The Cultural Side Of Innovation

In most discussions about the knowledge-based economy, innovation is associated or even equated with technology, while culture’s influence is ignored. Innovation is however embedded in cultural and social contexts, and neglecting these crucial contexts may impede an innovation’s diffusion—and eventual success. This book places culture at the center of discussions on innovation, beginning with a comprehensive introduction to innovation’s various forms, including the history, sociology, and economics of innovation. Insights from marketing and psychology are integrated into a complexity theory framework, which are then utilized to evaluate case studies of organizations experiencing repeated innovation successes. The sometimes fraught relationship of firms to creativity is discussed, and a new model for to calculating the creativity of an economy is presented.

Innovations in design have a cultural value. Innovations add value or fail. Values are about culture, about organising our life. Innovations and social change interact. Free creativity is important, but sometimes it's more rewarding to think of 'productive creativity': in Darwinian terms the survival and further development of innovations is not only about variety but also about understanding and influencing selection.

How do we explain the breakthrough market success of businesses like Nike, Starbucks, Ben & Jerry's, and Jack Daniel's? Conventional models of strategy and innovation simply don't work. The most influential ideas on innovation are shaped by the worldview of engineers and economists - build a better mousetrap and the world will take notice. Holt and Cameron challenge this conventional wisdom and take an entirely different approach: champion a better ideology and the world will take notice as well. Holt and Cameron build a powerful new theory of cultural innovation. Brands in mature categories get locked into a form of cultural mimicry, what the authors call a cultural orthodoxy. Historical changes in society create demand for new culture - ideological opportunities that upend this orthodoxy. Cultural innovations repurpose cultural content lurking in subcultures to respond to this emerging demand, leapfrogging entrenched incumbents. Cultural Strategy guides managers and entrepreneurs on how to leverage ideological opportunities: - How managers can use culture to out-innovate their competitors - How entrepreneurs can identify new market opportunities that big companies miss - How underfunded challengers can win against category Goliaths - How technology businesses can avoid commoditization - How social entrepreneurs can develop businesses that appeal to more than just fellow activists - How subcultural brands can break out of the 'cultural chasm' to mass market success - How global brands can pursue cross-cultural strategies to succeed in local markets - How organizations can maximize their innovation capabilities by avoiding the brand bureaucracy trap Written by leading authorities on branding in the world today, along with one of the advertising industry's leading visionaries, Cultural Strategy transforms what has always been treated as the "intuitive" side of market innovation into a systematic strategic discipline.

The aim of this volume is to further develop the relationship between culture and manifold phenomena of creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship in order to promote further and better understanding how, why, and when these phenomena are manifested themselves across different cultures. Currently, cross-cultural research is one of the most dynamically and rapidly growing areas. At the same time, creativity, inventiveness, innovation, and entrepreneurship are championed in the literature as the critical element that is vital not just for companies, but also for the development of societies. A sizable body of research demonstrates that cultural differences may foster or inhibit creative, inventive, innovative and entrepreneurial activities; and each culture has its own strengths and weaknesses in these regards. Better understanding of cultural diversity in these phenomena can help to build on strengths and overcome weaknesses. Cross-cultural studies in this field represent a comparatively new class of interdisciplinary research. This is a field where cultural, sociological, psychological, historical, economic, management, technology and business studies closely intersect. In this book, a global team of researchers representing Europe, Asia, and the Americas review, analyze, structure, systematize and discuss various concepts, assumptions, speculations, theories, and empirical research which focus on the effect of national cultures on creativity, invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship. They argue that national culture is not only an extremely important determinant of innovation and business development, but also demonstrate that some aspects relating to these phenomena may be universal among all cultures, thereby identifying those factors that may easily be transferred across cultures from those that are unique to their specific context.

Chiefly papers presented at a conference held at the Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut in Essen, Germany, in April 2003.

Philipp Herzog develops a theoretical framework arguing that Open Innovation and Closed Innovation cultures need to be distinguished. The findings help firms cope with the challenges experienced in implementing the Open Innovation concept.

Creating the Innovation Culture gives managers practical strategies and hands-on advice for encouraging and managing innovation. This may mean actually encouraging dissent, which is the source of innovation, while avoiding too much conflict, which can paralyze a workplace. Identifies how to encourage dissent and innovation Illustrates how managers can inadvertently stifle dissent Explains how to recognize when healthy dissent crosses into conflict Outlines the role of the manager as a broker of innovation and collaboration Shows managers how to act as "e;political handlers"e; in getting dissenters' ideas accepted Includes sample dialogues and an Underground Dissent QuizCreating the Innovation Culture is not about suppressing conflict, but about how to surface, increase, and manage a level of healthy dissent. It's about fostering an environment where innovation occurs because of the culture, not in spite of it."e;Frances Horibe's insightful narrative is both thought-provoking and entertaining. Creating the Innovation Culture is a vital part of any library-especially for those of us who toil daily to harness and encourage creativity. In business today, innovation is everything. This book is an exploration of the delicate balance between innovation and dissidence."e;Derek BurneyPresident and CEOCorel Corporation"e;In this lively, well written book, Horibe helps us realize that we need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. She wisely points out that great leaders seek out and encourage people who will challenge them and their rules. This book is full of great tips on how to be this type of leader so you, too, can help innovation flourish in your organization."e;Susan RobinsonSenior Vice PresidentHuman ResourcesManulife Financial"e;It was George Bernard Shaw who once remarked with undeniable logic that all progress has to depend on the 'unreasonable man' because they are the ones who don't adapt to the world as it is. This, of course, makes perfect sense, but only up to the point where one is faced with having to deal with the reality of it in an organization."e;Whether you're one of the dissenters, someone managing dissent, or merely an observer, there's something in Creating the Innovation Culture for everyone-an understanding of dissent and innovation, advice, new ideas, and a hint of the consequences if we don't learn to deal with those 'unreasonable men.'"e;David CarlsonVice President, Americas, Quality & Customer RelationsAlcatel"e;Creating the Innovation Culture shows us how to manage the most creative behaviour in an organization-dissent. It accurately and effectively describes why the need for dissent is so important to stimulate innovation that we must promote, support, and manage dissent if our businesses today are going to survive and flourish."e;Geoff Smith Vice President, Business DevelopmentMitel"e;Frances Horibe illustrates her very astute understanding of the forces at play inside organizations. By challenging our zealous devotion to vision, quality, teams and alignment, she points out how our best intentions conspire to stomp out the very innovation that we are all dependent upon. She offers pragmatic solutions for how to continue to hear dissent, how to keep it in the open, get it out of the underground, and prepare the ground for innovation. This is a must-read for leaders serious about creating the conditions for innovation."e;Rod BrandvoldVice President, Organizational DevelopmentCognos Inc."e;Frances Horibe has made a compelling case for leaders to encourage diversity of ideas and to embrace 'dissenters' for their organizations to be innovative and successful."e;Sol KasimerChief Executive OfficerYMCA"e;We are on the edge of awareness that organizations have to learn how to really think, not just 'manage knowledge.' This book builds this awareness in plain, simple, and hard-hitting language."e;Dr. Min BasadurMichael G. DeGroote School of Busines

SHORTLISTED: CMI Management Book of the Year 2017 - Innovation and Entrepreneurship Category Being a truly innovative company is more than dreaming up new products and services by external consultants and internal taskforces. Staying one step ahead of the competition requires you to embed innovation into your organizational culture. Innovation needs to be embodied in everything that gets done by everyone who works there. By changing your organizational culture to one that supports Building a Culture of Innovation, you will remove the barriers that stop you responding quickly and agilely to changing market conditions and opportunities for growth. Building a Culture of Innovation presents a practical framework that you can follow to design and embed a culture of innovation in your business.The six-step Innovation Culture Change Framework offers a structured process to make change stick, from assessing your organization's innovation-readiness to leading a managed change process that will foster innovation at each level. It includes case studies from international organizations which have shifted their focus to an innovation culture, including Prudential, Qinetiq, Octopus Investments, Cisco, Siemens, BrightMove Media, Waitrose and Feefo. Supported with downloadable resources, Building a Culture of Innovation is an essential read for business leaders and change implementation teams who want to place innovation at the heart of their business strategy.