Step 1 in the Guide to Achieving Strategic Breakthroughs series
Finding the spark that fuels successful product and business innovation is challenging, and keeping the flame alight is even harder.
We see this happening all the time. Businesses of all sizes, at all stages, struggling to innovate again. Some businesses are born with an idea and a dream to shape their industry’s future and succeed. But that success is usually short-lived and they have trouble continuing their innovative trajectory.
In a world where 84% of executives agree that innovation is critical for their growth strategy, according to a McKinsey & Company report, why do we witness the downfall of innovation giants? Even more, data from Innosight and Harvard Business Review indicate the average lifespan of S&P 500 companies has decreased drastically from over 60 years since the 1960s to less than 20 years today. It’s a clear sign that identifying and seizing new opportunities is becoming increasingly elusive.
The key to strategic breakthroughs is ensuring you’re conducting continuous innovation, which need to start with an initial spark. How do we find that spark that helps gain strategic innovation insights that are crucial for fostering creativity?
Read on to find out…
Key Article Takeaways
- Challenging norms and exploring new ideas fuels business innovation.
- Diverse roles like Rebels and Visionaries are key to driving innovation within businesses.
- True innovation combines creativity with practical value creation.
- Teamwork, not just individual genius, is essential for innovation.
- Embracing new perspectives and collaboration is vital for innovative success.
The spark and the catalyst — how to implement effective business innovation strategies in your company
Every journey to innovation begins somewhere. It could be a startup aiming to launch a new concept or an established company seeking to adapt and grow to remain competitive.
Contrary to popular belief, innovation doesn’t solely arise from creativity. Creativity supports the innovation process but doesn’t set it in motion. Innovation is actually the discovery and engineering of new ways to do things that can generate value. The ‘discovery’ of new approaches is a result of change—a catalyst. Often, it’s driven by necessity, personal drive, or a structured approach to seeking new methods.
At times, innovation is attributed to a sudden stroke of insight or genius. These are sometimes seen as personal and internally driven brilliance, but in reality, they more often result from a chain reaction of external factors that leads to a new perspective or point of view..
Throughout history we can see that many impactful innovations happen in times of war, economic hardship, societal disruptions or technological shifts. The ability to catch a glimpse of this change and exploit it for value creation is the first step in igniting the innovative journey.
From Steve Jobs’s epiphany for the smartphone for the Apple iPhone, Dyson and their re-imagination of the vacuum cleaner, to Uber and Airbnb defining the sharing economy, these examples demonstrate the profound impact that a new point of view can have on innovation and the way we live and work.
Recognizing and Cultivating the Breakthrough Catalyst
Taking this first step is always the hardest. When capitalising on a catalyst to create change, you need to start with a new point of view or perspective.
This is where visionaries excel. They actively seek out observed insights, new facts, or assumptions that form the foundation for their new vision. his process blends elements of intuition and science. It’s akin to having faith—a hunch or belief that warrants exploration, sharing, and validation to evolve into an innovative idea supported by a strategy.”
So, how do you shape your unique point of view or gain a fresh perspective? Typically, it’s a dynamic interaction between your internal thoughts and external influences. It all begins when you spot certain clues that point to opportunities for deeper exploration. This exploration is driven by a philosophical process of questioning what merits further investigation.
What are some strategies and tips for actively discovering ‘observed insights,’ acquiring new facts, and questioning assumptions? To kick-start this process, you can initiate by posing the following internal questions while observing your external environment. Keep in mind that these questions are not one-size-fits-all; you can mix and match them as needed.
| External observations | Internal dialogues |
|---|---|
| Unexpected occurrences (crises, black swans) | What do I believe should/will happen next? |
| Incongruities in the market or industry | What am I seeing that no one else can? |
| New process/customer needs | Why hasn’t anyone solved “problem X” yet? |
| Industry and market changes | What opportunities are ripe for creation? |
Enabling innovation requires a set of mindsets. But what kind of approaches are needed to make innovation take off?
Being a rebel: Creating a new perspective often challenges the established norms. It doesn’t necessarily mean opposing existing ideas, but rather having the foresight for change that’s essential for future success and survival.
Being a visionary: Recognizing change is distinct from making it a reality. Cultivating the catalyst demands both imagination and unwavering determination to achieve genuine innovation.
Being a great storyteller: How can you persuade others to embrace your perspective and vision? How will you motivate your leadership, team, or customers to join you on the path to innovation? This is where effective storytelling plays a pivotal role.
Innovation thrives on teamwork
The next step is to use your new perspective to spark conversations with your team, ignite the ideas needed for bringing the vision into reality, and embark on the journey towards successful and impactful innovation.
The lone genius is a myth. In reality, most innovations emerge from collaborative efforts. While it’s often a single individual who makes a new insight or observation, it must be shared, believed, and acted upon by a team. Begin sharing your fresh perspective using visual frameworks that can effectively capture and communicate the vision.
In this post, we’ve explored the critical role of finding a fresh perspective as the catalyst for innovation. We’ve seen how essential it is for founders, senior managers, and product managers to embrace a new way of thinking to ignite the strategic innovation journey:
- A Spark of Change: Innovation begins with a spark, and this spark is often rooted in challenging the status quo and seeking out new viewpoints.
- Rebel, Visionary, Storyteller: We discussed how wearing these hats can boost your ability to drive innovation. Whether you’re challenging norms, visualizing change, or crafting compelling narratives, these roles interconnect and are key to your innovation journey.
- Collaborative Innovation: The myth of the lone genius is debunked, emphasizing the importance of teamwork in driving impactful innovation.
Your journey toward innovation is just beginning, and we’re excited to be part of it. Let’s move forward, spark new ideas, and transform your vision into reality.
Need help taking that first step on the journey? Reach out and together we can shape a future of successful and impactful innovation for your business.