Not Invented Here

Cross industry InnovationRamon Vullings and Marc Heleven

Not Invented here is the phenomenon of people blocking out ideas from the outside.

Organizations need more radical and game changing innovation to be able to meet the

challenges they will be facing.

Cross industry innovation is a clever way to jump start your innovation efforts by drawing

analogies and transferring approaches between contexts.

BMWs I drive system was inspired by the video game industry, Nike Shox was adapted from

formula 1 racing shock absorbers.

The route is always to 1.Concept – Ask Why2.Combine- Ask what If3.Create – Ask How

The strategy in cross industry innovation is not Copy and paste, it is Copy, Adapt and

paste.

Cross Industry innovation is the commitment we make to the process of asking questions, combining elements, finding patterns and testing concepts.

The art of powerful questions

• Generate curiosity in the listener• Are thought provoking• Surface underlying assumptions• Channel attention• Focus inquiry• Stimulate reflective conversation• Generate energy• Evoke more questions

If I had an hour to solve a problem, and my life depended on it, I would spend the first 55

minutes determining the proper question to ask.

In Germany, companies such as Daimler,Bayer,Siemens and SAP all have an

entire department – a department of Fundamental questions, and they see

questioning as a strategic asset.

Tips for better Questions

• Refuse to accept current reality• Invite outsiders to ask questions about your

work and industry• Imagine the perfect situation• Detect real customer insights by analyzing

their actual behavior• Challenge everything

Spend time learning from other markets, other sectors. Apply the best ideas from one sector

into another.

‘No one lives long enough to learn everything by starting from scratch’ – Brian Tracy

‘We can only connect the dots that we collect’-Amanda Palmer

10 disappearing jobs that won’t exist in 10 year’s time

• Retail cashier• Telemarketer• Freight storage provider• Newspaper delivery boy• Travel agent• Postal worker• Taxi despatcher• Typist• Librarian• Social media manager• Meter reader

Which jobs will disappear in your industry?

‘We are preparing students for the jobs that do not exist’- Sir Ken Robinson

War and human conflict have always been a source of misery, at the same time, one cannot deny that they have been incredible drivers of

innovation.

A 5 second pit stop in Formula 1 racing has lessons for : machine maintenance in factories,

rehearsal for Broadway shows and fast food drive through.

Business synonyms is a great way of looking at other industries who treat the same word and experience differently. That’s a great place to

start.

Customer = Client=Student=patient=Shopper=Buyer=Purchaser=End user=patron=Prospect=Supplier=pain in the *ss=King=Queen=Employee=Stakeholder

Service =help=Support=Listening=Aid=Life-support=Account=Advantage=Applicability=Benefit=Business=Check=Courtesy=Dispensation=Duty=Employ=Employment

5 Business lessons from LEGOa.From the beginning LEGO was designed to be modularb.LEGO is unafraid to experiment with emerging new technologiesc.LEGO gives its designers cost parametersd.LEGO is just not for childrenLEGO combines different types of innovation.

‘Good artists copy, great artists steal’ - Picasso

When was the last time you did something for the first time?

Cross Industry Innovation can de described as a profitable meeting of

contexts, where previously there was no connection.

Growing your business

1. Simplify2. Cut the crap3. Virtual Buying4. Try before you buy5. Freemium6. Aim high

What can we learn from strange, uncommon businesses or even illegal businesses?

• Really jump at opportunities• Outsource to specialists• Collaborate across borders

Try the following prefix and see what happens to your innovation:MixedDualHybridFunctionalSmart

‘No candle maker has become a bulb manufacturer, no carriage maker has become a car manufacturer and the post office did not invent e mail’-Prof Marc Giget

Many industries stay within their thinking silos and within the boundaries of present

day rules and regulation