This fact is often disregarded and therefore top management coordination is vital. Promising ideas should be
"nurtured", thought about, discussed, re-considered.* Innovation should be judged according to its relevancy to the
short or long term competitive advantage of the business. Every commercial enterprise needs to possess
the know-how of some process, no matter how simple it might be.But to actively participate
in the market, know-how must be complemented with the ability to apply the technology, the
can-do.Can-do is a must. We hear of this with certain frequency in the drug industry,
carrying familiar names such as Upjohn's Minoxidil, Eli Lilly's Prozac or Pfizer's Viagra. Ideally, employees
should receive financial rewards for good ideas that are implemented, especially in case of suggestions
coming from people not specifically employed for that purpose such as R&D personnel. Can-do includes
availability of trained personnel, capital goods (machinery and installations), and also the means to market
the goods.STUDENT: How can a firm acquire know-how?TEACHER: The basic ways to acquire technology are:·
Hire personnel with expertise in the field.· Purchase know-how from other firms through license and/or
technical assistance agreements.· Receive it from the manufacturer of specialized equipment installed.· Perform in-house research
and development (R&D).It is important to mention the need of a Technology Strategy.In all firms,
from a shoe manufacturer to a chipmaker, some type of Technology Strategy must be in
place to stay competitive and spot opportunitiesSTUDENT: Can we discuss and example of such strategy?TEACHER:
Sure.Elements of a Technology StrategyI. Of course the meanings overlap a lot, but still there
are basic differences. Criticism about a new idea should be postponed. The current ideology is
that a company should concentrate in its core competency, its "core businesses". What comes next?TEACHER:
Now the company faces a very important task: implementing the innovation.Deciding to invest in an
innovation is tricky. Motivate employees to communicate their ideas. An idea about a new product
or an extension tn requin of the product line will probably come from a marketing specialist, But
a clerk may also have a useful idea about marketing; after all, he is also
a consumer.III. Invention means discovering something radically new.· To invent something in today's environment is
difficult and very expensive. But it must be realized that the investment in R&D behind
any of these hits is enormous.II. Obviously, machines do not have ideas!TEACHER: Yes, but a
truism frequently forgotten by management.A large proportion of new ideas comes from internal sources. We
must try to define and distinguish between these three activities, which are the motors of
technological change. Still, some objective factors must be considered:* Ideas are always fuzzy at the
beginning. Flow of ideas should not be limited to coming from specialized sources. Good ideas
can come from any part of the company. Our discussion begins with the description of
two important concepts: know-how and can-do.Technology means knowing how to do something: the know-how. The
key is, simply put, to identify the ones the company should invest in and eventually
implement.This flow of ideas should be encouraged, never discouraged. A company must:I. The ways to
do this are many, from scanning trade magazines to attending trade shows to efficiently managing
of the in-house pool of know-how.II. Some may be good, others not as good. The
marketing people may be sure that the new packaging for mayonnaise is great, but it
may be a lot more expensive to manufacture. An intensive and costly R&D activity must
be present.· Many inventions take place "before their time" and can not be implemented profitably
in existing market conditions. Senior management must make sure that good teamwork is practiced.* The
resources to be allocated to the innovation project should be realistically calculated.* Once approved, the
project should have a formally stated method and plan. A firm must be clearly aware
of the differences.I. TEACHER: Hello, Student. Nike Requin Clearly established objectives over time and continuous re-evaluation are
vital. Not all projects started are viable, since conditions may have changed. Innovation can be
defined as the practical and profitable implementation of the ideas originated by invention or creativity;
"converting ideas into value". Can you please elaborate?TEACHER: Gladly. In commercial firms, the objective of
innovation is:· To bring new profitable products or services to market.· To improve competitiveness through
lower production cost.STUDENT: As in every aspect of business, there must be a need for
managing this innovation process.TEACHER: Innovative ideas flow continuously to management from external and internal sources.
Implementation· Maintain a priority schedule based on potential cost-benefit and viability.· Organize to permit incorporation
of new technologies.STUDENT: Many times, in relation to a company's capabilities, one hears about invention,
creativity and innovation. Awareness· A firm must be constantly aware of the existing and upcoming
technologies in its field, be it from external sources of from within the company. It
is one of the areas where management insight is very critical. Launching a completely new
product is more risky and carries more potential rewards than an extension of an existing
product line or a redesigned package.* Most innovations are relevant to the whole company. People
should be recognized for this, regardless of whether the idea is judged a bright one
or a dumb one. The source of all ideas are people.STUDENT: A truism, of course.
the idea may be the kernel of a new core business!* The risks and potential
benefits should be quantified. Leading companies such as IBM have had this type of programs
in place for decades and while many employees received substantial rewards, the company profited by
using the ideas.IV. Assessment· Decide which technologies may impact the business.· Quantify potential of these
technologies to affect the business positively or negatively.· Analyze the firm's capacity to incorporate these
technologies effectively.III. Creativity is devising a novel combination of existing technologies or practices.· A new
product composed of existing elements (as the first Apple computer).· An original way to exploit
an existing technology (as using the Internet for a new service -i.e., a site publishing
and selling "electronic books").· Creativity can be expensive and involving a lot of high-tech R&D
in sub-technologies (as in developing a faster, smaller computer chip) but sometimes it may be
cheap and very profitable This happens many times in manufacturing when an employee thinks of
an improvement in the production process.III. A firm may have the technical knowledge of a
given productive process, but it can not apply it profitably without the means to perform
it effectively. Normally inventions carry patent protection, but for a limited time only; a long
delay in practical application can make this protection useless.· In spite of the previous caveat,
sometimes an invention can be a hit and be tremendously profitable. No one should ever
be criticized for their ideas; no matter what management thinks of a suggestion made by
an employee, they should be commended by the simple fact of communicating it.II. There should
be a systematic approach to evaluate suggestions by a formally organized group or committee.STUDENT: OK,
now a company has selected an innovation project with good potential. No idea should be
discarded at first sight. An employee may have an original idea, or may bring up
an observation he made at a trade show.STUDENT: What can management do to encourage people
to contribute their ideas?TEACHER: Let's see. Again... Timing is crucial in bringing innovations to market;
a realistic "critical path" of the project should be drawn and followed-up.* The project should
be clearly communicated and understood. So, a good idea may not fit into this policy.
Decision-making should involve all relevant sectors of the company. Deciding to terminate a project is
as important as deciding to start it.Nicole Bobbin Author url : http://learningmbamasterdegree.blogspot.com.
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