Role of Innovation in Change Management
We have seen how various factors contribute to the propagation of change within an
organization. For instance, change can be catalyzed through change agents and can be
driven from the top as well as from the bottom. In this article, we will look at the
crucial role of innovation in driving change. For quite some time now, it has been
known that companies need to innovate constantly if they are to stay ahead of the
pack in terms of competitiveness.
Innovation can take many forms and some of them are discontinuous innovation,
continuous innovation and dynamically continuous innovation. We shall discuss what
each mean in the next paragraph. Suffice to say that unless companies innovate they
cannot move up the value chain and unless they move up the value chain, they cannot
remain competitive. So, to make changes to the organizational processes and its
strategy, companies need to innovate constantly.
Innovation can produce sudden and dramatic changes to the way business is
done and the way consumers experience changes to the products and services
made by the companies.
This is the discontinuous innovation which is sudden and has a huge impact on the
way the company goes about its business. On the other hand, innovation can be
gradual and incremental which is the continuous innovation way which means that the
company introduces refinements to its products so that consumers adjust and adapt in
steps. Finally, there is the dynamically continuous innovation which affects the way in
which the company adapts to changing market conditions and changes in consumer
behavior trends to make a positive impact on the consumer psyche.
The point here is that no matter what kind of innovation the company adopts, the
prerequisite for change management is innovation and without innovation, a company
cannot expect its internal and external environment to be to its advantage. For
instance, if Apple comes out with its new iPhone and disrupts the way in which
consumers perceive a phone, it is discontinuous innovation. If Apple modifies its
iPhone in a dynamic manner according to the changing customer preferences, it is
dynamically continuous innovation. If it releases its iPhone after minor tweaks, then it
is continuous innovation. For Apple to make a mark in the customer experience, it has
to keep changing continuously and hence has to innovate constantly to keep abreast of
the consumer trends and the competition.
An example of a company that constantly strives to be the best when it concerns
change and innovation is 3M Corporation. This company is known for its world class
innovation teams which drive change throughout the company and keep its consumers
happy and its competitors on their toes. The way in which 3M drives innovation to
produce change is indeed exemplary and worthy of emulation. Hence, innovation
should be the mantra for companies wishing to change their internal environments and
in the process change the way they project themselves in the external marketplace.
In conclusion, we are living in times where the rapid turnover of ideas and products in
the marketplace has reached a stage where it is no longer enough to be best in the
class. Instead, the pursuit of excellence and the search for excellence are the
hallmarks of a truly successful and world class company and hence all companies
must undertake efforts to drive innovation and change within and without.
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