Does Your Company Have an Innovation Strategy? What every Board Member should know.
In light of the changing competitive landscapes, the role of the Board in directing strategy and ensuring long term value growth and marketplace relevance has never been more important.
Medium-sized companies (the definition varies by country) also have some unique challenges. Those that are in the fastest-growing verticals usually face competition from their larger peers, whether in the marketplace or in the quest for top talent. In particular, a medium-sized company can often find itself in a hiring bidding war with a larger company for the same person—or for a person the larger company already employs. If the medium-sized company doesn’t win the bidding war, the disappointment is magnified. Medium-sized companies’ relatively small staff sizes make each hire that much more important.
This report—written by The Economist Intelligence Unit and commissioned by American Express Global Business
Travel—examines the hiring obstacles faced by medium-sized companies in five of the world’s biggest economies: Australia, Canada, France, the UK and US; it also looks at the strategies that companies are employing to overcome those obstacles. The report is based on analyses of these countries’ job markets, employment trends, populations and regulations, as well as on interviews with executives of medium-sized companies and industry experts.
For buying and selling shares of IT major L&T Infotech and physical/demat unlisted/delisted shares of all companies, please contact call on 08108234400 or email on buysellunlistedshares@gmail.com or visit buysellunlistedshares.com
Today, Asia-Pacific—and in particular the fast-emerging
nations in its midst—is once again taking centrestage in
the worldwide marketplace. This is the Asian century, and the region’s organisations—
as well as the talented individuals that lead them—
are going to need to adapt, fast.
Does Your Company Have an Innovation Strategy? What every Board Member should know.
In light of the changing competitive landscapes, the role of the Board in directing strategy and ensuring long term value growth and marketplace relevance has never been more important.
Medium-sized companies (the definition varies by country) also have some unique challenges. Those that are in the fastest-growing verticals usually face competition from their larger peers, whether in the marketplace or in the quest for top talent. In particular, a medium-sized company can often find itself in a hiring bidding war with a larger company for the same person—or for a person the larger company already employs. If the medium-sized company doesn’t win the bidding war, the disappointment is magnified. Medium-sized companies’ relatively small staff sizes make each hire that much more important.
This report—written by The Economist Intelligence Unit and commissioned by American Express Global Business
Travel—examines the hiring obstacles faced by medium-sized companies in five of the world’s biggest economies: Australia, Canada, France, the UK and US; it also looks at the strategies that companies are employing to overcome those obstacles. The report is based on analyses of these countries’ job markets, employment trends, populations and regulations, as well as on interviews with executives of medium-sized companies and industry experts.
For buying and selling shares of IT major L&T Infotech and physical/demat unlisted/delisted shares of all companies, please contact call on 08108234400 or email on buysellunlistedshares@gmail.com or visit buysellunlistedshares.com
Today, Asia-Pacific—and in particular the fast-emerging
nations in its midst—is once again taking centrestage in
the worldwide marketplace. This is the Asian century, and the region’s organisations—
as well as the talented individuals that lead them—
are going to need to adapt, fast.
Leadership Deficit And The Future Of Executive And Leadership Development In ...milemadinah
This presentation highlights the immense leadership deficit that our region suffers from. It also demonstrates how our educational and training institutions, both at corporate and government levels, fall short in catering for the enormous leadership development requirements in the region. The presentation sheds light on a new strategic initiative to establish a world-class executive and leadership development institution which aims at bridging this gap. The initiative aims at building local intellectual capital and is based on a business model that ensures sustainability and provision of high quality, affordable and relevant life-long development opportunities to our future business leaders. The Madinah Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship (MILE) was initiated as one of Savola Group’s CSR programs. MILE is a non-profit organization and will be established at the heart of the Arab and Muslim World at the Madinah Knowledge Economic City. MILE’s first pilot program which attracted more than 150 senior executives from 16 countries has provided strong evidence of the viability of the proposed model.
Mergers & Acquisitions are often used as part of a
company's globalization strategy, for both intra-regional and international deals. However, substantial number of them fail. Read more to find out the challenges or visit us at: http://www.verityconsult.com
Advertising agencies are obsessed with innovation. They also have one of the most unique sets of creative talent of any industry. Yet the creative department is the most suspicious of "innovation" of any group at the agency. Could it be that actually Creative Directors hold the keys to converting ad agencies into what so many desire: innovation partners to clients?
(special thanks to @seelydiaplay for presentation design help)
Leadership Deficit And The Future Of Executive And Leadership Development In ...milemadinah
This presentation highlights the immense leadership deficit that our region suffers from. It also demonstrates how our educational and training institutions, both at corporate and government levels, fall short in catering for the enormous leadership development requirements in the region. The presentation sheds light on a new strategic initiative to establish a world-class executive and leadership development institution which aims at bridging this gap. The initiative aims at building local intellectual capital and is based on a business model that ensures sustainability and provision of high quality, affordable and relevant life-long development opportunities to our future business leaders. The Madinah Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship (MILE) was initiated as one of Savola Group’s CSR programs. MILE is a non-profit organization and will be established at the heart of the Arab and Muslim World at the Madinah Knowledge Economic City. MILE’s first pilot program which attracted more than 150 senior executives from 16 countries has provided strong evidence of the viability of the proposed model.
Mergers & Acquisitions are often used as part of a
company's globalization strategy, for both intra-regional and international deals. However, substantial number of them fail. Read more to find out the challenges or visit us at: http://www.verityconsult.com
Advertising agencies are obsessed with innovation. They also have one of the most unique sets of creative talent of any industry. Yet the creative department is the most suspicious of "innovation" of any group at the agency. Could it be that actually Creative Directors hold the keys to converting ad agencies into what so many desire: innovation partners to clients?
(special thanks to @seelydiaplay for presentation design help)
Presented at Crowdsourcing Week Global 2014 by Azim Pawanchik, Co-founder and MD, Alpha Catalyst Consulting. Join us for CSW Global 2015! More Information: http://crowdsourcingweek.com/ and https://twitter.com/CrowdWeek
Set includes a collection of creativity tools such as clustering, brainstorming, Osborn’s Checklist, morphology, brainwriting and additional tools to illustrate and support the generation of ideas and innovations.
Creativity tools pursue the generation of ideas which lead to innovations, new concepts and visions and control and improve work and creativity flows. To reach these goals, many different techniques have been developed to achieve most creative and most innovative results.
Market Approaches for Innovation and AccessUNITAID
The Gilead Sciences Presentation during the session "Market Interventions for Innovation and Access", UN High Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS
New York, 9 June 2011
Data, innovation & transformation in the public sectorAtkins
Atkins’ geospatial lead, Colin Henderson, gave a masterclass on how public sector organisations can use data in innovative ways to provide better services to the public. Colin presented two case studies on how innovative data analysis is being used to deliver cost effective broadband services in rural Scotland and how data is being used to understand and develop the Scottish ICT infrastructure.
This presentation was first delivered in June 2014 at One Public Sector Scotland in Edinburgh, UK.
Read more: http://atkinsglobal.com/en-GB/media-centre/events/atkins-lectures/2014/data-innovation-and-transformation-in-the-public-sector
This is the deck from a talk we gave on New Approaches to Business Model Innovation at the Product Development Management Association (PDMA) Summer Innovation Event in Detroit Michigan.
Many organizations focus on driving innovation through new products and services. While these are productive and profitable sources of innovation, organizations that consider innovating against a broader definition of their business model -- including not only WHAT they sell, but also HOW their business operates and delivers value, will find new opportunities to drive top and bottom line growth and ensure that they stay relevant in an increasingly turbulent marketplace.
In this presentation, The Garage Group introduces practical frameworks and exercises to enable Business Model Innovation:
● The “What/How” framework, which can be used to map and plan business model innovation within any organization.
● Examples from multiple industries to inspire Innovation across unexpected elements of organizations’ business models.
● A templated exercise to capture multiple elements of your organization’s business model which could be prime for innovation.
The Garage Group is a new kind of strategy firm building entrepreneurial processes and capabilities for innovation.
Digital transformation at the Regional Innovation Board, October 2015Sven Denecken
Where to go for more information on Digital Transformation:
Blog series on Digital Transformation
http://scn.sap.com/community/cloud/blog/2015/01/17/digital-transformation-series-the-wrap
openSAP MOOC course on Digital Transformation
https://open.sap.com/courses/dit1
Blog series on Digital Transformation use cases with S/4HANA
http://scn.sap.com/community/s4hana/blog/2015/07/13/s4hana--the-use-case-series--intro
openSAP MOOC course on use cases S/4HANA
https://open.sap.com/courses/s4h3
This workshop had 5 main goals:
1) Overview about design thinking
2) Understand a bit about how our mind works through the 30 circles exercise
3) Work deep on the problem definition
4) Brainstorming through using Disney Method to stimulate the creative side of the mind
5) Prototype something tangible
This is the third of three decks which present a new collaborative innovation reference model. This deck considers different "types" of innovation: Open Innovation, Business Model innovation, etc within the context of the reference model we suggested in the second deck. Your comments and suggestions are welcome.
Experiments to create your own Innovation War Room - created by @boardofinno ...Board of Innovation
Based on our experience, we've created a list of things that might inspire your innovation room. Some of these items are already in our office, others will follow soon. Make sure to let us know if you have other great suggestions.
WEBINAR Replay: http://bit.ly/1lYM9nX
Wed, Apr 9, 2014 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM EST
Often when people think about innovation the first thing that comes to mind is product innovation. With ten different types of innovation, the more types you can incorporate the more chance your innovations are likely to be successful.
This webinar will show you how to use ten sources of innovation to develop the ideas that could lead to the next big thing. Topics this interactive webinar will cover are:
• Why innovation is such a hot topic and why you can't ignore the trend
• What are ten sources of innovation
• How local companies are using innovation (case studies)
• What does all this mean for my business- the innovators dilemma.
Which Innovation Framework do you use, the 10 types of innovation or the busi...Heather McQuaid
Which innovation framework, the 10 types of innovation or the business model canvas, is more useful in helping people realise that 'innovation' isn't just about a product (or service)? I was surprised that no one had published (or at least made freely available) a comparison of the 10 types of innovation and the 9 building blocks of the business model canvas. So I attempted a mapping and here's what I found.
People and Innovation: Getting Ideas on the tableScott Smith
These days, everyone can attest to the importance of being innovative. In a knowledge economy where small insights can quickly shift the competitive landscape and capabilities can rapidly be bought, borrowed or built, we believe that those leaders who oversee a dynamic, fastmoving, innovation portfolio will have the best chance of breaking away from the pack and generating growth. But many organizations are finding it difficult to engage their people – from their employees to their customers to their suppliers – in the innovation process. If this is the case, then where do they start?
Published by the IBM Institute for Business Value, 2006
Workplace2020 CEO Dialogue on Future of WorkplaceCorporateShiksha
Workplace2020 CEO Dialogue on Future of Workplace by Corporate Shiksha. Featuring Mr. D Shivakumar, Chairman and CEO, PepsiCo India l Dr. Bhaskar Das, Group CEO, Zee Media Corp. l Mr. Vivek Gaur, CEO, Yepme.com l Mr. Jagdish Mitra, CEO, CanvasM l Mr. Dilip Chenoy, CEO & MD, National Skill Development Corporation l Mr. Sanjay Modi, Managing Director (India, ME and SEA), Monster.com
Pitched a novel model for establishing a Think Tank to improve the Indian startup ecosystem.
Key goals include:
1) Driving Technology development
2) Studying the co-evolution society and technology
3) Actively collaborating with the government, International community for Policy making and Advocacy.
Collaborated with Vijay Raghavan.
Photo by Jo Szczepanska on Unsplash
With ‘The 20 Most Impactful Unicorn Companies to Watch, 2019’ edition, let us admire such unicorn companies and appreciate their contribution in evolving the customary ways of businesses. Insights Success takes pride to address some of them companies in this issue.
The CEO's role is the glue that weaves people, processes, and every aspect of the critical business into unique innovation competency, integrating policies, programs, and structures to manage a balanced portfolio.
Fostering a Startup and Innovation EcosystemTechstars
We are on a mission to make the world a more innovative and prosperous place, one community at a time.
We believe that entrepreneurs are critical to driving a strong global economy and a better world. We do our part by supporting the grassroots leaders who are at the core of every strong entrepreneurial community
Improving profitability for small businessBen Wann
In this comprehensive presentation, we will explore strategies and practical tips for enhancing profitability in small businesses. Tailored to meet the unique challenges faced by small enterprises, this session covers various aspects that directly impact the bottom line. Attendees will learn how to optimize operational efficiency, manage expenses, and increase revenue through innovative marketing and customer engagement techniques.
Unveiling the Secrets How Does Generative AI Work.pdfSam H
At its core, generative artificial intelligence relies on the concept of generative models, which serve as engines that churn out entirely new data resembling their training data. It is like a sculptor who has studied so many forms found in nature and then uses this knowledge to create sculptures from his imagination that have never been seen before anywhere else. If taken to cyberspace, gans work almost the same way.
Cracking the Workplace Discipline Code Main.pptxWorkforce Group
Cultivating and maintaining discipline within teams is a critical differentiator for successful organisations.
Forward-thinking leaders and business managers understand the impact that discipline has on organisational success. A disciplined workforce operates with clarity, focus, and a shared understanding of expectations, ultimately driving better results, optimising productivity, and facilitating seamless collaboration.
Although discipline is not a one-size-fits-all approach, it can help create a work environment that encourages personal growth and accountability rather than solely relying on punitive measures.
In this deck, you will learn the significance of workplace discipline for organisational success. You’ll also learn
• Four (4) workplace discipline methods you should consider
• The best and most practical approach to implementing workplace discipline.
• Three (3) key tips to maintain a disciplined workplace.
Business Valuation Principles for EntrepreneursBen Wann
This insightful presentation is designed to equip entrepreneurs with the essential knowledge and tools needed to accurately value their businesses. Understanding business valuation is crucial for making informed decisions, whether you're seeking investment, planning to sell, or simply want to gauge your company's worth.
[Note: This is a partial preview. To download this presentation, visit:
https://www.oeconsulting.com.sg/training-presentations]
Sustainability has become an increasingly critical topic as the world recognizes the need to protect our planet and its resources for future generations. Sustainability means meeting our current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. It involves long-term planning and consideration of the consequences of our actions. The goal is to create strategies that ensure the long-term viability of People, Planet, and Profit.
Leading companies such as Nike, Toyota, and Siemens are prioritizing sustainable innovation in their business models, setting an example for others to follow. In this Sustainability training presentation, you will learn key concepts, principles, and practices of sustainability applicable across industries. This training aims to create awareness and educate employees, senior executives, consultants, and other key stakeholders, including investors, policymakers, and supply chain partners, on the importance and implementation of sustainability.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Develop a comprehensive understanding of the fundamental principles and concepts that form the foundation of sustainability within corporate environments.
2. Explore the sustainability implementation model, focusing on effective measures and reporting strategies to track and communicate sustainability efforts.
3. Identify and define best practices and critical success factors essential for achieving sustainability goals within organizations.
CONTENTS
1. Introduction and Key Concepts of Sustainability
2. Principles and Practices of Sustainability
3. Measures and Reporting in Sustainability
4. Sustainability Implementation & Best Practices
To download the complete presentation, visit: https://www.oeconsulting.com.sg/training-presentations
Attending a job Interview for B1 and B2 Englsih learnersErika906060
It is a sample of an interview for a business english class for pre-intermediate and intermediate english students with emphasis on the speking ability.
Implicitly or explicitly all competing businesses employ a strategy to select a mix
of marketing resources. Formulating such competitive strategies fundamentally
involves recognizing relationships between elements of the marketing mix (e.g.,
price and product quality), as well as assessing competitive and market conditions
(i.e., industry structure in the language of economics).
RMD24 | Retail media: hoe zet je dit in als je geen AH of Unilever bent? Heid...BBPMedia1
Grote partijen zijn al een tijdje onderweg met retail media. Ondertussen worden in dit domein ook de kansen zichtbaar voor andere spelers in de markt. Maar met die kansen ontstaan ook vragen: Zelf retail media worden of erop adverteren? In welke fase van de funnel past het en hoe integreer je het in een mediaplan? Wat is nu precies het verschil met marketplaces en Programmatic ads? In dit half uur beslechten we de dilemma's en krijg je antwoorden op wanneer het voor jou tijd is om de volgende stap te zetten.
Falcon stands out as a top-tier P2P Invoice Discounting platform in India, bridging esteemed blue-chip companies and eager investors. Our goal is to transform the investment landscape in India by establishing a comprehensive destination for borrowers and investors with diverse profiles and needs, all while minimizing risk. What sets Falcon apart is the elimination of intermediaries such as commercial banks and depository institutions, allowing investors to enjoy higher yields.
Enterprise Excellence is Inclusive Excellence.pdfKaiNexus
Enterprise excellence and inclusive excellence are closely linked, and real-world challenges have shown that both are essential to the success of any organization. To achieve enterprise excellence, organizations must focus on improving their operations and processes while creating an inclusive environment that engages everyone. In this interactive session, the facilitator will highlight commonly established business practices and how they limit our ability to engage everyone every day. More importantly, though, participants will likely gain increased awareness of what we can do differently to maximize enterprise excellence through deliberate inclusion.
What is Enterprise Excellence?
Enterprise Excellence is a holistic approach that's aimed at achieving world-class performance across all aspects of the organization.
What might I learn?
A way to engage all in creating Inclusive Excellence. Lessons from the US military and their parallels to the story of Harry Potter. How belt systems and CI teams can destroy inclusive practices. How leadership language invites people to the party. There are three things leaders can do to engage everyone every day: maximizing psychological safety to create environments where folks learn, contribute, and challenge the status quo.
Who might benefit? Anyone and everyone leading folks from the shop floor to top floor.
Dr. William Harvey is a seasoned Operations Leader with extensive experience in chemical processing, manufacturing, and operations management. At Michelman, he currently oversees multiple sites, leading teams in strategic planning and coaching/practicing continuous improvement. William is set to start his eighth year of teaching at the University of Cincinnati where he teaches marketing, finance, and management. William holds various certifications in change management, quality, leadership, operational excellence, team building, and DiSC, among others.
What are the main advantages of using HR recruiter services.pdfHumanResourceDimensi1
HR recruiter services offer top talents to companies according to their specific needs. They handle all recruitment tasks from job posting to onboarding and help companies concentrate on their business growth. With their expertise and years of experience, they streamline the hiring process and save time and resources for the company.
Affordable Stationery Printing Services in Jaipur | Navpack n PrintNavpack & Print
Looking for professional printing services in Jaipur? Navpack n Print offers high-quality and affordable stationery printing for all your business needs. Stand out with custom stationery designs and fast turnaround times. Contact us today for a quote!
1. REPORT Innovation
by Azim Pawanchik, Alpha Catalyst Consulting
Innovation
54
ON BOARD
PUBLIC LISTED | February 2012
2. A
s 2012 unfolds before us, many companies of our companies to embark on risky ventures means
scramble to devise and formulate new lower chances of Malaysian companies growing through
strategies for growth. Some continue on innovation and being in the same league as Apple,
the same path by increasing efficiency Google or Facebook.
and cutting cost, while others divest their non-core
businesses or acquire other companies to increase Innovation push and pull
their scale or gain access to new markets. The more
daring companies such as Apple Inc AAPL NASDAQ, In Malaysia, we only have one company that can
Google Inc GOOG NASDAQ and Facebook opt for proudly walk in the shadows of Apple; AirAsia Bhd
innovation as their source of growth. Innovation as AIRASIA 5099. It is the only Malaysian company which
a growth strategy is very risky, but the returns are has ever been included in Fast Company ’s ‘ World’s 50
substantial. At the end of 2011, Apple was named Most Innovative Companies’. The accolades for AirAsia run
the most innovative company and the most valuable a mile long, the latest being the ‘ World’s Best Low-Cost
technology company in the world. Apple, which has Airline’ for customer Product and Ser vice Quality at the
constantly been challenging Exxon Mobil Corp XOM 2011 World Airline Awards, one which they have won for
NYSE for the number one spot as the highest-valued the 3rd consecutive year. True to the ethos of business
publicly traded company in the US, garnered the title model innovation, in March 2011, AirAsia announced a
from delivering innovation after innovation; the kind new joint venture with Expedia Inc EXPE NASDAQ, the
that changed people’s lives, created paradigm and world’s largest online travel company. This is the first
lifestyle shifts, and turned conventional industries partnership of its kind between a low-cost carrier and an
upside down. online travel agent anywhere in the world.
In Malaysia innovation is still at its nascent stage, Even though established just a decade ago, AirAsia
as our companies are still efficiency-driven instead of has been key in transforming the Asian airline industr y.
innovation-driven. The level of attention and investment Among others, it changed the skyline by introducing the
into innovation is still ver y low compared to companies region’s first long-haul low-cost airline; AirAsia X. Their
from developed countries. Many still associate innovation attempt to disrupt the market has not always been easy,
with creativity, R&D and technology, and less with as early this year AirAsia X announced the cancellation
processes, culture, design and risk. The lack of willingness of the London, Paris, New Delhi and Mumbai routes. In
Figure 1: Elements innovation is most associated with
Source: Leading InnovAsian - Embedding Innovation Culture in Malaysian
Organizations (2010)
February 2012 | PUBLIC LISTED 55
3. REPORT Innovation
Figure 2: The Barriers to Innovation within Malaysia
Source: Leading InnovAsian - Embedding Innovation Culture in Mal aysian Organizations (2010)
a report by a local newspaper, the withdrawal of the and courage to make innovation part of their company
London route alone would affect 14,000 students. What culture and source of competitiveness?
then would the impact be on their brand and investors;
present and future? In this instance, what is the role Role of the board
of the board of directors? Should the board tone down
AirAsia X’s appetite for risk and ask them to focus only With the demise of Steve Jobs in October 2011,
where they have proven to be successful, or should the Apple’s board has the gargantuan role to keep up the
board allow them to be bolder and take on more risk, momentum of innovation and continue to grow the
especially with the rise of competition from Singapore’s company. The board and its directors, who have so far
budget long-haul airline, Scoot? been in the shadows of such a visionar y man who was
Innovation is now a permanent agenda for companies both chief executive officer (CEO) and chairman of the
operating in Malaysia with the launch of the New board, will now have to question their strategy, their role
Economic Mode (NEM), 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP), the and possibly even their competency. If Malaysian listed
National Innovation Act 2010 and many other related companies are expected to innovate too, do they have the
initiatives. In 2012, the Environmental, Social and mix of visionar y board members who fully understands
Governance (ESG) Index will be introduced by Bursa innovation and can ensure that their company is creating
Malaysia to attract more socially responsible investment value through innovation?
(SRI) funds into Malaysia. Surely, this in itself is a sign that One of the key roles of the board is to help overcome
companies need to start thinking about their processes the barriers to innovation. The Malaysian Innovation
and business models and possibly even about social Climate Report (2010) disclosed that the biggest obstacle
innovation. The Companies Commission of Malaysia that many companies face is that they don’t have a clear
Training Academy (COMTRAC) is also introducing their direction on where to innovate, secondly, they don’t really
‘ Triple Helix’ concept, weaving elements of corporate understand the customers’ needs and thirdly, many lack
governance, corporate responsibility and innovation to the funds (or risk capital) to develop and commercialize
spur companies to achieve a higher growth. The question their ideas (Figure 2). In our personal encounters with
lies, are the board of directors of our public-listed top management, some blame the middle managers
companies ready to take on the role to drive innovation in while others blame their board members for being too
their respective companies? Do they have the capability conser vative.
56 PUBLIC LISTED | February 2012
4. Based on the our analysis, the board can add value solutions. However, in an Asian environment, how many
at four stages of the innovation process, based on the directors would be willing to speak up, out of the fear
Catalyst for Change® Innovation Framework. of being labelled as a troublemaker or upsetting the
chairman or CEO of the company?
C1: Conception
(where the strategic need and direction for innovation C3: Conversion
is identified) (where the selection of projects are made)
Here, the board must ensure that innovation is The board needs to provide the mandate for the
part of their board meeting agenda. In a majority of CEO to take on risks and allocate risk capital, and be
organizations, where the CEO’s tenure typically lasts willing to approve risky projects and accept that out
only a couple of years, they would be more inclined to of 10 projects, maybe only two shall be successful.
focus on short-term gains rather than invest in long- As business environments become more and more
term innovation projects. The board therefore needs to challenging, board members need to help organizations
make certain that there is a balance of long- and short- distill their strategic direction. This is again where
term growth. Think of the risks of remaining the same diversity of the board is an advantage. When
and also of not exploiting emerging opportunities. venturing into new territories, the board can play a role
To be able to do this, the board members need to be in evaluating risks. If too risk averse, the company will
innovation ready. Frequently, the board of directors in find moving for ward an arduous task and if the opposite
Malaysian companies comprise of retired senior officials were to happen, the company may find itself spread too
from the government or private sector who bring thin.
with them ‘status’, or financiers who only look at the
bottom line. In both instances, they undeniably bring C4: Connection
with them numerous years of experience however the (where the project is released into the market)
question is how apt are they at digesting the new needs
and demands of the market? Do they have the relevant Here the board needs to be prepared to support
functional experience? Can they understand and relate management in case of failure due to unexpected
to the customer base? The Malaysian Directors Academy market circumstances as the project rolls out. Failure
(MINDA) has, since its inception in 2006, been exposing in such situations should be viewed as an investment
directors to new skill sets and mindsets required by into innovation. Both Apple and AirAsia X have had
the board. In the recent years, this has also included their fair share of failures. If boards are more supportive
innovation and the new role of the board. However, how of failure, it is easy for companies to move ahead into
much of this new information has been transferred into innovation. This is when company culture comes into
practice in the boardroom? the picture. Innovation has relentlessly been publicized
As with other things, per formance is key. The board as going beyond R&D and technology and instead has
should be no exception. There should be clear and been touted to include mindset and culture. Booz &
transparent evaluation criteria for all directors. In a Company also shared, in their 2011 Global Innovation
survey conducted by Stanford University ’s Rock Center, 1000 Report, that the most crucial factors in driving
more than half the directors inter viewed thought that innovation are strategic alignment and a culture that
the board turnover is too low. What is the rate of no supports innovation. How then can the board display
re -election or removal of a board member? Are any and ensure transcendence of an innovation culture
companies managing the succession planning for board throughout the company? What characteristics should
members to ensure sustainability beyond the current they exhibit? How can the board inject innovation into
CEO and board members? the broad spectrum of governance?
C2: Creation Conclusion
(where a portfolio of breakthrough/radical ideas are
generated) Innovation is critical for Malaysian companies, however
we don’t have many success stories as yet. We need to
At this stage the board needs to encourage their start somewhere and, within organizations, people look
company ’s management to provide a portfolio of to the top for signals that its time to change. Hence
breakthrough ideas. Different voices and diversity of to ensure that Malaysian companies can continue
ideas within the company should be allowed to emerge. creating value, its time for innovation to come into the
If absent, the board should question and push the boardrooms.
management to do things differently and think of fresh
February 2012| PUBLIC LISTED 57