INNOVATION I didn’t buy this business ❛❛ as an environmentalist with a vision to change the world around CO2 in construction. I came to it indirectly, when a customer approached us to recycle a particularly difficult type of waste, and we had to find a way to do that James Bailey, Chief Executive, Roadways
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You might think that most innovation happens on university campuses or in laboratories. But in fact, the most common sources of innovative ideas are your own employees, suppliers and customers. After that are other perspectives from your industry, such as competitors, consultants, professional bodies and conferences. While radical innovation can often be taken from a different context, incremental innovation usually starts closer to home. One final thought: it’s only a real opportunity if you can capture the value you create. Think about the assets your business has that your competitors don’t. Is it your brand and reputation, or knowledge that only you have access to? Intellectual property like patents or trademarks? Technical complexity that can’t be easily copied? Or competitive advantages in marketing, production and operations?
LOOKING FOR YOUR NEXT INNOVATION? A TASTE OF WHAT TO EXPECT:
Every innovation strategy begins with a search for opportunity. Before we can decide what, how and why we are going to innovate, we need to have a full picture of the options open to us. But before we get there, it might be helpful to start with a definition. What exactly is innovation? Many businesses think they’re not capable of innovating, because they think of it as inventing something entirely new. That’s not the whole truth. In fact, innovation is about successfully creating and capturing value from a new idea. It doesn’t have to be a product – it could
be a service, a process or the way a business is positioned. It doesn’t have to be new to the world – it could be new to a place, or simply new to your organisation. And it doesn’t have to be a radical change – innovation is very often an incremental process.
Innovation isn’t a single flash of inspiration. It’s a process that involves some guesswork, experimentation and then careful implementation. That’s why you need to build systems involving your whole team to manage it. Innovation can start from anywhere, and to find and harness the right opportunity, you must always be open and receptive to new ideas. If you’re a registered business with an address in East Sussex, you can register to watch all episodes of Sussex Pioneers completely free of charge at http://sinc.mylearnworlds.com This project is funded by the UK Government through the UK Community Renewal Fund. www.sussexinnovation.co.uk
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