Heads-Up! on Organizational Innovation

Innovation Is Not "NEW"!

From Joyce Wycoff:

This morning I was working on a session for a client and wanted them to think about what innovation is so I decided to Google "Innovation Definition."  What a disappointment!  Soren mentioned in an earlier post that innovation is still a new field but I expected better.  Admittedly, this is a random selection and most organizations are working with far better definitions but it does seem to indicate some confusion in the field. 

One comment that was included with the definitions might be a sign of things to come:  We are counting the days until we hear the buzzword "re-innovation."  With such limited, unhelpful definitions floating around, he might be right. 

For instance, in the 21 definitions included in the compilation (including my own), the word "new" is used 30 times but the concept that this newness creates value is only included in ten of the definitions.  Many of these definitions boil down to the word new as if a new color on a package of deodorant would qualify as innovation.  Boiled down to its essence, innovation would actually be "new value."  If the color on the deodorant package somehow created value, then it would qualify as innovation.

The definition we like and use is:  PEOPLE implementing ideas that create new value.  Notice that the "new" word modifies value not ideas.  Who cares if they are old ideas if you can find a way to create new value with them?

Here are some of the more problematic definitions:

The act of introducing something new and significantly different.  .  (JW: New idea:  all cars should have square wheels.  Is that an innovation?) 

Innovation is introducing an object as if it were new.  (JW:  It doesn’t really have to be new … we can just pretend it is?)

“An idea, practice, or object that is perceived as new by an individual or other unit of adoption” (JW:  Unit of adoption ... is that something like a customer?) (Rogers, 1995, p. 11)

Innovation is creating something that others want.  (JW:  I want bread.  Does that mean bread is an innovation?) 

I'd love to hear the working definitions some of your organizations are using so we can create a much better list than this one I've attached. Here's the compilation: Download innovation_defined.doc

FFE: Dean Kamen

Dean Kamen (click for larger image)

Dean Kamen, President Deka Research and Development and developer of the Segway™ Human Transporter and founder of FIRST

Kamen professed to know little about innovation but finally defined it as “The art of concealing your sources,” which he said he borrowed from Pablo Picasso who said, “Good artists borrow. Great artists steal.” This led into an after-dinner romp through a memorable metaphor, 6 Rude Realities and 2 Slightly Serious Suggestions.

Memorable metaphor – Kamen showed a picture of a “south-pointing chariot” invented a thousand years ago by the Chinese. The intricate technology is a very early example of a computing machine and was used to keep people from getting lost while crossing the Gobi desert. In Kamen’s mind this does not qualify as an innovation, however, because it was never commercialized … primarily because there was a much simpler invention – a compass – that did the job much better and cheaper. Now, during design sessions at Kamen’s company, someone will always ask: “Is it a south-pointing chariot,” as a reminder to think about other, simpler ways to accomplish the same task.

Read more about:
Rude Realities
Slightly Serious Suggestions
Kamen Sound Bites
The Why, When, How and Who of Innovation
FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology)

Innovation Spectrum: The Trouble with Tribbles

If you remember this Star Trek episode, you’ll recall those cute, little furry creatures that everyone loved ... at least until fur- balls began spilling out of every nook and cranny, threatening the survival of the Enterprise. (It turns out that tribbles are born pregnant and hungry. The more they eat the more tribbles there are to have little tribbles who love to eat and have more little tribbles, who ... you get the picture).

The words we use are somewhat like tribbles ... they might seem bright-eyed and innocent on the surface, but they can often start multiplying and nibbling away at our understanding, creating misunderstanding and chaos before we recognize what’s gone wrong.

Clayton Christensen’s ground-breaking and award-winning series ("The Innovator's Dilemma" and "The Innovator's Solution") is a powerful guide to innovation; however, the basic terminology is somewhat like tribbles ... it’s a little fuzzy and can be distracting. However, we *highly* recommend both books.