Each week I scour articles, wading through the dogs, and bringing you the best insights to help product managers, developers, and innovators be heroes.

 

Product Innovation Tips Around the Web

Can corporate innovation centers prevent demises like Blockbuster and Rim? A study of 200 companies. “The problem is that executives do not see the world through the eyes of their customers. As such, they miss not only coming trends but also how and why current models and processes are outdated and broken. Moreover, they are inherently designed to inhibit innovation and thus foster a culture of risk aversion, rather than risk diversion.” Read more at Market Watch http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-to-keep-your-company-from-going-bust-like-blockbuster-2015-08-04

Have you seen Agile decrease quality? 3 tips to avoid it. “Agile can result in a quality deterioration. Rapid-fire development entails minimal documentation and an emphasis on speed over process and planning. In the rush to deliver results and please customers, Agile teams are prone to overlooking or even skipping critical quality measures such as documentation, testing, and collaboration.” Read more at Enterprise Tech http://www.enterprisetech.com/2015/08/03/why-agile-is-fragile/

Stop rejecting customer feedback as a source of inspiration. “Many practitioners are convinced that customers do not know what they want, until they experience a remarkable product they cannot live without. While there is some truth in the belief that customers cannot articulate their latent needs, it doesn’t mean they have nothing to contribute to the process of conceptual design.” Read more at B2C http://www.business2community.com/product-management/voice-of-customers-challenge-to-product-managers-01287067

Leadership – The one critical thing you need if you are not getting the innovation results you want. “In every industry and sector, leaders are faced with the need to achieve growth, define new products and services, enter new markets, create better internal processes and business models, and develop new global strategies. Innovation is routinely touted as the key to future success for today’s companies and as the engine that creates new businesses. Responding to these needs takes tremendous efforts—and many executives, managers, and human resources professionals are unsure how to drive innovation alongside the day-to-day operations.” Read more at Center for Creative Leadership http://insights.ccl.org/articles/white-papers/innovation-how-leadership-makes-the-difference/

The 5 types of innovation for the future of work, part 4: competitor innovation. “Sometimes organizations who would normally be considered fierce competitors have to team up and collaborate in order to unlock new business opportunities and sometimes this is done for pure survival. The organizations who team up with competitors realize that the smartest people in the world don’t always work for them and so they have to reach beyond their four walls to tap into top talent.” Read more at Forbes http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/2015/08/05/the-5-types-of-innovation-for-the-future-of-work-pt-4-competitor-innovation/

Examples of applying Design Thinking in retail innovation. “Retailers are under more pressure than ever to innovate, but creative ideas don’t always come easily. At NRFtech 2015, retail executives explored the concept of ‘design thinking,’ which encourages creativity at individual, team and organizational levels so big problems can be solved in effective and remarkable ways.” Read more at NRF https://nrf.com/news/how-design-thinking-can-spark-retail-innovation

How P&G lost its innovation mojo  and what they must do to get it back. “Through 2000 breakthrough new products (e.g., Dryel, Fabreze and Swiffer) were driving P&G’s top line and gross margins.  Swiffer’s first year sales in 1999 (I think) were 41 million units and $355 MM in revenues. By 2009 there were no breakthrough products, organic growth was falling [below] 4%/annum, gross margins were eroding, corporate R&D was broken up and the BU’s had their own R&D organization.” Read more at Value Innovations http://valueinnovations.com/things-have-gone-horribly-wrong-at-pg-why-it-has-completely-lost-its-innovation-mojo/

What Tata is doing to foster innovation across its companies. “This year, the top 60 innovations (across the group) are expected to deliver an estimated financial benefit of $1.1bn annually. They are likely to touch the lives of 35 million people, globally, over a 5-year period.” Read more at The Economic Times http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/corporate-dossier/how-tata-group-is-trying-to-embed-innovation-in-its-dna/articleshow/48372888.cms

Blast from the Past

Findings from interviews with 200 entrepreneurs – skills shared by the most successful entrepreneurs (innovators). “Thus began her research odyssey: 200 interviews with leading entrepreneurs, including the founders of LinkedIn, Spanx, Chipotle, and Airbnb. After analyzing nearly 10,000 pages of interview transcripts, more than 5,000 pieces of archival and documentary evidence, and some 4,000 pages of academic research, Wilkinson teased out six skills shared by the most successful entrepreneurs and wrote a book about them.” Read more at Stanford Business http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/skills-make-entrepreneurs-extraordinary