As clearly pointed out by Shehabuddeen, (2007, p. 40) we cannot be completely certain about anything in this world except from the fact that uncertainties exist and will continue to exist. Some are dictated by other uncertainties while others are inherently uncertain. Although the future is uncertain, any business organization must make well informed decisions about the uncertain future. For this to be possible, the organization must clearly understand and learn to completely differentiate between the mission/goals of the company and its innovation strategy Shehabuddeen, (2007, p.60) Innovation can be described as the act of coming up with a new process or product and introducing it to the commercial market. Both the business and innovation strategies need to fit and complement each other in trying to get the company where it aspires to be in a specified period of time. The business strategy should provide some sort of direction for the company, innovation strategy on the other hand is less defined and can be flexible, it provides a ‘navigational framework’ which enables the company transit from one state to another Shehabuddeen, (2007, p.121). A disconnect between these two strategies, as studies have shown, will often result to underperformance by the companies as compared to their competitors. For example, a poor alignment between the innovation strategy and business strategy led to the failure of the technically superior Sony’s Betamax VCR standard but later on, after aligning the business strategy and innovation strategy, the standard VHS format was much more successful, this helped the firm to focus more to developing products in line with the standards in the industry.
A well prepared innovation strategy can come in really handy in alienating this disconnect and help the company achieve better performance over time Porter, M.E. (2008 p. 78-93) . For instance, a good innovation strategy enables the company to develop quite a clear picture of how the future will look like and hence help the company get ready for any changes and be in a better position to provide the services/products that will be required then. A good innovation strategy also guides the company’s management on the features of the services/products that are likely to be required for an effective response to the emerging trends in the market. Additionally, an innovation strategy pin points the gaps in technological know-how that the company may need in order to meet their goals in the future Cooper & Edgett (2010 p. 33-40)
In order for an innovation strategy to prove worthwhile in the long run, it has to have a chance of actually happening in the future and predicting the market conditions. While there exists a number of ways to measure the business impact that is a result of a good/bad strategic innovation initiative, it is much difficult to measure an organization’s ability to innovate and this can only be measured in terms of progress over a certain period of time as compared to other competitors rather than in fixed terms Bate & Johnston (2005 p. 12-19). However, for an organization to rate the viability of their innovation strategy, they can use one of the following assessments:
Does your organization’s approach to innovation strategy go beyond traditional planning formulae that are not only both internally and externally focused but also challenge the status quo and inspires creative thinking among the employees? . Palmer & Kaplan (2005, p. 20-23)
Does your leadership actively drive a culture that is collaborative and encourages the cross-functionality of various departments hence enabling the employees to develop innovative solutions? . Palmer & Kaplan (2005, p. 20-23)
Does your company have a systematic process that actively explores and monitors the emerging market trends hence enabling the organization to develop of alternative scenarios which may present opportunities or threats? Palmer & Kaplan (2005, p. 20-23).
And lastly, does your company involve their both existing and customers as an important part of the innovation process as a way of finding out their needs (both articulated and unarticulated) Palmer & Kaplan (2005, p. 20-23).
References
Bate, J.D., & Johnston R.E., (2005): “Strategic Frontiers: The Starting-Point for Innovative Growth.” Strategy and Leadership 33, no. 1 12–18.
Cooper, R,G,& Edgett, S.J, (2010) ‘Developing a product innovation and technology strategy for your business’, Research Technology Management, 53 (3), May-June, pp. 33-40. Available from: http://sfxhosted.exlibrisgroup.com.ezproxy.liv.ac.uk/lpu?title=Research+Technology+Management&volume=53&issue=&spage=33&date=2010&issn=&eissn=
Palmer, D & Kaplan, S, 2005, ‘A Framework for Strategic Innovation: Blending strategy and creative exploration to discover future business opportunities’ pp 15-23. Retrieved from: http://www.innovation-point.com/Strategic%20Innovation%20White%20Paper.pdf
Porter, M.E. (2008) ‘The five competitive forces that shape strategy’, Harvard Business Review,86 (1), pp. 78-93, Business Source Premier [Online]. Available from: http://sfxhosted.exlibrisgroup.com.ezproxy.liv.ac.uk/lpu?title=Harvard+Business+Review&volume=86&issue=1&spage=78&date=2008 (Accessed: 16 October 2012).
Shehabuddeen, N. (2007) Innovation in real life: a hands-on guide to genuine innovation. Liverpool: Open Innovation, pp. 40-47, 59-60 121-122.
