The Myths and Paradoxes of Innovation

This white paper looks to eradicate some of the common misconceptions of innovation. Namely, that:

1. Pressure breeds innovation.
2. Creativity is something you are born with, so innovation training is futile.
3. The most important thing is having creative people, rather than a strong innovation strategy or process.
4. Innovation is all about the ideas.

Innovation is becoming a necessity for firms faced with rapid advances in technology, increasingly active customers, shortening product life cycles and increasing international competition. Managing innovation is a critical differentiator between organisations. When shaping an organisation’s innovation strategy, it is important to understand what really drives creativity.

In addition to drawing upon the latest academic research in this area, this white paper also considers current views from senior leaders from a range of sectors, captured during an engaging roundtable discussion. Managing innovation was high on the priority list for all of these leaders.

In reading The Myths and Paradoxes of Innovation, you will:

• Have a better understanding of what really drives innovation, helping to shape your innovation strategy.
• Be able to create innovation training for yourself or your teams, based on the latest research from business and sport.
• Be able to support your team to be more creative.
• Understand that an innovation strategy must go beyond idea-generation.