The innovation process
‘No man is an island entire of itself’ wrote John Donne in his famous poem; but the process of innovation can be isolating. There’s an observed problem. There’s a self-identified solution. The question and the answer have been ascertained. But how to develop this, make this a reality and more importantly bring it to market are unknowns. Stagnation reigns. Frustration mounts and disinterest lingers.
Then there are the risks involved in innovation: protecting intellectual property, competition, development costs and understanding what consumers are prepared to pay. These niggling questions feed procrastination and can force a retreat from the process. But John was right; no man (or anyone for that matter) is an island.
Collaboration
ATI2 offers many opportunities for developing your innovation. Most of these are bespoke to each individual business but the prospect of collaboration-based support is often invaluable. To know that other businesses are jostling with innovation in just the same way, sharing those same universal challenges can start to eat away and lessen those thoughts and feelings of isolation. Peer engagement can shed light on the way forward and provide clarity which may not have been apparent before.
Innovation for Business Conference
An excellent way of embracing the process of innovation is to pop along to the Innovation for Business Conference at the end of June. You will have the opportunity to network with local innovative businesses and get the chance to discuss ideas with and seek out expert guidance from inspirational speakers and the ATI2 team. Wider business-facing teams from the University of Plymouth and other Cornwall-based projects will also be represented to provide attendees with more opportunities to take their businesses forward. All of this is being held at the achingly beautiful Alverton Hotel in the Centre of Truro. Sign up to this fully-funded event.
The process of innovation isn’t linear or black and white. There will undoubtedly be hurdles over which to jump, walls that will be hit and dead ends which will frustrate and perplex. It’s this iterative process and the very nature of innovation that, particularly in Cornwall, has driven the economy for centuries. The Innovation for Business Conference provides a platform for the astonishing number of innovative businesses of today to gather, engage and scan the horizon for opportunities collaboratively. A final thought comes from the technology pioneer Steve Jobs: “Great things in business are never done by one person; they’re done by a team of people.”