It’s the innovation paradox we’ve all come across. How do we boost innovation without adding bureaucracy or cost? While it seems futile to try and establish growth without financial or administrative investments, we all know that sometimes these resources aren’t always available, and adding can even be counterproductive, overcomplicating the process rather than improving it. Instead of ignoring innovation all together, there are simple ways you can continue to innovate without offering funds and resources you may not have.
- Replicate proven models. Our past successes are a free, vital resource to always draw from. If these successes are based on core principles that are sure to work time and time again, there is no reason not to make lightning strike twice.
- Invest in areas that offer the most potential. Making economical decisions about your investments and ideas pays dividends. Invest in practices that pertain to a wide range of industries and present several options for success.
- Make the most of your investments and ideas. Even in failed attempts, there can be success. Are there other paths to take separate to the core hypothesis? What insights and capabilities have you gained and what other opportunities can they lead to?
- Work with users. Working with people outside of the company is a cost effective way to garner input, where top users are a great source to learn about your product’s mass appeal. Avenues such as social media have made these relationships more significant and easier to manage than ever.
- Don’t isolate innovation. Nurturing the internal and external ecosystems around innovation sectors is a great way to harness communal input and have ideas flourish in a busy environment.
- Activate broad networks. Online platforms and other communication resources have become a necessity in leveraging global communities to socialize innovation and expand opportunities for solutions, knowledge and ideas.
By harnessing global communications, user ideas and company input, learning from our own mistakes and triumphs and changing our mindset to reap every ounce of what we sow, companies can make the most of innovation without overstaffing or overpaying.
