10 expert tips on driving innovation

1. Lou Schreurs, SVP product creation, Bang & Olufsen

“The key question is always ‘how do you make sure that you’re close enough to the key trends in the market?’ Make sure to keep close contact to trends. If we see something, we look at how we can translate that into something that has meaning to consumers. You have to see what’s relevant and try to put a twist on that. By doing this, we can bring in a little more magic and translate trends into new technologies.”

2. Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and CEO, Facebook

“Move fast and break things.” View this businessinsider interview with Zuckerberg for more innovative tips.

3. Matt Kingdon, co-founder and co-chairman, ?What If!

“It’s to be anticipated – and quite normal – for people who haven’t experienced everything you’ve experienced on your journey of innovation to take a little time to warm up to your good idea. If you don’t recognise that and you just get cross about it, you’re actually being unreasonable. The first thing to do is simply get over it.”

4. Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO, Amazon

“In order for innovative ideas to bear fruit, companies need to be willing to wait for five to seven years, and most companies don’t take that time horizon. During this time, you need the willingness to fail. You need to think for the long term and be misunderstood for a long period of time. If you can’t do those things, then you need to limit yourself to sustainable innovation.”

5. Sissie Hsiao, Google Analytics

“I think companies that are innovative have it built into the cultural DNA of their organisation. It’s a very intentional decision that genuinely comes from the leadership. At the heart of it, innovation comes from the nature of the people who are hiring and are hired — are they naturally inquisitive people who tend to think more broadly about how to solve problems? That’s definitely been a key part of our culture at Google. But it’s also about making intentional decisions around priorities, strategy, and approach. It comes from processes that champion evolution and refinement.”

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By Shané Schutte

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