Applied Innovation: A Guide to the “Breakthrough Idea”
Published 2/4/2010
Author: Joseph Gelman and David Warren
Joseph Gelman is a Partner and David Warren is an Innovation Practice Leader at Prophet, a strategic brand and marketing consultancy.
Summary
The shift in the economic climate has created a sense of urgency among business leaders who need innovation now in order to survive—if not thrive—in the future. Leaders have become impatient to get to the “big idea” that grabs the attention of their customers and helps them win the moment of truth when buying and using a product or service. For years, companies have been equating performance with speed and “lean” thinking. They have heavily invested resources into streamlining processes, taking costs out of the system and applying stringent “Six Sigma-esque” criteria to kill ideas that don’t deliver big ROI returns in six months or less. What they didn’t do was create the space for their people to make and explore opportunities, develop theories, and play in the world of possibilities before running forward with a solution.
What follows is a framework for creating ideas that is appropriate and relevant to the needs of innovation sponsors within a company—no matter what the economic forecast might be. This approach does not rely on heavy quant analytics or endless iterative drafts of ideas. It is designed to be simple, conversational, and accessible to any organization that is interested in looking outside of itself to inspire its people and create something new.
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