Art Drake

• How is your presentation relevant to the theme of this year’s BBC conference: Innovation in the Fast Lane?

Let’s start with a premise: The innovation process must generate increased new future revenue. Three key takeaways from this statement: Innovation is a process, the expected outcome is clear and measurable, and successful innovation requires customers. Customer engagement is what’s innovating innovation. Innovation is a bottom-line and customer impacting process. As such, we need to be motivated and obligated to review, measure, modify the innovation process to be the best it can be for each of our organizations, and for our customers. This makes innovation a process that would benefit greatly from operational excellence techniques.

• What are your top tips for companies or employees wishing to innovate?

Understand how innovation happens at your company. Is there a defined process? How efficient/effective are we at innovation and creating new revenue?

Understand how your current and future customers are engaged in your innovation process. Can you map/link your customer experience to your innovation process?

Equate innovation to creating value for your customers. Based on the previous two points, your current and future customers should be able to see and acknowledge how your innovation is creating value them. If you’re not sure about this, engage your customers and ask.