Dispel myths around innovation to create a culture that fosters it
Say the word ‘innovation’ and it is likely to evoke the image of a young entrepreneur in a garage like startup, or that of a scientist in a lab creating a product that magically disrupts the market. These are images that have become associated with innovation—gripping and appealing. Also, somewhat mythical and only half true.
Myth: Startups are the champions of innovation: It is a widely held belief that a startup, with its agility and flexibility, is the poster child of innovation. Startups, over the decades, have been a key source of invention and innovation. However, it is critical to recognize the innovation capacity of large, established corporations.
These organizations often spearhead innovation, leveraging their considerable resources, extensive networks and in-depth market knowledge. Even in the technology sector, the performance of Nvidia and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Microsoft and Alphabet shows that innovation is not restricted to startups, but is often driven by large established companies. Myth: Innovation needs to be disruptive: The narrative of disruption often takes centre-stage when we speak of innovation.
Yes, there are examples of silver-bullet moments, when an innovation is a complete breakthrough and truly disruptive. However, many innovations result from evolutionary changes achieved through a series of incremental improvements. One could think of the entire smartphone category as an exemplar, where each player has built on the innovations done by someone else in the category.
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