When we talk about innovation and innovators, especially in the technology sector, top-of-mind names are usually Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs. They fly to space, make business and search for new ways to change the world. However, many other innovators, not so well-known, do not invest in space travel but keep investing in people, companies, and ideas.
Different definitions of innovation have been given so far. ISO/TC 279 defines innovation as “a new or changed entity realizing or redistributing value.” It is common for all of them to speak about the development of products, projects, or processes that aim to change the society from which they originate.
Innovation in numbers
Among the most innovative countries in the world in 2021, in the first place, surprisingly, we don’t find the United States that comes third. The first position belongs to Switzerland, followed by Sweden. The list was drawn up by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). WIPO analyzed 132 economies across 81 different indicators for its index, R&D expenditures, and socioeconomic impact of innovation, among others.
An element that unites all companies, large or small, in every country in the world, is the difficulty of finding innovators capable not only of applying the best tools, structuring processes, and making ends meet, but who are motivated and able to motivate others. MIT has compiled a long list of young innovators under 35 who try to make substantial changes to our way of life with their inventions.
Today, the ability of engaging teams and attracting new talents is at least as important as technical skills. To place an extremely innovative and functional product on the market, different disciplines and strategies are needed. The invention is not enough, design and promotion become fundamental.
Strategic support for an idea
Nowadays, the traditional processes of market analysis and proposal of solutions go together with a positive attitude. It is necessary to be charismatic, optimistic, and to see beyond the limits imposed by framing and conventional thinking. Many products are born as inventions, even if they are not necessarily innovative. It happens when those who invent them do not have enough charisma to make the idea disruptive and break the mold.
Apple always becomes a case in point when we talk about innovation. The company has not only introduced new products with unique characteristics. Apple created a concept that goes along with functional and uniquely designed tools. The company was able to build a community of its appliances’ evangelists. The same thing goes for Jeff Bezos’ Amazon and Elon Musk’s Tesla. The first has put customer satisfaction at the center of its business model. While the second is revolutionizing the world with Tesla and its sustainable electric machines, characterized by unique performance and design, as well as with SpaceX and the idea of settling humanity on Mars.
Get team involved, always
Great innovators challenge employees by enabling them to respond with novel solutions to complex problems. There are not many margins of error, but the person who will be able to solve the puzzle will demonstrate that they can make a difference and will be even more motivated to give their all for the project’s success. It is also a way to discover who has the flexible mind of an innovator, who finds uncommon solutions, and who instead offers the already known answers.
No matter the size of the company and the name of its founder, the secret of an innovator is to motivate people to overcome their limits, make their talents blossom, and listen.
