizations – it isn’t even considered a topic of polite conversation. There are few if any classes on creativity, and very few people …
