Conditions for the emergence of innovations are formed in society continuously, but for many reasons they often go unnoticed. Most people - business leaders, businessmen, financiers - do not notice or remain indifferent to the various "symptoms" of maturing changes in industry, trade, consumer interests, etc.
Discovering innovative opportunities, understanding their significance and timely implementation ensure success in economic activity.
A well-known management specialist, Peter Drucker, identified seven major sources of innovation:
- Unexpected event (success, failure, event in the external environment)
- The discrepancy or disparity between reality and its reflection in our opinions and assessments
- The needs of the production process
- Change in the structure of the industry and the market, "taking everyone by surprise"
- Demographic changes
- Changes in the perception and mood of consumers
- New knowledge (scientific and unscientific)
It should be noted that such a classification is very arbitrary. So, unexpected success, which is singled out as an independent factor, can be considered in other classes (for example, as new knowledge). All these opportunities for innovation are interconnected and overlapping.
Although these sources of innovation are only symptoms, they should nevertheless be considered reliable indicators of imminent changes that managers and specialists should notice in a timely manner.
1. Unexpected event
The richest opportunities for effective innovation give unexpected success. At the same time, innovative opportunities are associated with a lower risk of obtaining a negative result, and the implementation of innovations is less time-consuming.
Unexpected success should be noticed, and it must be reflected in the information that the manager receives.
2. The discrepancy between what is and what should be
The discrepancy between reality and the perception of it, as a rule, does not appear in the reports that are provided to managers. This phenomenon is more qualitative than quantitative, and can be expressed in the following situations.
The discrepancy between economic indicators. Increase in demand for products and growth in the volume of its production should correspond to the growth of profits. The discrepancy in the dynamics of these indicators on the scale of the industry or its large sector indicates a crisis situation. An innovator who has noticed this discrepancy and has found a new solution to the problem can count on a long period of success. As a rule, large enterprises do not soon realize that they have a new and serious competitor.
The discrepancy between reality and the idea of it. This discrepancy arises when the industry leaders rely on erroneous assumptions and misinterpret the real situation. Efforts are concentrated in areas where positive results do not exist.
The discrepancy between the values of the buyer and the views of the managers about them. Leaders believe that they all know, but in fact there is another - this is a widespread phenomenon in the world, often due to the manifestation of intellectual arrogance. Japanese radio operators once believed that the poor can not afford the luxury of television.
3. The needs of the production process
In production activities, there are often situations where bottlenecks in the technological process hinder business development. In this case, there is a need to replace a weak link or rebuild an existing process in accordance with a new level of knowledge.
In the 80's. XIX century. in photography there was a weak link - heavy glass photographic plates. The concentration of attention on this "bottleneck" of the process and, accordingly, the accumulation of knowledge enabled George Eastman, the founder of Kodak, to replace these plates with cellulose film and to design an easy camera for it. Ten years later, Eastman Kodak won the world leadership in photography.
4. Changes in industry and market structures
Crisis situations that arise from time to time in industry or market structures also provide opportunities for innovation. The following indicators of the coming changes are known:
- Fast growth of the industry. If the volume of production in the industry grows faster than the population or the economy as a whole, then the structure of the industry should change.
- Convergence (convergence) of technologies. The combination of several technologies into one causes major changes in the structure of production.
- Maturing of the industry for its major structural changes. When the nature of production operations changes, conditions are created for structural changes in the industry.
5. Changes in perception and mood of the population
Changing attitudes in society, changing people's attitudes to reality, creating new values represent serious opportunities for innovation. Methods for analyzing demographic changes are well known, and a qualified statistician can provide the necessary information. The main thing is the correct statement of the task by the manager.
From the perspective of business development, it is important to know the age distribution of the population, and in it - the largest and fastest growing cohort of people. It will cause a sharp change in the prevailing needs and values in society. We should also assess the changes in the distribution of groups with a certain level of education, professional qualifications, and so on.
6. Features of innovations based on new knowledge
Uncertainty is often perceived as a negative characteristic, but in the management of research and development - it is synonymous with opportunities that bring greater returns.
For example, the experience of Gillette has a leading role in the discovery of the "best shaving method". The accumulated knowledge of the science of shaving allows Gillette to constantly invent and successfully bring to market new products. During the past decade, the company first entered the market with an Atra Plus razor with a moving head and a lubricant strip, then with a Sensor blade that adapts to the shape of the face. The next step is the launch of a new generation of Mach 3 razors in 70 countries. Each subsequent product was better than the previous one and was more expensive.
ссылка на источник: http://buduguru.org/media/437
Translated: Dinara Zakirova