Making Innovation A Reality
For Marci Ruman, Global Innovation Strategist at Kimberly-Clark, cultivating the right innovation mindset is key, regardless of the technology one is leveraging. Thinking things through when it comes to innovation is also important.
“I think you need to have unconstrained thinking when it comes to really dimensioning what the opportunities are and what the potential is,” says Ruman. “And then, as you go further from the vision and the strategy to the road map, then you need to think about what is required in order to have a viable business solution. A lot of times, what I’ve observed with young people is that they’re very excited about solving the problem and also coming up with a new product innovation. But sometimes they fall short on the question, is it viable or not? How am I going to make it a reality?”
She adds, “It’s really important to have that balance of, what does the consumer need, but also what are the requirements to have a viable business opportunity such that your company wants to invest in it.”
“Innovation isn’t just about inventing something brand new—it’s about understanding problems, thinking creatively, solving problems efficiently, and staying ahead of trends,” advises Ruman. “Team members need to have a learning mindset, master the fundamentals, embrace emerging technologies, and collaborate with cross-functional team members/mentors to create the future.”
In a related question, what makes you ahead of the pack? Does innovation technology help move you to the head of the pack, or do you feel it’s more of the thinking differently aspect, the mindset, the culture?
“I think it very much depends on your role,” says Ruman. “But obviously, innovation technology can help you be more productive and streamline how you do things to make you more efficient and move more quickly. One of the tools that I really love using is AI because when I go back to want to look at past research, I can use that tool to summarize a huge amount of data to tell me these were the key themes from these 25 reports, for example. I’ve used AI to help me understand patent claims when I’ve been looking at lots of patents.”
“Even though I’m older in my generation and have been in the industry for many years, I found that the AI tool is really exciting. That’s becoming a tool that younger people naturally probably gravitate to and use. But, in order for me to remain current and competitive, that’s the tool that I needed to learn how to leverage,” relates Ruman.
So just what makes you as an innovation practitioner ahead of the pack? For Ruman, some key takeaways include:
- To be visionary, one must have both imagination and wisdom.
- Imagination: the ability to envision what doesn’t yet exist, to dream beyond current limitations.
- Wisdom: the discernment to understand what is meaningful, sustainable, and beneficial in the long term.
“Together, these qualities allow someone not only to dream big but to guide those dreams toward impactful, real-world innovation,” she says.
Dealing With Uncertainty
When it comes to innovation, Divya Harpalani, Product Manager at B&H Photo, feels that grappling with uncertainty is a skill that every level of associate needs to master. There is an ambiguity to this profession, to be sure, and it means that you have to stay focused on your overall mission.
“You are never going to have it all figured out,” says Harpalani. “Especially when you start approaching any problem, there is always going to be ambiguity. It is you as the innovator who must make sense of this and prioritize your focus with what’s the most important steps to take. Always start small, that ultimately contributes to your overall big arching goal.”
While working in the gray areas of uncertainty is a skill that many innovation executives cultivate, balancing short-term goals and long-range plans is also an important characteristic to optimize. Envisioning the ultimate goal is key.
Harpalani continues, “When you start connecting the dots with what you are doing and the outcomes associated with it, you are already envisioning the practice of innovation. While you are doing that it is always important for you to evaluate your risks/assumptions and have clarity of what success is going to look like for you. This thought process helps you think holistically about the issue at hand and already includes the best practice habits of a practitioner before the start of any innovation project.”
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Video courtesy of Edison365