* Ingenious, original, independent, unconventional

* Challenges problem definition

* Does things differently

* Discovers problems and avenues for their solutions

* Manipulates problems by questioning existing assumptions

* Is a catalyst to unsettled groups, despite their consensual views

Now here are general characteristics of adaptors:

* Efficient, thorough, methodical, organized, precise, reliable

* Accepts problem definition

* Does things better

* Concerned with resolving problems versus identifying them

* Seeks solutions in tried-and-true ways

* Reduces problems by improvement and enhanced efficiency, while aiming at continuity and stability

What is your problem-solving style? Each mode has its advantages, and the most successful leaders are those who can use both styles of creative problem-solving flexibly. These characteristics mark that of an Innovation champion and an agent for change within an organization.

An innovation champion can nurture a culture of sustained Innovation in a company by taking a three-step approach.

1. Define the desired culture. Doing so will help the organization to understand what innovative behavior looks like and to bring that change to the company. Quantify the goal, such as “one new product to market per year.” Determine the champions and key players you’ll need to bring on board from all parts of the organization, including marketing, sales, finance, manufacturing, etc.

2. Establish the foundations. Devise a method to properly measure success, with leading indicators such as amount of new ideas collected, and lagging metrics such as amount of sales attributed to new products. Be sure to communicate those successes with the entire organization! Surprisingly, this practice is often forgotten – but is instrumental in building team morale and support for the innovation.

3. Engineer sustainability. This means creating regular activities with the purpose of fostering innovation. Meetings, news updates, and brainstorming sessions are all a part of the process. Develop imagery to bring the program to life such as internal innovation awards.

These are some basic steps in becoming an innovation champion and an agent for change. For more tips and a hands-on approach for creating and sustaining innovation, see “Robert’s Rules of Innovation: A 10-Step Program for Corporate Survival.”

In his book Robert Brands provides a step-by-step guide to implementing and sustaining Innovation in the workplace. His ideas are distilled from over 25 years of hands-on experience as an Innovation leader. Brands has successfully delivered on his goal of bringing “at least one new product per year to market,” resulting in double-digit profitable growth and shareholder value.

The Ten Imperatives in Robert’s Rules of Innovation are easy to implement steps coupled with real life examples and best practices for starting, nurturing, and profiting from a culture of Innovation.

“Due to requests from CEOs and executives, we created this valuable guide to create and sustain innovation available in an easy format,” says Robert Brands, “No matter the size of your organization or the industry you’re in, Innovation is essential to survival – so managers at all levels can benefit from these practical steps.”

For more information on the audio book and a preview, please visit: https://www.cdtdigital.com/rroi/index.php

ABOUT BRANDS & COMPANY, LLC.

Brands & Company, LLC is an Innovation management-consulting firm. The firm, founded by Robert F. Brands, focuses on creating and sustaining innovation in business. Operating as “Innovation Coach,” Brands is promoting a “Sustained Innovation Commitment” to deliver profitable growth, for more details visit www.innovationcoach.com.

Brands has over 25 years of hands-on experience in creating and teaching innovation, having worked in new product development and marketing at Philips Lighting, Sylvania and the Kohler Company. Most recently, he served as Managing Director of the Personal Care Division of Rexam Plastics. Prior to Rexam and since 1998, Brands built (Rexam) Airspray N.V., now a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and supply of innovative non-aerosol foam technology like instant foaming hand soap.

The task may seem daunting at first, but it’s possible to develop a disciplined strategy that delivers Innovation time and time again for sustained long-term profitability. Make developing that strategy your 2012 New Year’s Resolution. “Robert’s Rules of Innovation” outlines specific steps to implement Innovation. Here are some tips:

1. Define your organization’s needs. What type of innovation are you trying to achieve? An incremental innovation that introduces a new process or feature? Or a transformative breakthrough that completely changes the marketplace? The latter is more difficult to achieve but holds the greatest potential. Choosing the path that makes the most sense for your organization will help in the Innovation process.

2. Formulate a New Product Development process. Each organization’s NPD process can have a different number of steps, so long as they form a structured plan. A three stage plan may include: Stage 1 Product Definition where a product is examined for its brand strategy, profit potential, and competitive analysis. If the product is a “go” then it moves to Stage 2: the Qualification process where a first article product is made and tested for quality assurance. Finally, Stage 3 is Revenue where the product is launched.

3. Create a road map to success. The key elements are examining Quality of projects, Capability of managing them successfully, and Capacity of the organization for maintaining a portfolio of well-managed projects. No matter what NPD process you decide to use, stick to the road map to ensure that each stage, and tasks within each stage, are clearly defined.

4. Some more guidelines for progress: remember to stick to your go/no-go criteria for moving forward with developments. All projects should undergo the same scrutiny, regardless of who suggested it! Also, many organizations are incorporating a “discovery phase” into the Innovation process to allow for more experimentation. This step is beneficial for making decisions based on long-term sustainable Innovation, and not on current budget restraints alone.

In a world of increasing business competition, Innovation is key to a company’s survival. Creating an Innovation strategy that makes sense for your organization is entirely feasible, and an absolute must for creating profit for your company.

Here’s to a New Year of Innovation!

Product development is a process of cycles – followed by closure. We innovate and create a new concept. Assemble teams to research, develop, manufacture and market the product or service. We then ship it to market.

And then… What?

We leave it out there for consumers to embrace, or ignore. Meanwhile, as our products mature on the store shelves of the marketplace, we mentally have moved on to the next next thing.

Instead, we should revisit our product to gain a fresh perspective.

The CBS Television show Undercover Boss follows the adventures of executives who embark on an undercover mission “to examine the inner workings of their companies…Working alongside their employees, they see the effects that their decisions have on others, where the problems lie within their organizations and get an up-close look at both the good and the bad while discovering the unsung heroes who make their companies run.”

When was the last time you were an undercover or boss or prospect? As the CEO or Chief Innovation Officer, when did you last sample your wares, walk your store, demo your product or read your user manual? Playing the role of a “cold prospect” often gives a new point of view on even the most mature products.

Innovation Manager-as-Mystery Shopper touches on several of Robert’s Rules of Innovation. It allows us to Observe & Measure our products first hand. We take Ownership of our product lifecycle to an entirely new level. It may even encourage fresh lines of new product development. Hopefully, it encourages us to think about ways to train and coach other innovators – and even our customer-facing employees – on the finer points of the product, service or company mission.

Want to play mystery shopper or prospect?

- Call your customer service or main office line to make an appointment or reach an individual. Do you get trapped in phone bank hell? Is it easy to “zero out” to a receptionist? I recently spoke with a physician who lamented it taking him almost an hour to get lab results over the phone – from his own office. “Welcome to our world,” I chided.

- Record and listen to your customer service rep encounters. If your organization actually records customer phone calls (you hear it all the time, “This call may be recorded for training purposes…”), listen to the calls. Find high and low points. Look for ways to improve the user experience.

- Walk the aisles. Watch your salespeople or retail associates in action. How responsive are they? How effective are they at engaging the customer? Are they upselling where possible? Stanley Steemer maximizes upsell opportunities once they’re in a customer’s home.

- Keep a notepad handy. Be on the lookout for fresh ideas about process or product innovation.

- Assemble or use your own product. Are your instructions clear? Does “Ready to Assemble” really mean ready to assemble?

The saying, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression,” may be only part true. Being an undercover prospect may give you that second chance to see your product like the first time – and innovate anew.

By Robert F. Brands with Jeff Zbar

Brands is the founder of InnovationCoach.com, and the author of “Robert’s Rules of Innovation”: A 10-Step Program for Corporate Survival, with Martin Kleinman published by Wiley.

1. The Eureka Moment. Many people think that innovation is based on a blinding flash of inspiration but the truth is more prosaic. Innovation is 5% inspiration and 95% perspiration. Most companies have plenty of good ideas but have poor processes for evaluating and developing the best ideas.

2. Build it and they will come. The proliferation of Web 2.0 and social media has misled people, the authors argue, into believing that social networks will transform the way we innovate at work. ‘Smart companies are selective in their use of online forums for innovation.’3. Open Innovation is the Future. The authors believe that the costs of open innovation have been underestimated and that successful companies will use a mix of internal and external innovation resources.4. Pay is paramount. Rewarding people for their innovation efforts misses the point. The process of innovating, of taking the initiative to come up with new solutions, is its own reward.

5. Bottom-up innovation is best. Smart companies use both top-down and bottom-up approaches and are adept at helping bottom-up innovation projects get the sponsorship they need to survive.

The full article is informed, provocative and interesting. ]]> http://www.robertsrulesofinnovation.com/blogs/the-five-myths-of-innovation.html/feed 1 http://www.robertsrulesofinnovation.com/blogs/ten-principles-which-spell-continuous-innovation.html http://www.robertsrulesofinnovation.com/blogs/ten-principles-which-spell-continuous-innovation.html#comments Wed, 09 Mar 2011 20:19:47 +0000 admin http://www.robertsrulesofinnovation.com/?p=703 Many people have tried to define a process for innovation, but most are too abstract for me. I like the easy to remember approach found in “Robert’s Rules of Innovation: A 10-Step Program for Corporate Survival,” by Robert F. Brands. It seems to be more concrete, and chronicles several decades of practical experience to solidify the principles which together spell INNOVATION.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/ten-principles-which-spell-continuous-innovation-2011-3#ixzz1G8RsQjuJ

Let’s take a look back at the 2010 Brand Innovations:  http://popsop.com/41746

For example, after over 30 years in business, Apple
continues to deliver a steady stream of new and refreshed products year after
year. It’s easy to see why competitors have to be on top of their game to
compete with Apple in the consumer electronics market. It’s Innovate or Perish.

Innovation is key in delivering profitable growth. If you
are looking to get started, look for Robert’s Rules of Innovation,
the imperatives for how to create and sustain Innovation. Don’t get left behind
in the New Year; make sure your company has the roadmap to successful
innovation implementation.

A Prosperous and Innovative 2011 to you and yours.

Vern Burkhardt (VB): You say, “Innovate or die…” It’s that serious a matter for companies, large and small?

Robert F. Brands: Absolutely. Ask yourself, “Where are you on the product lifecycle extending from innovation to introduction, growth, maturity, and decline?” I invite you to attach to this interview the chart from my book which portrays this lifecycle.

No matter where you are on the product lifecycle with your most significant product or service, or your company as a whole, it is imperative to continuously think about the next new product or service to be offered. You need to identify them early so they can be developed, grow in sales and revenues, and be ready to replace your current lead products or services as they mature in the marketplace.

VB: ‘Implementing innovation is about taking the organization and doing a “reboot.”‘ Is that a good summary of the key message of Robert’s Rules of Innovation?

Robert F. Brands: For most companies a “reboot” is the way to go. For others it’s a matter of optimizing the systems and processes currently in place. Either way, whether you are doing reasonably well with innovation or starting new efforts, it is important to take a holistic approach in order to deliver sustainable innovation.

Let me put it in different terms, we are all familiar with Total Quality. This is like Total Innovation. It is not about doing one process or element well or on time. It’s creating a repeatable process that delivers results and improvements over and over again.

VB: Robert’s Rules of Order work best when everyone in the meeting is familiar with them although the person in the Chair should be an expert in applying the rules. Does the same apply to Robert’s Rules of Innovation?

Robert F. Brands: Like most rules, for them to be most effective it is best for all participants to understand and appreciate the elements. However, it is ultimately the Chair – the leader – that needs to walk the talk, inspire the troops, makes sure all rules get applied and used and provide the means – Budget and resources – for the rules to be executed.

VB: ‘When an idea is discovered and implemented across the value chain with success, a “sweet spot” is hit…’ What do you mean by sweet spot?

Robert F. Brands: A sweet spot can be compared to hitting the bull’s-eye of the white space. It is areas of opportunity, complemented by demand, and fulfilled by the optimal product or service at the right price.

VB: Are entrepreneurs who insist on filling the innovation team leader role likely a risk to their business’ long term profitability?

Robert F. Brands: Entrepreneurs with the right financial acumen should never be a risk, but rather an opportunity for long-term profitability.

Team leaders ideally are champions who are passionate about the cause or product. They are appointed or chosen by their fellow team members. Have a good understanding of the customer and their needs.

VB: Is it inevitable that as companies grow larger their new product development process must become more complex, time-consuming, and cumbersome, like the six-step system you used at a major multinational, multi-product line company?

Robert F. Brands: Yes, I would agree but nonetheless simplicity remains king!

It is most important to have people and teams work harmoniously and simultaneously to achieve their objectives. As you can imagine, the larger the organization the more important it is to have objectives that are aligned. Silos are created not just because of individual empire building, but more often due to misalignment of objectives.

In a company new product ideas will undergo a rigorous review by the marketing department in reference to things such as brand strategy, company image, profit potential, and the competitive environment. Other departments will look the new ideas from a different point of view and they will often not be aligned or in agreement.

VB: Is there a danger that great concepts risk being eliminated because of the restricted paradigm of marketing people?

Robert F. Brands: Here you go assuming marketing people have a restrictive paradigm; I would challenge that – me being a marketing person! First and foremost, as I stress in the book there is a need to listen to the customer. Marketing, or marketing & sales people will or should focus on and convey those needs to the organization.

The rigorous reviews, however, should take place with a multitude of departments and individuals ranging from customer service to R&D to get to optimal perspective and results.

VB: Do you have any advice for those who would complain that the Stage-Gate Process® is too cumbersome for many new product development initiatives, and discourages passionate people from remaining highly energized?

Robert F. Brands: Passionate people should be able to remain highly energized while working in a structured environment. Process structure is often used as an excuse.

I have seen stage gate processes done as simply as a four box matrix. What is important is that the participants know every product or service has to go through certain steps or stage gates to reach the marketplace.

Product development processes are established in organizations in order to provide a discipline in the innovation process and to ensure the input and involvement of all of the departments involved. These processes ideally guide and encourage innovation initiatives rather than inhibit them. They are more a matter of “checks and balances” to avoid forgetting important elements and steps.

VB: One of your surprising tips, in the ‘Inspire’ Robert’s Rule, for establishing and maintaining an innovation culture is having regular in person meetings chaired by the CEO or designated leader. How can meetings which often put further pressure on people who are already busy be a good thing?

Robert F. Brands: Meetings only put people under pressure if participants fail in accountability. Regularly scheduled meetings establish expectations that all involved will fulfill their obligations so the innovation initiatives will proceed on schedule, and bottlenecks can be identified at an early stage and addressed. They reinforce an ongoing commitment by all parties and departments involved.

Having regularly scheduled meetings is not the total solution to keeping innovation initiatives on track. If the CEO shows passion, and is engaged and involved in the new product development process the organization will see and understand its importance. With engaging leaders like Steve Jobs, Herb Kohler, and many others an innovation culture follows suit.

VB: “Often, the most successful product development managers are the most facile, accomplished, and successful salespeople within the company.” Aren’t most of the best salespeople prone to being too impatient to engage in the extent of collaboration and discipline the process requires?

Robert F. Brands: The best sales people are often the best listeners. Since listening is an absolute key to identifying customer needs and to enable cooperation with team members, the sales people can often find the best combinations of people to work together. They often also have good leadership skills.

VB: One of the top 5 R&D metrics you identify is total R&D head count, which was used by 59 percent of companies in the 2008 survey. What does this metric indicate that is of significance in measuring the output of a company’s innovation success?

Robert F. Brands: Unfortunately nothing. Many of today’s metrics are no guarantee for success. In particular most public companies report percentage spent on R&D.

As you can imagine budgets and money spent is no guarantee for success. The measure of R&D headcount is often used by smaller companies that cannot show the big percentage or amounts of R&D spend.

However, when I see 10% of a company’s labor pool being utilized to deliver new products and services, I would think that this is an indication of a serious effort. Or even better the number of patents filed.

VB: In your experience do companies often become too bogged down with metrics when trying to measure their innovation performance?

Robert F. Brands: I don’t think so. What is more important is that leaders get used to using the right leading and lagging indicators. Leading could be hours spent in development; lagging could be percentage of new product sales.

Metrics are important, what gets measured gets done – and I urge folks to avoid just looking in the rearview mirror. Setting a specific goal is a key to achieving and delivering objectives.

VB: In your interview with a network of business associates in various industries around the world, which is transcribed in your book, a unique metric is mentioned: “measuring the rate of promises made and promises kept” in reference to a strategic set of brand promises. Do you think all companies should consider this approach?

Robert F. Brands: This approach could only work within the right culture. Promises made and promises kept could become very subjective unless very clearly defined.

It is best and advisable to have very clear and simple objectives, like at least develop and introduce to the marketplace one new product per year. This enables everyone to clearly understand the objective and have all work towards the same goals. It worked very well for Airspray, and resulted after several years in even more new products being developed per year due to the embedded process.

VB: You say product development people have a “Zen-like ability to conjure new concepts and test and retest prototypes.” Would you elaborate on this Zen-like ability?

Robert F. Brands: What we meant to say and explain is the difference between left brain and right brain people.

The best people in product development have the tenacity to try things over and over again while applying new creativity. It takes a lot of passion, stamina and endurance.

VB: You talk about innovation leaders facing the devil’s advocates who fear change and work to undermine innovation efforts at every turn. Should these “Anti Body” types be encouraged to be more positive or even removed from an organization, or do they often serve a useful role?

Robert F. Brands: Great question. I have never been given the option.

The most productive organization is composed of people who believe in the corporate cause, believe in and welcome change, and are willing to try new things. If you hate change and would rather undermine innovation efforts in order to preserve the status quo, you are better off moving to a non-changing work environment. You will not be happy or a good contributor to innovation initiatives.

VB: One innovation leader you quote in your book observed that in order for a team to move beyond incremental innovation to disruptive innovation it should be composed of people with different skill sets, and from different backgrounds and business groups. He also said the champion or driver of the process that the team follows must “break down barriers to resistance and get everyone playing nicely and, more importantly, productively in the proverbial “sandbox”.” Do you agree that recapturing our childhood innocence and enthusiasm helps us be more innovative?

Robert F. Brands: Sure, after all innovation equals creativity times risk-taking.

The more important point is that optimal teams are made up of diverse characters and participants. Homogeneous groups tend to be comfortable and status quo oriented. They will likely be less inclined to look beyond the box, or seek more creative and typically less comfortable solutions.

VB: When talking about the increasing numbers of multinational innovation teams, you describe what you have found to be the attributes of people from the U.S., France, Brazil, and China in terms of how they react in a meeting environment, approach the concept of ‘teamwork,’ and communicate with others. You didn’t describe the national traits of people from the Netherlands, your original homeland. What are they?

Robert F. Brands: The Dutch, people from the Netherlands, tend to assimilate easily and are comfortable adjusting to other cultures. They are typically very direct and candid.

VB: You devote a chapter in your book to intellectual property – understanding what it is and how to protect it. Individuals not associated with companies also register patents. Is this often a sign that they are highly creative?

Robert F. Brands: Patents are intellectual property. The fact that patents are filed and obtained is a pretty good indication of an individual’s or company’s creativity.

IP is growing in importance and enables you to carve out and protect a unique technology or concept. This prevents others from just copying your idea, and it allows you to capitalize on it. IP is a great was to create value and it is proven that companies with an IP portfolio are worth more.

VB: Would you say your book is a summary of best practices for sustaining and profiting from a new product development program?

Robert F. Brands: Perhaps not so much a summary of best practices, but it definitely provides a holistic approach to describing all of the elements that are required to deliver sustainable innovation. On the website for Robert’s rules of innovation we have posted tips and are sharing latest thinking and best practices.

Maybe on balance Robert’s Rules of Innovation is the best practice for creating sustainable innovation. I hadn’t thought of it that way before.

VB: What other books would you recommend to our readers who are keen to learn more about sustainable innovation?

Robert F. Brands: Innovation to the Core by Rowan Gibson, although a little bit more textbook-like, is a very useful book. Most books written are by imperative of the 10 rules I shared. On our website we identify the “Best Books” for each imperative as including Rethink by Ric Merrifield, The New Age of Innovation by C. K. Prahalad, Design Driven Innovation by Roberto Verganti, Creating Competitive Advantage by Jaynie L. Smith, The Innovation Zone by Thomas M. Koulopoulos, Bricklin on Technology by Dan Bricklin, The Blue Sweater by Jacqueline Nofogratz, How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins, and What Would Google Do? by Jeff Jarvis.

VB: Would you talk about Brands & Company, and what services you provide?

Robert F. Brands: Brands & Company, LLC has a network of innovation coaches who provide companies and organizations a way to evaluate, improve, and deliver innovation. The focus is on helping leaders deliver profitable growth through sustained innovation. Our consulting services include crating action plans for business management, marketing, design and development of new products, and management of intellectual property. Using the Robert’s rules of innovation we can help companies create and sustain “new” in their businesses.

VB: You relate the case of a mentor providing “feed-forward” instead of “feedback.” Do you use this approach in your consulting practice?

Robert F. Brands: Yes, but even more in my daily life. Feed forward gives a positive forward-looking input versus the negative connotation of feedback.

VB: You provide short and in-depth online innovation audits. Is it usually difficult for innovation leaders to do a convincing self audit, resulting in the necessity of bringing in an independent third party?

Robert F. Brands: Sometimes, however the online innovation audit or self-evaluation is merely a first small step to assess the weaker points in any innovation program. Innovation coaching would complement the survey with in person interviews to build from an existing good working foundation.

VB: In Robert’s Rules of Innovation you talk about the foaming hand soap product development success at Airspray. Was that innovation your proudest moment in the business world?

Robert F. Brands: Nice question. As a business our proudest moment was the actual success of products in the marketplace, and this is particularly for instant foaming hand soap. Although the success was not a moment in time or a single day, it was a gradual experience, it is still a very satisfying feeling to know consumers prefer to use and experience instant foaming hand soap.

VB: How did you develop such a large international network of innovators, and how has it benefited you in gaining a better understanding of innovation?

Robert F. Brands: Networking is all about knowledge sharing. Networking within and outside of your industry is important to enable you to stay aware and abreast of changes and opportunities. I developed them over time as I passed through different companies and roles, and via opportunities like tradeshows. Today with vehicles like E.Factor and LinkedIn it is made even easier. Looking back I should and could have done more networking; it is important to invest time into this.

VB: Were there other candidates for Robert’s Rules that, although relevant, were not quite significant enough to include in your book?

Robert F. Brands: Of course. Unfortunately when you write a book you need to know when to put down the pen and share the story.

Today’s web however has allowed us to add learning materials and examples through weekly Blog posts. On our book site we have added additional articles by imperative/rules under each letter. Like Inspire. Another is does a “Chief Innovation Officer” inspire your team?

VB: “…I dedicate this book to my entrepreneurial grandfather, whom I looked up to, and who inspired me.” Would you talk about his entrepreneurial talents and how he inspired you?

Robert F. Brands: My grandfather was an entrepreneur and textile mill owner. For generations since the invention of the steam engine my ancestry explored and grew businesses in the textile industry. Unfortunately, changes in fashion and innovations in materials forced them to close the factories in the mid-70s.

The combination of the entrepreneurial success and need for be ongoing innovation over the years in order to be successful inspired me to say the least.

VB: While writing Robert’s Rules of Innovation did other topics arise as being good candidates for another book?

Robert F. Brands: Yes indeed, but no commitments yet.

VB: You say you’re a control freak. How did you discover this approach didn’t work for promoting innovation in an organization, and how did you learn to temper this tendency?

Robert F. Brands: Being a control freak does not help in a creative and innovative environment. I learned to work around it by applying a methodology I picked up from Ronald Reagan who called it “empowerment with verification” or “trust with verification.” This approach worked well for me.

VB: Would it be correct to conclude you are passionate about creativity and innovation?

Robert F. Brands: Very much so. I tend to be an early adopter with new products, but more importantly I become very excited when people come up with new products and services. Innovate to thrive!

Conclusion:
Author Robert F. Brands speaks from experience when he talks about innovation having been in leadership roles where innovation was the key to success. He is still understandably proud of the breakthrough innovation of instant foam dispensing product innovation while he was CEO of Airspray.

His ten Robert’s rules of innovation are described as “rules of order.” They are rules that must be “implemented, maintained, protected, and fostered – fiercely – in order for your innovation program to succeed.” Given Robert F. Brands success as an innovation leader they are definitely worthy of careful consideration.

Robert F. Brands’ Bio:
Author Robert F. Brands is a native of The Netherlands, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from HTS Eindhoven. He is President and founder of Brands & Company, LLC.

Robert F. Brand’s professional experience includes positions as Manager of New Consumer Products at Philips Lighting Company, and Manager and International Trade Advisor for the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (U.S.). From 1989 to 1993 he was Marketing Manager of Consumer Lighting for GTE/Sylvania Lighting Division where he developed consumer marketing programs for this $210 U.S. million division. In this capacity he orchestrated the development and launch of groundbreaking new products and packaging designs like Double Life bulbs and Dual Graphics. From 1993-1995, he was Vice President of Marketing at Sterling Plumbing Group, Inc. where he directed all advertising, sales promotion, market research, pricing, product management and new product development for the Sterling retail brand which primarily services big box chains like Lowes and Home Depot. From 1995 to 1998 he was Vice President of Marketing at Kohler Company where he led marketing efforts for Kohler Plumbing Fixtures, which is an $800U.S. million operating unit. At Kohler he was responsible for line profitability, product management, pricing, market research and all other marketing services. Under his stewardship as President of Airspray Int’l, Inc. from 1998 and as CEO of Airspray starting in 2004, the Dutch public company created the international market for instant foam dispensing which delivered consistent double-digit profitable growth. After Rexam’s acquisition of Airspray NV in May 2006 and until August 2007, Robert F. Brands was responsible for Rexam Dispensing Systems with eleven sites and about $400U.S. million in sales. He implemented best innovation practices initially in the Dispensing Systems division and later in the $1B Personal Care Division that aided in numerous and significant new product introductions, such as L’Oreal’s most successful consumer product introductions in years.

Robert F. Brands is the author of Robert’s Rules of Innovation: A 10-Step Program for Corporate Survival (2010).

To view the full article, visit http://www.ideaconnection.com/articles/00225-Innovate-To-Thrive.html

Over the past several weeks and 10 posts on the Vistage Blog , we’ve reviewed key imperatives that formed “Robert’s Rules of Innovation” and that together create the foundation upon which to build, improve, sustain and grow an organization’s innovation mandate.

Consider this the closing chapter in an 11-step treatise on putting what you’ve read into action. First, a brief summary…

Consider the lesson on the first imperative – Inspire and Initiate – to realize the steps necessary. The power of inspiration cannot be over-estimated in the process of innovation. Inspire your people, and then hit the throttle.

With inspiration as the wind in your sails, next comes the realization that with No risk, there can be no innovation. Companies must be willing to take some risk to potentially realize the benefits of innovation.

We discovered how important innovation is to the New product development process it, and how Ownership across the organization – from the CEO to the rank-and-file employee – fuels buy-in to successful innovation.

Innovation, we learned, fuels Value creation, yet Accountability, Training and coaching, and Idea management bring value to the process and its individual elements. Finally, the mandate to Observe and measure every step of the process brings quantifiable metrics to the process, which – hopefully – delivers Net results / net rewards.

Together, these imperatives drive Innovation.

With these imperatives in place, now visualize the role they play in your organization and issue a call to action: Innovate to thrive.

How should you start? Here are three final tips to get you started…

• Just Do It. Like the Nike commercial, it’s all about execution. You can read books and blogs on innovation. You can write plans for your next innovative pursuit. Yet as the Chinese proverb says, “Every long journey begins with one small step.” With the plan in hand, work the plan.

• Communicate. This cannot be stressed enough. From the CEO to the Chief Innovation Officer to every team member involved in the process, communication is essential to relaying key information about goals, intent, progress (from the biggest success to the smallest setback), and lessons learned from any failure. Whether by email, IM, a collaborative whiteboard, or recurring meetings, communicate your milestones.

• Get committed. Personal involvement from the CEO means, “No Lip Service.” From the highest levels, there must be a hands-on presence in update meetings, project rankings, and troop motivation. You must set the example. You must walk the talk.

You’ve been given the tools and insights. Now, it’s time to implement an innovation initiative in your organization. You don’t have to start big; in fact, like so many first-time projects, a beta may be the best way to test the initiative without investing too much time, manpower or resources – only to later discover whether the concept was worthy of pursuing further.

The key, though, is to kick it off. Create a personal action plan, follow it through, get engaged with personal involvement, and be there.

Don’t hesitate to drop me a note if you need encouragement or want to relay news of your successes, robert@innovationcoach.com

For more information and useful content see “Robert’s Rules of Innovation“,

LOOK INSIDE for more chapters, insights and tips on Innovation.

—/—

Robert Brands is a professional Speaker, the founder of InnovationCoach.com, and the author of “Robert’s Rules of Innovation“: A 10-Step Program for Corporate Survival, with Martin Kleinman published in March, 2010 by Wiley.

Look around your company. Are you surrounded by “entrepreneurs”? Is your team comprised of people who take ownership of any project or task that comes across their desk or inbox? Do they embrace challenges, possess the process, and take responsibility – for successes and failures alike?

Some may come away thinking that “corporate entrepreneur” and “employee” are contradictory. They believe that “entrepreneurs” take the ultimate risk – ditching the security of the day-job, as it were, and facing the personal, financial and psychological challenges of business ownership.

That’s one definition. Another would be “corporate entrepreneurship.” This realm is inhabited by people who – though they receive a paycheck signed by someone else – see the organization (or at least their small domain within it) as their turf. This is the most valued of employee.

Innovation and corporate entrepreneurship are inextricably intertwined and fuel well-reasoned risk taking. Especially in large organizations traditionally risk averse, innovation drives leaders and teams to become more corporate enterprising. This process encourages growth from within, which helps set the stage for leadership continuity.

As a business leader, you must build an environment that tolerates such entrepreneurial thinking. It’s the leader’s job to encourage such entrepreneurial thinking – to exude and build trust, to embrace the risk to fail, and to inspire people to take well-reasoned chances.

In the book, “Grow From Within: Mastering Corporate Entrepreneurship,” co-author Robert Wolcott discusses how companies can enable and support “internal entrepreneurs” to achieve innovation-led growth. Such entrepreneurial thinking drove IBM to realize some $15 billion in new annual revenues from 22 Emerging Business Opportunities, and Whirlpool to realize $4 billion in revenues from companywide innovation efforts – “despite global recession and the steep drop in housing markets,” notes one review.

The authors reveal four models of corporate entrepreneurship laid out on an axis of organizational ownership (on the horizontal) and Resource Authority (on the vertical). Each possesses unique and specific characteristics. The Opportunist (bottom left), takes no deliberate approach to entrepreneurship; the Advocate (bottom right) evangelizes for it; the Enabler (upper left) provides funding and executive attention, and the Producer (upper right) establishes full service groups with mandates for corporate entrepreneurship

Applying Robert’s Rules of Innovation , the Advocate, Enabler and Producer can thrive in this environment for each has corporate support. They have executive support, from Inspiration  to Net Reward, needed for innovation borne of corporate entrepreneurship to thrive.

Yet for corporate entrepreneurship to thrive, it needs more. It requires the structure and culture. Assuming the right people are in place, leadership must provide divisional and business unit autonomy. How can you lead your organization to a climate of corporate entrepreneurship?

-          Like Innovation, Define what “entrepreneurship” means. The phrase “Corporate Entrepreneurship” must mean the same thing organization-wide. Moreover, leadership must delineate objectives and point the way as part of its vision and mission.

-          Incubate and nurture. Corporate entrepreneurship doesn’t flourish without guidance. It starts small – and grows through encouragement. Begin with small projects heavily supported by leadership. Those success stories should be heavily communicated as such. They then will become the lead project to pull the rest of the group or other entrepreneurial-minded teams along.

-          Create a reward system. Risk and reward, when properly aligned, can foster accountability. Rewards – whether in the form of praise from immediate managers, attention from leadership, or the chance to lead future projects or task forces – are powerful motivators. They also can help solidify the creation of stronger corporate entrepreneurs.

So look around your organization. Are you surrounded by employees – or entrepreneurs? The difference may be not only the way they think, but they way they’re being nurtured.

By Robert Brands with Jeff Zbar

Robert Brands is the founder of InnovationCoach.com, and the author of “Robert’s Rules of Innovation”: A 10-Step Program for Corporate Survival, with Martin Kleinman, published March, 2010 by Wiley (www.robertsrulesofinnovation.com).