Scared of innovation?

Throwback to a blog I wrote in 2014 – 3 years on – do you think things are moving in the right direction? I would love to hear some success stories – share away!

Do you think Australians are scared of innovation? And why?

I don’t think everyone is given the chance or true incentive to be truly innovative in business and of course there are exceptions to this.

As David Thodey, CEO of Telstra Corporation says today in the AFR, “Innovation isn’t only for Silicon Valley or Israel. It’s about a state of mind and a way of looking at things – continually working to reinvent and change.” David has said that Telstra has a part to play in the development of the innovation ecosystem. I like this.

This article prompted me to check the latest Forbes list of the top 100 World’s Most Innovative Companies. Only 1 Australian company graces this list…1%, eek!

Where do we go from here? How can we be more innovative in our daily practices to grow and evolve?

As Steve Jobs, Co-Founder of Apple said “Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have. When Apple came up with the MAC, IBM was spending at least 100 times more on R&D. It’s not about money. It’s about the people you have, how you are led, and how much you get it.”

Looking at the BRW top 50 most innovative Australian companies from last year it highlights that it is about the people and the culture and being innovative does not just mean creating great products – it means creating a culture that supports ongoing innovation.

“These organisations have leaders who treat innovation seriously, as opposed to just paying lip service to it, and they are clearly resourcing innovation, and protecting innovation budgets.” Amber Imber from Inventium says.

So bringing it back to a state of mind, how can HR make way for your people to be innovative? How has innovation in your organisation led to successful commercial outcomes?