The step or the leap

Just returned from a national conference for Industrial Extension services to small and growing manufacturers. Group is called MEP Manufacturing Extension Partnership and is a program within the National Institute for Stds. and Technology (NIST). Every state has a group that helps industry compete with best practices and services are typically subsidized which make them affordable to the small guy.

Question to ponder: Do you innovate incrementally or "go for the brass ring" with new to the market/world? I think the answer is both. Open (Radical) innovation vs. incremental innovation has been studied and debated. A brief comparison at Innovation Zen is a fair explanation. The diagram above shows it in a matrix.

Starting at the green block, you can incrementally go right or up (current capabilities/customers) or take the leap to the diversify box (radical change). It is crossed out to make a point that you may want to start small before making the leap to the top right. That said, incremental improvements may lead to radical game changers. Maybe you can take advantage of your competitors incremental improvements to visualize a radical product. Do you think the IPhone is radical or incremental? Maybe it's both. It certainly wasn't the first touch screen application but its ability to be a platform for 3rd party applications has spurred some radical innovations. (Iphone flute). Bottom line- Bloom where you're planted and grow from there.

The view from 30k feet

I was on a couple flights this week back and forth from the Northeast on business and it dawned on me looking out the window (when it wasn't cloudy) that being at 30,000 ft. reminded me of an expression I often use with clients. I say step back and look at this problem from 30,000 ft. I honestly don't know why it's not 20 or 40 but it always 30. Anyway, my point is usually about perspective. From 30,000 ft.

• I see the bigger picture
• My organization looks small compared to what's around it
• My immediate problems or customer problems don't seem to consume me as much

Practical Innovation is sometimes a step-back approach in order to go forward. A step back approach may be a SWOT analysis if you haven't done one in awhile. It may also be a current review of what projects are in the growth pipeline that may be clogging the pipe. The small enterprise has to step back and see if time and resources are focused on the right thing.

What do you think?