Enterprise and Innovation
Inventing something new is one thing. But making it commercially viable is quite
another. That is where innovation comes in.
Innovation is about putting a new idea or approach into action.
Innovation is commonly described as 'the commercially successful exploitation
of ideas'.
Successful innovation is mainly about creating or adding value. It does so either
by:
Improving existing goods, processes or services (process innovation), or by
Developing goods, processes or services of value that have not existed
previously (product innovation)
However, both kinds of innovation require a business to:
Challenge the status quo
Have a deep understanding of customer needs
Develop imaginative and novel solutions
Innovation can come in many forms:
Improving or replacing business processes to increase efficiency and
productivity, or to enable the business to extend the range or quality of
existing products and/or services
Developing entirely new and improved products and services - often to meet
rapidly changing customer or consumer demands or needs
Adding value to existing products, services or markets to differentiate the
business from its competitors and increase the perceived value to the
customers and markets
Whatever form it takes, innovation is a creative process. The ideas may come
from:
Inside the business – e.g. from employees, in-house designers, sales staff
Outside the business, e.g. suppliers, customers, media reports, market research
insights or from contacts at local universities or other research organisations
Successful innovation comes from filtering those ideas, identifying those that the
business will focus on and applying resources to exploit them.
The benefits can be significant, including:
Improved productivity & reduced costs
Building a brand
Establishing an advantage over competitors
Higher sales and profits
