TOYS R US. POLAROID. BLOCKBUSTER. What can we learn from these once-successful, since-fallen innovators? All of these companies fell into the ‘success trap’ by exploiting their (historically successful) business activities — and failed to explore evolving customer needs to enhance their long-term viability.
At the other end of the spectrum are companies like Tesla, Shopify and Alibaba, all of which are positioned to survive and thrive beyond the global pandemic. These companies share three common practices: They have managed to evolve their original business models to meet changing customer needs; they combine design with engineering; and they have created a culture of experimentation.
In short, these companies are examples of sustainable innovation in practice. They make it clear that designing and redesigning your business in response to what your customers need over time is crucial for survival and sustained competitive advantage. In this article, I will present key principles for making this a reality in any organization.
Leading Innovation
To lead in an innovative organization, you first need to understand how the people around you define and interpret the term ‘innovation.’ It is most often associated with successfully bringing a new and improved product or service to market, resulting in consumer adoption. However, people often confuse the what (the new or improved product or service) with the how (the process of ideating and bringing new products to market).
Complicating matters, innovation is both a noun and a verb. As a noun, it is an idea or object perceived as new; a new idea or object adopted by
