The times they are a changin’. Old Skool innovation doesn’t cut it anymore. It’s the topic of my conversation with CEO Peter Temes of the Institute for Innovation of Large Organizations (ILO) on this week’s episode of The Innovation Storytellers Show.
For the next four weeks, Peter and I are doing a quick 30-minute breakdown on the most important topics at the intersection of innovation and communication. Last week’s topic was Trust – how to get it, build it, and lose it in corporate innovation. But none of them matter without an understanding of the rules that impact our futures today.
Which set of rules are you following?
Old Rules
Secrecy: In the past, innovation often thrived in closed environments where companies guarded their intellectual property closely and kept the I-team on an island, separate from the organization. Innovation Storytelling? Non-existant.
Hierarchical Structures: Innovation was typically a top-down operation, with decision-making concentrated among a few individuals or teams.
Linear Process: Innovation sought to follow clear stages from ideation, to prototype to scale and commercialization.
Focus on Products: Innovation efforts primarily focused on creating new products or improving existing ones. New & improved Tide was the standard.
Closed Ecosystems: Companies used to limit collaboration and partnerships with external stakeholders.
New Rules
Openness: Collaboration and idea sharing are encouraged, with many companies embracing open innovation models that bring in external partners and even competitors.
Flat Organizational Structures: Innovation is now more democratic, with ideas and initiatives emerging from every level of the organization, including frontline employees and customers
Iterative Approach: Today, innovation is seen as a non-linear process with constant iteration, feedback, and adaptation.
Emphasis on Experience: Innovation efforts extend beyond products to include services, experiences, and business models. In fact, business model shift demonstrate the biggest changes to companies yet.
Open Ecosystems: Companies actively partner and collaborate with external stakeholders, including customers, suppliers, startups, and research institutions, to drive innovation.
The rules of innovation have evolved as technology, markets, and societal norms change. The shift toward openness, collaboration, and agility characterizes the new rules of innovation, especially in the age of AI.
What rules would you add to this list?Comment below and let me know your thoughts, and don’t forget to like, follow, and subscribe to the podcast.
