It is now oft-repeated that the job a child’s parents are doing while he/she first takes admission in kindergarten, might not exist anymore when the child grows up to be seeking a job. The world population has grown exponentially over the last century, as has overall GDP, with working hours falling in Western Europe. For all this to happen, technologies have played a massive role and will further shape the workforce over the next decade. Forces such as additive manufacturing, autonomous vehicles, biotechnology and robotics will be foremost among them. Some job profiles are likely to go irrelevant such as – cashier, legal assistant, loan officer or telemarketer. All these involve routine functions. Jobs to thrive will be those that bring solutions or creativity- scientists, artists- where personal relations play a part- nurses- or where new technology areas such as big data will be used.

Source:http://innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/08/20/how-innovation-impacts-work-technology-as-game-changer-and-life-changer/

Uploaded Date:01 September 2018

Business commentators often highlight the case of companies failing to adapt to newer technologies to give them an edge. On closer scrutiny though, it emerges that business innovations are often unable to come to the surface due to a certain key stakeholder- investors. Many of them are so attuned to a certain technology, that they go out of their way against introduction of a new one. Investors also want near-term gain, which is what prevents them in spending on something that may have ripple effects later on, but not much immediate value. Investors though are more lenient in cases with startups, as there the valuation is more to do with future potential rather than current profits. Innovating in the face of conservative investors is a challenge, but digital leaders of tomorrow need to take up such risks. Thus, carefully calibrated communication with investors is a must, especially for older, more established firms where the valuation is present profit based.

Source:https://hbr.org/2018/08/when-companies-want-to-innovate-but-investors-wont-let-them?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_campaign=dailyalert_activesubs&utm_content=signinnudge&referral=00563&deliveryName=DM12562

Uploaded Date:27 August 2018

A new book has been written by Shane Snow titled Dream Teams: Working Together without Failing. Here, he talks about how diverse teams function best when there is some form of conflict. A dream team is one which battles all the odds and works towards the common desired goals. The end result is higher than the sum of its parts. Business innovations are best sparked off when there is some form of friction among the team players. An army of all thinking same does not necessitate success. In fact, humans feel comfort when they know that the person standing next is quite dissimilar. This is why individual statistics do not tell the full story in team sports. Even the famous Wright brothers had their moments of conflict which gave way to innovative team design. Intellectual humility is one thing that most professionals must now strive to incorporate.

Source:http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/fight-to-win-how-a-little-friction-sparks-innovation/

Uploaded Date:16 August 2018

Some companies are much better than others at consistently churning out innovations. No particular formula exists for this successful rate of implementation, but some disciplines sure need to be followed. The likes of GSK, Whirlpool, Ford, Amazon, Apple, Spotify, Tencent, Corning, IBM, Google, Tesla and Netflix. The first such identified discipline is that they are forever hungry for more success. They have clearly etched out a corporate strategy, so plan everything around their well-defined targets. They have a perpetually on radar, suing which they eke out information at all times. Their sources of data are spread far and wide. For their growth, they rely on both the organic as well as inorganic methods. Design thinking is a key aspect of their growth strategy. They believe in constant experimentation. To achieve their set targets, they do not mind making use of reinforcements and enablers. Their investments in new, innovative aspects are well-thought out and spur-of-the-moment decisions. The execution is rock solid. Innovation is not a one-time eureka moment, but a process delivering a constant conveyor belt. Whatever they set out to do, they make sure to have the right partners, sponsors and leaders on board.

Source:http://innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/07/11/the-twelve-disciplines-of-consistently-innovative-organizations/

Uploaded Date:16 August 2018

Long established companies are now trying to emulate certain capabilities where startups tend to succeed, such as quick decision-making and proactive capture of market opportunities. That is why they are trying to build in agile business innovation within their systems. Some business executives in particular are raising hell to implement this method. Across software development projects, agile methods have raised average success rates by more than three times. This further rises to six times when one takes only complex projects in to consideration. Marketing research undertaken by Standish has confirmed that agile methods reduce project risk by a staggering 76%. The time to market rises by 77% while team morale jumps up 79%. Even better is the impact on team productivity and the ability to navigate past evolving priorities. There exist four core values within agile, beginning with individuals and interactions being afforded greater importance over processes or tools. Prototypes are experimented with less copious documentation. Customers are seen as partners in the process, allowing for quick changes in the plans. Business owners, customers, and the leadership team all make up agile. The process begins with the planning, followed by sprints, before a final review. One must start small and expand as iterations work.

Source:http://www.bain.com/publications/articles/an-executives-guide-to-agile-innovation-infographic.aspx

Uploaded Date:16 August 2018

Most of the startup community and the media fanfare around it revolves around companies, valuations and pitches. Little notice is paid to the innovators. Healthcare is one area where several key business innovations have now got wings to fly. One such success story is Peak Profiling. To detect diseases, this company uses voice analysis. This technique is set to become a key ingredient in the fight against diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, depression, multiple sclerosis and some to do with heart and lungs. All key stakeholders get some for of benefit through voice analysis. Patients receive quicker treatment, insurers save on costs and doctors get access to huge quantities of data warehousing. This allows them to glean information to be used in future as well. The future of medicine will be preventive, participatory, predictive and personalized. Patients are the stakeholders most open to modern healthcare innovations.

Source:https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/people-behind-healthcare-innovation-interview-claudio-silberzahn/?kui=WSWby7zD8SWjYhjbciLBUg

Uploaded Date:28 July 2018

One of the aspects that has received massive traction in recent years within the business world is design thinking. It is the perfect amalgamation of human creativity, aesthetic sense and business requirements. Yet the way it is approached is quite faulty. It is viewed within a highly static lens. That is why there is the need to look at the new avatar- Experience Thinking (XT). It is a dynamic approach using conventional design methods but in coordination with Customer Experience Management and Customer Experience Design. The former includes components such as CX Journey Maps, NPS and Stakeholder Analysis. There are four steps to executing this. The foundation level is about the brand experience. It involves brand aspects such as a persona, a DNA, positioning, brand promise andlanguage. The second step is about its manifestation through the customer experience. This must be followed by a translation to the product’s service experience. And finally, there is the realization step which is the final design.

Source:http://innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/07/19/design-thinking-grows-up-welcome-to-experience-thinking/

Uploaded Date:26 July 2018