Stoking Your Innovation Bonfire

Chapter 2. Peering in the Dark: STRATEGY BLOCKAGES

The Key Dangers

• People have no clue what our innovation strategy is.

• People don't know what to contribute.

• People don't know how to contribute.

• Our innovation strategy doesn't link to our corporate strategy.

• There is no link between our innovation strategy and our innovation vision.

Overview

Many organizations take the time to create an organizational strategy and a mission statement, only to then neglect the creation of an innovation vision and an innovation strategy. An innovation strategy is not merely a technology roadmap from R&D or an agenda for new product development. Instead, an innovation strategy identifies who will drive a company's profitable revenue growth and what will represent a strong competitive advantage for the firm going forward. Under this umbrella the innovation goals for the organization can be created.

An innovation strategy sets the innovation direction for an organization toward the achievement of its innovation vision. It gives members of the organization an idea of what new achievements and directions will best benefit the organization when it comes to innovation. As with organizational strategy, innovation strategy must determine what the organization should focus on (and what not to) so that tactics can be developed for how to get there.

In Chapter 2 we take a look at how innovation strategy should form a part of a clear, coherent organizational strategy, how it links to vision, and how to create an innovation ...