Author Archives: Vyoma Kapur
This is the seventh of several ‘Innovation Perspectives’ articles we will publish this week from multiple authors to get different perspectives on ‘Who should be responsible (if anyone) for trend-spotting and putting emerging behaviors and needs into context for a business?’. Here is the next perspective in the series:by Vyoma KapurTypically, a corporation would hire a market research or a consulting firm to keep up-to-date with the latest consumer trends. Millward Brown, Iconoculture and Forrester are examples of firms which use sophisticated research techniques to advise their clients on how consumers are behaving today, and how they might behave tomorrow. Whether we are talking about changing media habits, evolving taste buds or the growing popularity of a certain sport, keeping tabs on consumer lifestyles does not happen automatically. Time, effort and capital need to be invested to stay ahead of rapidly changes and adapting business operations accordingly.However, trend-spotting does not … Continue reading
Innovation in the developing world, as many people may tend to think, comes from either large conglomerates or small entrepreneurial communities which have had the good fortune of venture backing. Especially in a free market economy, such as India’s, innovation is often thought of as the mandate of thriving businesses equipped with the know-how.In Mumbai, India’s economic powerhouse, the real social innovation is coming from the grassroots. These are people, who despite having little, are the answer to Mumbai’s mounting waste management problem.The dwellers of the Dharavi slum, the largest in Asia, have created a massive recycling industry. Invaluable for the social impact it has created, the slum’s existence is supported by high-strung officials and ordinary civilians alike. Using simple machines in their home factories, these dwellers are recycling anything from plastic bottles and metal cans to paper and cotton, saving the city from the wrath of its own garbage. … Continue reading
When you hear the word ‘crowdsourcing’, what comes to mind? Most people list ideas, tee-shirts, logos and advertisements. If you are familiar with InnoCentive, the world’s largest open innovation platform, you would know product development, design projects and campaigns can be crowdsourced too. It was at the Business Innovation Factory conference earlier this week I first heard of a ‘crowdsourced’ car. Jay Rogers, the founder of Local Motors, amazed the audience with his story of launching a unique automotive business that taps into a community to design and develop cars through regular competitions.Running Colspark LLC, a company that crowdsources for ideas and solutions, I certainly found this concept bizarre. A few questions sprung up. What is the community made of? How are the winners selected and rewarded? In what way are Local Motors cars different from regular cars? Rogers explained that the Local Motors community consists of over 3,000 designers, … Continue reading
Riveting innovation stories were told during the Business Innovation Factory conference held in Providence, Rhode Island. In its fifth year now, the conference attracted brilliant people from all over the country hungry to learn and discover. Over twenty speakers from different industries, professions and backgrounds were gathered to share how they have ‘innovated’ in their own unique way and created an impact. I made my way to Providence full of curiosity.Here is where I ask you to broaden your definition of innovation. I think we’ve become too accustomed to think of innovation as an effort that either reduces the bottom line or enhances the top line. Innovation is not only about processes; it also encompasses radical diversions of existing products, ideas built from scratch as well as bottom-up social change.Neri Oxman’s story was unique, astounding and opened my mind. Oxman, a designer and researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, … Continue reading
Voting is now closed, and we have a winner for my ticket to the Business Innovation Factory (BIF-5) conference October 7-8, 2009 in Providence, RI. Here again were the Three Finalists:Creating a Bachelor of Innovation by Dr. Terrance E. Boult, University of Colorado at Colorado SpringsBreaking Innovation Barriers by Looking Beyond by Vyoma Kapur, Colspark LLCA Nightmare on Innovation Street by Brad Barbera, KAB Business ResearchAnd the winner is…Vyoma Kapur of Colspark LLC!Colspark seeks to foster greater collaboration between academia and businesses. They believe in creating a dynamic knowledge and information flow between colleges and companies. They do this by giving college students a platform to solve companies’ sales, marketing and business problems. By bringing students and companies closer together, they create an environment where the best and the brightest are rewarded. Using the principles of open innovation, effective ideas and solutions are generated for companies. Colspark endorses open communication … Continue reading
This is Finalist #2 of 3 in the Business Innovation Factory (BIF-5) Ticket ContestVote for this entry by leaving a comment or sending an @reply to @innovate on Twitter with “I vote for #2″ in it.If you are a scientist or an engineer, you know firsthand that innovation is neither inexpensive nor straightforward. It is a long convoluted process that starts with investing copious amounts of money into scientific and market research. Furthermore, the desired end result is not always guaranteed. Several projects, if proven less than commercially viable, are halted before they even reach the developmental stage. Others that make it through the new product life cycle take years to be completed.The importance of innovation is apparent everywhere. Companies need to constantly be in innovation-mode to remain competitive and become more productive. Government and non-government organizations, too, need to embrace innovation to progress forward. So when innovation doesn’t come … Continue reading
