Some innovation is based within the industry, some are based in the external environment. There are a number of ways you can find innovation in your business.
- Unexpected events - There are a number of accidental innovations throughout history. We all know Reese’s peanut butter cups. Who would have thought accidentally dipping chocolate in peanut butter turns out being a great candy bar?
- Meeting the lack of congruency - Amazon is a company that would fit in this category, they have developed the innovation where customers expect fast delivery times. Have you ever ordered an item and had it on your porch by the time you got home? How many businesses can achieve this?
- Work improvement – many innovations are the result of thought towards a process to improve the workplace. Look through a simple search of workplace efficiency and you see hundreds of new apps or programs to automate, project manage, organize, or calendarize your work for better results.
- Problem resolution – these are innovations serve a missing need requiring focused direction on a single issue. Blue Ocean thinking can help you get there if you are inclined to develop a solution to a problem no one else has. Check out our Blue Ocean Canvas.
- Supporting items – this are the ideas that simply support an existing process but make the ease of a process revolutionary.