Redbean August 2007 - Is innovation one of the most misconstrued terms in the English language?
I am looking forward to a new Innovation conference in Melbourne at the end of August which will include guest speakers like Tom Kelley from IDEO.
Yet what sort of innovation will be on show? If I go looking for the meaning of the word innovation I can get numerous responses. One thing I can be certain about is that innovation is a process. It describes the steps taken to get from a creative idea/invention to an object or process of value to someone. It may require more creativity along the way. It will invariably require a hefty amount of design, another misconstrued term, yet what I would describe as problem solving or creative development within a set of constraints (like time, money gravity etc.).
Unfortunately the term innovation has been hijacked by every government and repeated in every second organisational mission statement on earth. Many put all their eggs in the innovation basket. However Getz and Robinson argue the mantra of “innovate or die” is misleading and there is more to success than innovation alone. They also show that relying on just innovation is akin to gambling with a 3,000:1 chance of success (after spending a lot of time and money).
Innovate or Die: Is that a Fact?
Increasingly, while organisations give lip service to terms like creativity and innovation they rarely set up the environment for success in these areas. Brilliant product designs or innovative business processes come from employees 80% of the time and through planned improvement activities only 20% of the time. (Getz and Robinson) So establishing a means for ‘everyday’ ideas to flow is more important than trying to forge new unique ideas.
And why do we innovate? Just to have a new model car every three years? That sounds like consumption madness. Nathan Shedroff has been working in this area for some time and has a great site dedicated to all things innovative. Nathan.com
In his latest book (Making Meaning: How Successful Businesses Deliver Meaningful Customer Experiences, co-authored with Steve Diller and Darrel Rhea) he looks beyond the simple catch phrases of invention, innovation, design and gets to what people really seek, meaning.
“We envision a time when customers increasingly make their purchase decisions based on deeply valued meanings that companies evoke for them through their products and services—in other words, meaningful consumption—as opposed to simply responding based on features, price, brand identity, and emotional pitches. We hope to persuade business leaders that combining and integrating the power of invention, design, and marketing to create meaningful experiences for their customers provides a blueprint to achieving sustained, stable growth.”
This aligns with my personal concept of why we create, innovate and design. I suspect I will find this ‘flavour’ of innovation in Melbourne at the end of the month, not the washed out “let’s build a better mousetrap” flavour.