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Innovating can be taught

Prof. dr. Jan Buijs

j.a.buijs@tudelft.nl

Key note speech ECCI XII Portugal

Content

• Introduction

• Innovation

• Delft Innovation Method

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Innovate or die or Innovate and die ?

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Prometheus, 1953 Ludwig Wenkebach (1895 – 1962)

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What is innovation?

• A confusing and much mis used concept

According to the dictionaries:

• The successful introduction of something new

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The problem: what is new?

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Apple iMac Bondi Blue (1998 - 2003)

• “Old” computer technology

• “Old” translucent plastic technology

So what is new?

• Color for in home artifact in contrast to grey office appliances

New in meaning & market

• It is about perception

• It is about sensemaking

• Home computing vs office computing

• The market perceived this as an innovation!

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My definition of innovating:

• Making leap-like changes in Product/Market/Technology-combinations for a specific company or consortium of companies in order to achieve sustainable competitive advantage

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The innovative leap is needed

to overtake the competition

Company X after the leap Competitor Y Company X after acceleration Company X

Time

Performance

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Leap like changes on 3 levels :

• Rational change in P/M/T combination

• Emotional change (“resistance to change”)

• Big need for new knowledge

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Two symbols of this leap

Knight Fossbury Flop

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Some contrasting issues to better understand the problems of innovating

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incremental radical

exploitation exploration

routine new

normal different

efficiency effectiveness

obey rules change rules

past & present future & more

control chaos

operation strategy

structured fuzzy

mechanistic organic

prediction serendipity

stable dynamic

certainty risk

management leadership

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incremental radical

exploitation exploration

routine new

normal different

efficiency effectiveness

obey rules change rules

past & present future & more

control chaos

operation strategy

structured fuzzy

mechanistic organic

prediction serendipity

stable dynamic

certainty risk

management leadership

innovating

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So innovating is really something different!

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Most important characteristic: big mental difference experienced before and after the innovative leap:

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Luckily: Innovating can be taught!

• Delft Innovation Method (DIM)

Buijs, 1984, 1986, 1987

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Basic elements of the Delft Innovation Method

• Cyclic model of the innovation process

• Multi-X-team

• Facilitating leadership style

• Strong external orientation

• Use of creativity techniques

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Delft Innovation Model

Fuzzy Front End of innovation

New Product Development

Muddy Back End

Product Use

Buijs & Valkenburg, 2005; Buijs 2010

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Multi-X-team

• Many disciplines & functions (be aware of down stream & side stream activities) are involved

• Top management is involved

• No existing team!

• Outsiders could also be important

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Facilitating leadership style

• Process skills

• Help the team to score

• Experimenting (create (mental) safe havens)

• Think ahead, and on the same time be connected to the now and here

• Stimulate & support

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External orientation

• Broader than just the present markets and or technologies

• More than the usual target groups and or stakeholders

• Be aware of potential competitors

• Active networking

• Own observations and meeting real people is essential

• It is broader than your current business domain

• It is future oriented

• Be aware of cultural biasses

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Creativity

• Divergerence, clustering & convergence (new diamond model)

• Follow the rules of the creativity techniques

• Analogies & provocations can be very helpful

• Important role of the facilitator (see the leadership issue)

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divergerence

clustering

convergerence

New Diamond model

Tassoul & Buijs, 2007

Empirical evidence

• 1976 – 1980 TNO Innovation Consulting Group (exploration period; ca. 50 cases)

• 1980 – 1984 Project Industrial Innovation (testing period; 155 cases)

• 1986 – till now IDE graduation projects (exploitation period; ca. 2000 cases)

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Concluding .....

• Each innovation is per definition temporary

• Each innovation will cause the need for the next innovation cycle to come

So ........

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And if you want to learn how to innovate?

• Buy the new book:

Jan Buijs, Delft Innovation Method; a basic text on the complex

process of corporate product innovation

• Out next February 2012

• Published by: Eleven International Publishing, part of Boom Uitgevers, The Hague, The Netherlands

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