outsource issue 31 - (Page 70)

Innovate to Accelerate We all demand innovation – but are we actually getting less of it? Rick Eagar, Arthur D. Little Rick Eagar is Partner at Arthur D. Little; Leader of the UK Technology and Innovation Management practice and the UK Public Sector team; and chairman of the Global Partner Assessment Committee. W hilst there is no shortage of advice on innovation management, there seems to be relatively little empirical evidence about what really works in terms of managing the innovation process, and understanding what differentiates top innovators from other companies in different industries. Arthur D. Little’s 8th Global Innovation Excellence Study sought to explore in some depth the processes and approaches used by companies for innovation management; show how these contribute to innovation success; and enable participating companies to benchmark themselves against their peers. In this article we highlight a few key insights that are important for any company wishing to achieve a better return on its investment in innovation management. Perception and reality The results of our study show that innovation performance is actually worse now than it was three years ago, but despite this companies are increasingly happy with their efforts and top innovators still regularly outperform their industry peers. Overall, innovation performance has significantly decreased by up to 25 per cent since 2010 across a range of industries, yet satisfaction with the actual level of innovation achieved has increased from 25 to 42 per cent. This may be in part driven by the tough market conditions witnessed in recent years, which has forced companies to focus on short-term performance. It may also be influenced by particular issues specific to individual sectors. Excellence in Innovation Management leads to greater profitability There is a strong and statistically significant correlation between using best practice management approaches (as embodied in ADL’s Innovation Excellence Model) and achieving higher innovation performance. Furthermore, comparing top quartile performers with the rest of the sample there is a significant gap of up to 13 percentage points in terms of EBIT from recent product “Learning and innovation go hand in hand. The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow.” – William Pollard 70 ● ●● ARTHUR LITTLE.indd 70 www.outsourcemagazine.co.uk 21/3/13 16:32:05 http://www.outsourcemagazine.co.uk

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of outsource issue 31

Upwardly Mobile
Keys to Driving Supply Chain Outsourcing Success
Biography of a Carve-Out
Culture and Values
Redefining the Law Firm Delivery Model
Sharing the Glory
Norn Ironman
Breaking the Outsourcing Conundrum
NOA Round-Up
Back from the Summit
Losing the Race Before You Put On Your Trainers
Innovate to Accelerate
Comparing Clouds
People Power
Making an Impact
Home or Away?
Dead and Buried?
So What Now?
The Legal View
Top Ten
NelsonHall Round-Up
Sourcing Sage
Online Round-Up
The Deal Doctor
Inside Source
The Last Word

outsource issue 31