I never miss an episode of Business Week's - Cover Story podcast; except this week. However, for once my lack of sequential podcast listening has proved valuable. As the podcast reached my ears, I was caught re-listening to one of the latest and greatest from Business Week. The podcast about the world's most innovative companies, by Jena McGregor. The story could not have come at a better time. Innovation and how the best companies do it is my day job. The words filled me with interest and desire to explore.
As President Bush recently said in a news conference in late April "these are hard time". If this is the thinking of the President of the United States I imagine many companies are also feeling the pinch. Thus, they punt on innovation in favor of the bottom line. However, the BusinessWeek podcast/article argues that the best companies gain competitive advantage through innovation during "these times".
The podcast/article explores the two innovation camps:
The Haves - most likely larger companies or organizations with an innovative culture.
The Have-Nots - most likely smaller or organizations that don't have an innovation culture.
However, when I consider Syndicom's innovation solutions, I'm perplexed. Do the Have-Nots have it all wrong? Are CEO's missing an opportunity to gain competitive advantage by taping the resources right in front of them? Even BusinessWeek explores innovation programs that don't require expensive teams and tools. According to the article, companies like GE have innovated using lower-cost methods.
As President Bush recently said in a news conference in late April "these are hard time". If this is the thinking of the President of the United States I imagine many companies are also feeling the pinch. Thus, they punt on innovation in favor of the bottom line. However, the BusinessWeek podcast/article argues that the best companies gain competitive advantage through innovation during "these times".
The podcast/article explores the two innovation camps:
The Haves - most likely larger companies or organizations with an innovative culture.
The Have-Nots - most likely smaller or organizations that don't have an innovation culture.
However, when I consider Syndicom's innovation solutions, I'm perplexed. Do the Have-Nots have it all wrong? Are CEO's missing an opportunity to gain competitive advantage by taping the resources right in front of them? Even BusinessWeek explores innovation programs that don't require expensive teams and tools. According to the article, companies like GE have innovated using lower-cost methods.
There can be an upside to the downturn. Low-cost methods for creating new products are easier than ever as emerging markets provide both cheap labor and booming pockets for growth. That's something No. 4 General Electric (GE) is finding with its first portable electrocardiograph made in India for that market.The BusinessWeek article opened my eyes to the value of innovating ALWAYS and finding more economical ways of doing it. One only has to take a breeze through Specialized's website, a bike company that focuses on innovation. Their moto: INNOVATE OR DIE.
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