The European Business Review - July-August 2019

40 The European Business Review July - August 2019

BYCLAUDIOCISULLO

INNOVATION (NOT)

AT THE CORE

A common mistake in industries faced by

severe performance pressure is to turn to

well-known innovation tools and strategies.

Especiallyin sectors whereinnovation is not

atthe coreof thebusiness, a new approach

isrequired.A provenmethodhasenteredthe

race– sofar,withimpressiveresults.

I

t is undisputedthat innovation is a key driver

of corporate growth and performance. It is

equally widely accepted that installing and

maintaininganinnovation capabilityis a non-trivial,

organisation-wide endeavour. However, what tends

tobeoverlookedis thatnotallorganisationscan–

orshould – innovateusingthesametools.Instead,

for innovation to generate the necessary business

RXWFRPHV DQG RUJDQLVDWLRQDO EHQHÀWV IRU WKH ORQJ

term,a differenttypeofpathshouldbeexplored.

Firststop:In-houseinnovation

Awealthof innovationstrategiesandinstruments

is meanwhileavailabletoorganisations.Althoughit

makessensetoabsorbtheknow-howpreviouslyput

Innovation

to test by others, those facing pressure to innovate

often fail to be innovative in their methods. These

usually include hiring senior experts from tech-giants,

expecting them to inspire staff and managers alike

and push the culture towards a more exploratory

one. They also include newly established innovation

teams reporting directly to a C-level executive in

order to showcase the strategic importance of

innovation for the company. Particularly committed

RUJDQLVDWLRQVLQWURGXFHD&KLHI,QQRYDWLRQ2IÀFHU

to drive and oversee innovation activities. As these

efforts take time, organisations feel under pressure

to showcase their innovation credibility to the

outside. As a result, we see a plethora of apps being

launched, partnerships with start-ups announced

and innovation prizes awarded.

Second stop: Externalised innovation

For organisations not used to innovation being part

of their development, decision-making and perfor-

mance structures, in-house innovation is extremely

GLIÀFXOW WR RSHUDWLRQDOLVH DQG RIWHQ IDLOV 7KH

LQQRYDWLRQWHDPVUDSLGO\ÀQGWKHPVHOYHVLVRODWHGDV

In fact, even when game-changing ideas are sought for, these are unlikely

to originate in-house or in a corporate innovation lab. Luckily, there is a

better way, and it is not even new. It is called procurement.