Innovation – How to get ahead?
Today’s innovation cycles are becoming shorter and shorter, as almost every industry feels the pressure to compete and bring new ideas to market faster.
Whereas new model releases may have lasted several years before, today’s releases have much shorter lives before being superseded by more advanced and more innovative alternatives.
This reality creates enormous pressure for innovation and many businesses are fighting to keep up. Occasionally, manufacturers might rush new innovations to market resulting in imperfectly tested products and disappointed consumers.
To support the need to innovate, we believe it is more important than ever for businesses to be future literate.
1. Identify key trends
It is essential to identify the trends which are most relevant and influential to your business. By doing so, you will establish a strong foundation to plan towards these trends and understand possible outcomes.
2. Identify the busts
It is not enough only to identify key trends, but it is also crucial to know which trends might last and which trends will probably fade away without a lasting impact. Not all trends will matter in the long-term; some might just be a bust.
3. Map the strategic choices
Use insights to build your business’ strategic direction and plan for multiple eventualities. As trends progress, the most likely outcome will be much clearer in time and you will be ready to make the most of it. Or better yet, understanding these possible outcomes before anyone else could enable you to get ahead of your competitors.
Our creating futures tool is designed to provide businesses with inspiring and practical insights to help them understand the range of possible futures, evaluate what each of these futures could mean for their businesses, and sketch out a pro-active and pragmatic response to make the most out of it.