Surely, not all of us think the same when talking about innovation. We relate this to changes, inventions, discoveries, progress… We can speak of innovations of great social impact, and others more limited in their effects. In companies, innovation is inexcusable and refers to both new products or services and new methods or procedures, often related to technological advancement; but it certainly faces obstacles: innovation must overcome resistance.
Observing the social advances, and without moving to very distant centuries, the innovations introduced by the steam engine, the railroad, or, already in the 20th century, electricity, the automobile, the telephone or aviation, are recognized as great innovations, although We have also celebrated the arrival of household appliances, Tupperware, payment by card or purchase with a cart, by looking at the everyday. Looked at, it would seem that some innovations have been giving way to others. Of course, we should mention the PC, Internet, mobile…, which seem to fit the idea of revolution more than that of innovation; but this time we will not talk about the information and communication revolution.
Some stories
I propose to remind you of how some inventions or discoveries were produced. I have selected a few that seem to have something to do with chance, with the efforts of some people, and even with hunches; precisely because I believe that we should all cultivate observation, perseverance and intuition more.
Let's start with the sewing machine, which was perhaps the first machine that was introduced in the domestic sphere. Apparently, after some meritorious attempts such as that of the French Thimmonier, it was the American Elías Howe who first patented (1846) a sewing machine; He had married a seamstress, and was obsessed with the idea of creating a sewing machine. It seems that the key was to put the eye on the tip of the needle, and it is related that this idea came to him after a dream he had. He dreamed, although several versions are told, that he was captive to savages and harassed with spears that had a hole in the tip. When he woke up, he immediately linked this detail to the problem he had.The truth is that it was later Isaac Singer who actually sold a large number of units of an improved version of Howe's invention, but this story underscores the importance of the subconscious in generating ideas.
Another case - this more recent one - that we can remember is the appearance of the Sony Walkman some 25 years ago, as a result of the creative desire and the intuition of the founders, the legendary Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita. Other versions are also counted, but I keep this one. After marketing the company a small monaural recorder for journalists (the "Pressman"), they tried to make it stereophonic; By incorporating the new circuits there was no more space in the device for the recording function, so the result was a portable audio tape player, which required external headphones. The engineers considered the project a failure, although they used the prototype in the laboratory to listen to music.
Ibuka, already as honorary president, casually listened to it and thought it could be sold; He discussed it with Morita, who was then running the company, and he decided to manufacture it, despite unfavorable reports from his collaborators. In July 1979, 30,000 units were put on the market, which were sold in just two months. Ten years later, 50 million units had been sold; in 1992 the figure of 100 million was reached; in 1995, the 150 million…
Sometimes chance seems to acquire even greater prominence in history, but we must not rule out doses of serendipity and perseverance… For example, in the case of the microwave oven. In 1946, a Raytheon company engineer, Percy Spencer, was testing a high-frequency wave generator (magnetron), when he observed a chocolate bar in his pocket melting; To make sure it was a ripple effect, he tried corn kernels, and indeed popcorn popped up. Although the ovens were initially large and expensive, in 1967 units were already sold for domestic use. Not that they were very successful at first, but the concept of fast cooking had already been created, and would be irreversible.
We could remember more examples of revealing dreams, serendipitous discoveries and genuine intuitions, but behind them we would surely find people determined to broaden our horizons: creative people.
Innovators in the company
Turning now to how innovation is lived in companies in the knowledge age, we can see how the subject has been included in the EFQM (European Foundation for Quality Management) model of excellence, or how Peter Drucker insists on it, for example when talking about the knowledge worker, or how it constitutes a permanent mantra around which conferences and congresses are organized. In reality, although Drucker's own knowledge worker concept of the knowledge age highlights the inexcusable innovative profile, it is not surprising that terms such as learning worker (Roy Jacques) or innovation worker (Jacqui Chaplin) have also been coined), to refer to the needs of this new economy.
The fact is, we target an ideal worker who:
1. You have already reached a visible degree of personal and professional development.
2. Fluently handles ICT.
3. Has visible informational and conversational skills.
4. Know what to learn, both in knowledge and in skills and strengths.
5. He is proactive and enjoys autonomy, in performance and in learning.
6. It conveniently applies its knowledge, its thinking and its feeling, in the daily actions.
7. Pursue improvement and innovation.
8. Subordinate your particular interests to the groups.
The reader can add a couple more things, and we would have perhaps the worker "Ten", or worker "10", without ruling out that more features are missing; but the contribution to innovation seems inexcusable. I would just like to invite you to reflect on the obstacles that the organization itself sometimes generates around the creativity and innovative desire of these workers. Sometimes a militant mediocrity barrier is built around capable and innovative workers, and organizations must ensure that they are the norm, and not the exception, in preventing isolation or suffocation.
Years ago, Mitchell Ditkoff pointed out that, in the company, the most creative individuals:
- They often question the status quo. Investigate new possibilities. They are self-motivated. They worry about the future. They see possibilities in the impossible. They take risks. They tend to move and interact. They are not afraid to look silly or childish. They see hidden connections. They focus on challenges. and problems. They are insightful. They resist ambiguity and paradox. They learn continuously. They reconcile intuition and analysis. They communicate effectively. They are not easily discouraged. Their individualism does not prevent them from working as a team, if they are given room.
The risk that these individuals would run in organizations of the past is already seen, so that the knowledge economy, in addition to pointing out managers and workers, also points to an intelligent collective operation. This operation could also tell sobering stories, without ruling out the ones Scott Adams told.
