What keeps you on top in an industry full of competitors and emerging companies? Successful corporate innovation! However, coming up with new products and services is not child’s play. A lot of trial & error goes into it. Moreover, it is not a one-time deal — you need to keep innovating over and over to meet consumer demands and outgrow yourself. That is why market leaders such as Google and Apple are so successful today.
We are sure that you know what you are doing. But wouldn’t you like to gain insights on principles followed by industry-leading innovators? Of course, right? That’s why we collected 5 key factors that will enable you to drive successful corporate innovation!
Key Factors for Successful Corporate Innovation
1. Realize the Need for Speed
Market leaders often tend to get comfortable in their position — avoid that at all costs. You should, of course, focus on your run, but at the same time, keep an eye on your competitors. Do not underestimate the potential of small companies. You never know when one of them will become your competitor, seemingly out of nowhere. Bigshots such as Netflix and Uber started small and look where they are today! Hence, it is very important to be on your toes, stay updated about emerging technologies, and shake things up every now and then — depending on what the market demands.
2. Take Advantage of Software Tools
Once you realize the need for speed, you want to act as fast as possible to automate certain tedious tasks as well as increase the accuracy of your results. To make successful corporate innovation happen, you need to stay up-to-date with emerging technologies and startups as they come up. Startup scouting platforms such as StartUs Insights’ Discovery Platform enable innovation managers like yourself to quickly and continuously identify new startups, scaleups, and technologies that matter to you. Additionally, you can also use idea management software or end-to-end innovation management tools to accelerate your corporate innovation efforts further.
3. Create an Innovation-friendly Culture
Creating a company culture that supports creativity is imperative for successful corporate innovation. Encourage your team to share their ideas, no matter how good or bad. Give them the room to experiment with those ideas and assure them that it is fine not to succeed at the first shot. Every failure is an opportunity to improve upon. Additionally, while supervision is important, trust your team and know when to step back. This ensures that your team thinks independently, comes up with new ideas, and takes full ownership of their projects.
4. Pay Attention to Your Customers
The primary objective of innovating new products and services is to create more value for your clients. Hence, their own input is invaluable. Always try to find out what exactly they want, and plan your new projects or upgrades to existing products accordingly. While direct feedback from consumers is insightful, too many insights might leave you confused about which ones to prioritize. Therefore, conduct thorough market research before making decisions and have faith in your gut feeling (aka experience). Striking a fine balance is the key.
5. Reach out to External Partners
Having confidence in your team is great but that does not mean you shouldn’t look outward. External experts such as engineers, entrepreneurs, product developers, scientists, and innovators provide you with fresh perspectives and new ideas. As Linus Pauling once said “The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas” — so involving externals is a great way to make successful corporate innovation happen! Open innovation enables you to take advantage of external experts, reducing the risk of failure.
Do you have more key factors in mind which you think should be on this list? Get in touch & let us know!
