Saturday, October 24, 2020

Innovation Insight with Schools of Thoughts

 There is a recognizable core of innovation theories, approaches and activities that produce profitable innovation. 

Although the digital era upon us is about innovation, it is really hard to be a consistently innovative company. Innovation Management in a workplace is a multi-dimensional pursuit. Both theories and practices play a critical role in driving systematic innovation. Theories are abstracted from certain practices, and practice is rooted in the theory of some kind. Business innovation theories are proposed principles or laws, patterns or abstract which can be used to describe the organizational innovation, or culture of innovation, etc. Innovation school of thoughts is designed from actual context, practice is governed by them.
 

The right dose of innovation theories needs to well mix the right set of best and next innovation practices: If the innovation theory is sound, then it can help the innovation practice achieve repeatability of outcome. Because innovation management in today’s business world has become increasingly complex in nature. There is tension between applying innovation theories and experimenting with the next innovation practices. Both are required, the right dose of theories needs to well mix with the right sets of best and next practices, Theory and practice are interactive and interdependent. One is sorely limiting without the other. Generally speaking, innovation practices preceded theory, but then theory evolved and was used to instruct and modify practices and a comprehensive innovation cycle was initiated.

Some said: Theory = thinking. Practice = doing. A convincing innovation theory also helps if you want to sell novel ideas. A good sense of innovation theory is "the body of generalizations and principles” developed in association with practice in a field of creative activities and forming its content as a school of thoughts or an intellectual discipline. Theory and practice are inextricably linked. We don't get to decide that one is better or more important than the other. When looking for results of innovation practices, it is not a question of knowing what the best answer is based on theory, but what actions will lead to desired outcomes that matter.

Innovation theories, school of thoughts, modeling, or best practices are not absolute truth: Theories are accumulated knowledge and refined “lessons learned.” To keep the theory relevant, the "theory" of phenomenon should always be open to interpretation and understanding of the theory should rightly be questioned, when it fails to account for what actually happens. Repeatability re-enforces theory of any kind but practice and tinkering are what lead to innovation excellence and insight. Not every authority agrees on every best practice, or understands every theory. Perhaps it is a better approach to strive for using good practices or a tailored theory- good for a certain organization and fit for the specific situation and challenges that are faced and that actually requires different priorities as compared to others.

Innovation management also needs to lay out different thinking, structures, and best practices, to allow business to develop into its potential in which organizations are combining all that is available to them in imaginative or advantageous ways. Innovation best practices are a set of guidelines, or ideas that represent the best way of innovation management. Keep in mind though, it is the best way known at the moment, it is positive for your innovation initiative, as it helps you meet your objectives on time, within budget, and with high quality. But keep in mind they are not absolute truth. You have to continue updating them. The practices that are "best" today are not always "best" in the future since practices, as well as technologies and markets, are constantly morphing under pressure from the waves of creative destruction that keep the business in innovation mode.

Innovation school of thoughts is an emergent process and an iterative theory-practice-theory continuum: The innovation theory gets developed based on continuous innovation practice improvement. Improvement in practice can be achieved through many different means -reflection, sharing of experiences, comparison with a reference model (framework), and formal review by an external party. The good theory can instruct the best innovation practice which has a certain value to produce profitable innovation, but the next practice continues to emerge for innovating the management discipline. Innovation school of thoughts is an emergent process and an iterative theory-practice-theory continuum.

Innovation is the management discipline to reduce business complexity or increase revenue. Every organization needs to learn some good theories, develop tailored innovation practices via leveraging effective tools or methodologies and use them wisely with the expertise to really add value or drive innovation. The tailored theories with a set of the best practices would help businesses manage innovation systematically. It is necessary for the coherent use of various already known concepts and gradually opening up to the best and next practices for optimizing innovation processes and sharpening all crucial factors to improve innovation management success.

Digital means flow, there is more flow of creative ideas, the better opportunities to reap the benefit from innovation management. Innovation is one of the core activities of the digital revolution and collective human progress. There is a recognizable core of innovation theories, approaches and activities that produce profitable innovation. The evolution of innovation only exists in the more open environments that create insights, take advantage of all sources of creativity in a more open way and leap innovation management to the next level of maturity.

1 comments:

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