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Make Sure Innovation is Elegant

Elegant Innovation Well in our last three article we have seen why we need Innovation, how we can go about innovating. When we come across a new idea how do we judge it to be an inventive one or not? Is the Idea really an Elegant one or not ? Legend has it that NASA invested millions of dollars in developing a "space pen" that would perform well in zero gravity conditions. At the same time Soviet cosmonauts simply used pencils. Regardless of the fact that we now know this story to be a myth, it provides an important insight into the characteristics of inventive ideas and solutions. It is that most of us prefer simple inexpensive solutions over complicated costly ones. This is also true when we address new product development or for that matter any Innovation processes. Obviously, we favor ideas that are easy and inexpensive to implement over those that require the introduction of new technologies and heavy investment. All this may sound trivial. Yet the really interes...
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Disciplined approach to Innovation / Tools for Innovation - Systematic Inventive Thinking (SIT)

Disciplined approach to Innovation / Tools for Innovation Last article we talked about finding the Innovation Sweet Spot as an approach to “Innovate on Demand”, as required in today’s environment. .   How do we do this? We need ideas for which we need to “think”! Well, I wonder if any one of us remembers a teacher or a professor walking into our classroom and saying “Today I am going to teach how to think”.  Not really. We have never been formally taught how to “think”.  So without proper tools to do so, we may set out on a wild goose chase without reaching much success. The Systematic Inventive Thinking (SIT) method provides us with such thinking tools. At the core of SIT process are five innovation patterns. These “templates of innovation” have emerged from historical analysis of product development trends. SIT research over the years indicates that most successful product innovations fit into at  least one of these five patterns. Indeed, we have found that...
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Want to Innovate but How ??

We know we must innovate, but how exactly? In today’s fiercely competitive world, and one that continues to face economic uncertainties, many accept the paradigm shift to “Innovate or Perish.” What is less clear is how to innovate . This is surely the million or in this inflationary world a Billion Dollar question. When we think of innovation the obvious options pop up, starting from Edward DeBono, Tony Busan, professor Clayton C in more recent past, then the theories like Open innovation , Blue Ocean, Six Hats, Disruptive Innovation come to mind. Prof C.K. Pralhad and Mr Govindrajan have been championing Innovation. However, it seems to me that none of these address how to go about innovating. What they do well is at most offer ways to manage innovation or evaluate the innovative ideas that emerge when an idea is born. Yet, none of these sources set forth a way or method to actually create a truly innovative idea in the first place – which is surely the heart of the matter. ...
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Introduction to Innovation

What is Innovation / Why Innovate?? By: Innovation Midwife In today's competitive environment, the ability of an organization to consistently innovate can determine its success and, many times, its survival. We are all constantly being bombarded with the word “Innovation”. Everyone is talking and writing about innovation, from C. K. Prahaladh  to the ordinary CEO. The Government of India has set up the National Innovation Foundation. Similarly, many private sector entities are also establishing innovation mechanisms. Marico, one of the most innovative companies, has set up a foundation as well, while Bharti (Airtel)  a company setting global standards in low cost delivery of services, has set up a fund for innovation. “Innovate or Perish” is being accepted as a new age corporate “Mantra” globally. Today, innovation is an important topic in the study of economics, business, entrepreneurship, design, technology, sociology, and engineering. Out of curiosity I searched f...
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