“It’s not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.” – W.E. Deming
The importance of innovation to business success continues to grow rapidly. In a survey of U.S. executives, 84% said their strategy is “very dependent” or “extremely dependent” on innovation for long term success; up from 67% just 3 years prior. And it’s not just about product innovation. But as this CEO survey indicates, it’s also innovation in technology, customer experience, systems and processes, and business models.
“If you can’t describe what you’re doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.” – Deming
All kinds of innovation are needed. But companies continue to struggle with the process of innovation. The 2015 ThinkPoints® Transformation Survey found effective and efficient processes to be the number one innovation issue.
“If you do not know how to ask the right question, you discover nothing.” – Deming
Defining innovation as a process has always sent shivers up and down the spines of creatives, inventors and many marketers who believe what they do is an art. Maybe that’s true for the innovation “spark”. Debatable. But most of innovation is process. When it comes to improvement though, the problem is that there are literally hundreds of process steps in getting an idea to market. So, where do you start?
“A goal without a method is nonsense” – Deming
Start with keeping it simple. Teach the basics first:
“We are here to make another world.” – Deming
The journey to effective and efficient innovation doesn’t happen overnight. There are more complexities to work through. But the benefits of improved i2m® processes are bigger, better, fewer, faster, and smarter innovations. Well worth the journey.
