Innovators’ 101: Which ideas to realize and why
Frequently, innovators are asking me which ideas to prioritize and why. Here are some early steps you can take to ensure success in your innovation endeavors:
- First, focus on ideas that can solve a real business problem. Of course, there’s value in having gathered a bunch of creative people who love experimenting with emerging technologies. Those colleagues are eager to ideate and innovate with you, sometimes even under frustrating conditions. But while they’re eager to realize their own ideas, it’ll be hard to convince lines of business to sponsor such ideas and work side by side with you to overcome political and organizational barriers along the way. But if you take up a problem that has been raised by a business unit (sales, marketing, R&D) before, then chances are high that once you’ve shown that you’re capable of solving it, you’ll have found fans in the business who’ll help you