Winning the Innovation Game (HBR Article Collection)

Why do so few companies innovate successfully? For some firms, the problem stems from a haphazard approach: Executives hope that what's brewing in their labs will turn out to be what the market wants. Other organizations get stuck in the past--using outdated growth strategies, obsolete organizational structures, and mismatched resources in their attempts to create revolutionary offerings. The result? Rivals overtake them. To avoid this fate, consider the three strategies offered in this Harvard Business Review Article Collection: Craft your innovation game plan--stipulating your target markets and success criteria. Establish an organizational structure--spin-off, new internal group, new acquisition--that will create the breathing room your innovation needs to succeed. Insist on seeing early profits before investing significantly in the project. Gather the resources and capabilities required to nurture your project--including people, technologies, and product designs, as well as brands, customer and supplier relationships, and decision-making protocols. Innovation is never easy. But by applying the guidelines laid out in this collection, you will pull ahead of rivals--and perhaps even remake your industry.