Balancing Business Sustainability with Break-Through Innovation ...

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Clients of our sustainability consulting practice often ask, ?What circumstances, frameworks or parameters need to be in place to spark creativity, ideas, and innovation in my business?" ?For the most part, markets tend to respond much more quickly to meet desires than respond to resistance. ?However, we believe that sustainability concepts are in fact accelerating the alignment of many diverging forces.? For this post, we will attempt to explain the convergence of traditional business with the increasing need for innovation.

Forbes Magazine recently released an article, How To Know Your Company Is (NOT) Ready To Innovate And What To Do About It, which explains the critical need for balance in today?s business sustainability driven project portfolios. ?Herein, the author explains that companies must find a healthy balance between stable/traditional revenue generating business operations and the need for break-through innovation. ?Each effort has its own function in moving the organization forward, but the two often conflict. ?

?For the most effective and holistic portfolio management, recognize project interrelationships and synergies to mitigate the risk-return tradeoff. Also, engage business leaders in identifying how breakthrough projects align with business-growth strategies to gain their support and secure greater investment. Top industry performers set aside 23% of their R&D budgets on average for breakthrough innovation, while their lower-performing peers only allot 10%.? ?Corporate Executive Board

To address this paradox, Forbes offers some sound advice:

• Make sure you have a balanced innovation portfolio strategy: Treating your ideas like you treat your other investments will create less risk and the right behavior.

• Celebrate failure: Failure is OK as long as you do it quickly, inexpensively and your whole team learns from it.

• Invest in the soil as much as the seeds: Many companies have more good ideas than they need. The problem is that they are planting these seeds in soil that is too dry or infertile to grow them.

• Look for a budget: A budget is like innovation truth serum. If you have one, you?re serious.

At Taiga Company, we believe an open innovation approach?fosters an environment for creative ideas and inspired actions from both internal and external stakeholders.?? Our sustainability consulting promotes social media engagement strategies as an avenue to align creativity and efficiency across the value chain. ?However, these creative juices must be tempered with the right mix of stable business operations. ?Visit with us to learn more.

Source: http://blog.taigacompany.com/blog/sustainability-business-life-environment/balancing-business-sustainability-with-break-through-innovation

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