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The
beginning of the 21st century witnessed rapid and revolutionary
perturbations in the global economy. The shift to knowledge-based
economy and the emergence of intense competition at the global
level has created in organizations as an insatiable thirst
for gaining an edge over their competitors. The global market
is dominated by organizations that have been able to create,
find and combine knowledge into new products, services and
distribution methods, faster than others in the race. In a
hyper-0competitive environment where any core competence is
short lived, `Innovation' has evolved as the latest corporate
mantra. The companies which have been able to change the rules
of the game to gain leadership in their respective market
segments are known to exhibit a strong focus on fostering
innovation and creativity. Emphasizing the importance of innovation
in future, Jeffery Immelt, CEO, General Electric, says, "The
only source of profit, the only reason to invest in companies
in the future is their ability to innovate and their ability
to differentiate."
Mention
`Innovation,' and people instinctively think about the R&D
departments churning out new and commercially successful products
and technologies. But being innovative does not only mean
coming up with new products and services, it may also be observed
in adopting new technologies from other fields, new ways of
organizing and conducting businesses, new ways of marketing
products and services, etc. For example, Dell Computer used
innovative e-business systems linking supply side of procurement
automatically with the online orders, thus becoming a leader
in speed-to-market. Innovative firms are known to force change
in their organizations. Change for change's sake is among
one of the `Big Rules' at Sun Microsystems. Starbucks is known
for deliberately pursuing the `Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals'
(BHAG). And Intel constantly adopts business processes that
will make its products speedily obsolete. |
