The Challenges of Innovation

Introduction

It is easy to get a piece of Mar bar from the vending machine. Just drop the right change into the coin slot, press the button, and wait for a few seconds for the mechanisms inside push the bar out to the dispenser, and we have a bar of chocolate to satisfy our craving.

But, is it that simple? As we stood there waiting for the chocolate to be dispensed, many things are happening inside the machine. For one, it checks if we are honest about buying from the machine by counting the coins we deposited into the slot. Then, it decides if it has stocks to dispense from, and recommends to us something else if it does not. Finally, it pushes the bar out for us.

Do we see these operations? No. It appears to us as a box with a pretty façade. The company wants us to focus your energy and attention in enjoying that bar of chocolate or cup of fresh orange juice, and wish us back and buy from it again.

We can also press a button to dispense innovations. However, things are more complicated and complex with innovation because they don’t drop out from vending machines, and when it happens that we are not the customers, we need to know what’s inside the box.

The Innovation Pipeline

The box that manufactures innovations is the Innovation Pipeline. It is made up of individuals who come together with ideas to be delivered as innovations.


It is best to visual the pipeline as been made up of different strands of fibre optics wires bundled together.

Looking at one end, we see all the ideas, which come out from the other end as innovations. Slice it along the bundle; we see strands of varying lengths, representing the different progress of ideas moving towards becoming innovations. Slice it across; we see pulsating lights of energy moving through the strands.

Building Blocks of Innovation Pipeline

Microsoft has many upcoming innovations because they are able to sustain their pipeline with the essential building blocks that enable the company to replicate she success.

The Challenges of Innovating

However, the innovation pipeline does not exist in organisations. It is a way to metaphorically describe what goes on inside the vending machine. Yet, it does not work mechanically like vending machines.

Innovations are products of social interactions, discourses, and comparisons, and not just methods, processes, and systems alone. We can install a fish tank and create a perfect living environment but without the fishes, we hardly could call it an aquarium.

Since it is so organic, it poses social challenges, and seven of these are uncovered, which three of these are shared here:

2. Projectisation Challenges

Many ideas with breakthrough potentials are given up because the individuals are unwilling to stick their heads out and draw value out of these. This unwillingness to come forth has little to do with the lack of management support and attention, or the difficulties in getting to the resources. It has to do with the context of how we as individual look at the world and operate.

5. Challenges of Scarcity

The availability and access to resources can make or break projects, and influence the dynamics of the teams. Often, teams are frustrated and individuals jaded because of the lack of such support. Jaded individuals create long term impact to the organisation, whether they stay or leave the organisation.

7. Challenge of Withholding Value

In a knowledge based society, creativity & innovation is not constraint by time & space. Individuals and teams can choose to withhold the value they can bring to the table and there is very little the organisation can do.

Conclusion

From these, we can conclude that the management of innovation is not just the management of innovations themselves or the management of the pipeline but also the management of the people in the innovation pipeline.

Copyright 2007, 2008 & 2009, Anthony Mok. All rights reserved