On June 1, the new book by Innosight's Scott Anthony, The Silver Lining: An Innovation Playbook for Uncertain Times, will be released. As Scott says in a post on his Harvard Management blog, Innovation Insights, "the book's central theme is that today's turbulent times make mastering innovation a competitive necessity. I hope that the book provides corporate innovators and entrepreneurs with practical guidance to seize the ample opportunities that still exist in today's markets."
To help leaders do just that, beginning today Scott is running a 10-part series on his blog, each part describing a piece of a checklist of actions for innovation leaders looking to realize those opportunities. In each post, Scott will describe why each item is important, provide an example of a company that has put the concept into action, and describe "Monday morning" actions to implement the item. We will continue to run excerpts from these on InnoBlog, but you may want to bookmark Innovation Insights now so you won't miss any of this series.
Here's an excerpt from the first checklist item:
In today's tough times, companies may feel like they have a choice: focus on innovation or survival. It is a false choice. Innovation has gone from a nicety to a corporate necessity. After all, remember what legendary trial lawyer Clarence Darrow — clearly channeling Charles Darwin — said: "It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but rather the one most adaptable to change."
It's tough to get started unless there's a common understanding of the challenge. As such, the first item on the Seizing the Silver Lining Checklist is: Does your organization recognize today's transformation imperative?
In today's hyper-competitive world, competitive advantage that takes years to build disappears seemingly overnight. Constant change is the new normal. Companies can't win through operational excellence alone. They have to master the ability to fundamentally transform what they do and how they do it.
However, a lack of common understanding around the transformation imperative can doom well-intentioned efforts. One of the biggest innovation killers is the "sucking sound of the core." Common understanding of the need to change can help to ward off this sucking sound.
Read the rest at Scott's Harvard Management blog, Innovation Insights.
