The Management of Innovation and the innovation of the Management

创新管理和管理创新

 

[瑞士] 威利·苏斯兰德（Willy A. Sussland）

译者：黄延峰

 

（本文经改编后发表于《北大商业评论》2015年12月－《突破管理创新魔咒》）

 

"Innovation makes the world go around because human needs are unlimited, and because human creativity is an abundant, and renewable natural resource.” W. A. Sussland

“创新推动着世界的运转，因为人的需求是无限的，人富有创造力，并且拥有可再生的自然资源。”

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　－威利·苏斯兰德

 

The management of innovation and the innovation of management may sound like a word play, but it is not. The former is the starting line, the latter the finish line of a long journey that enterprises take as they learn to manage innovation. That journey may start with a most promising innovative idea, a good first step, but then only a step of a marathon.

Innovations may light up a bon fire, but enterprises soon learn that they do not compete on the basis of a sparse and solitary innovation. They need it to build innovation-capabilities that will gush an almost continuous stream of innovations.

Let us take an overview of the levels of innovation-capabilities, and then see how the management of innovation may facilitate the innovation of the management. In Part Two of this paper, we will focus on the innovation of the management.

 创新管理，管理创新，这听起来像是在玩文字游戏，其实不然。在企业学习管理创新的漫漫征途中，创新管理是起跑线，管理创新是终点线。这段旅程可能开始于一个最有希望的创新理念，但这只不过是顺利地迈出了第一步，好比是马拉松的一步而已。

创新可以点燃星星之火，但企业很快就会认识到它们的竞争不能建立在零散且孤立的创新基础上。它们需要培养让创新几乎是源源不断涌现的能力。

我们首先对创新能力的水平加以概述，然后，讨论一下创新管理如何促进管理创新。在本文的后半部分，我们重点讲述管理创新。

 

最近威利先生携夫人去法国戛那旅游、避暑，给译者寄来了明信片。

下面的两本词典也是寄给译者的礼物。

照片为戛那克鲁瓦塞特大道（海滨大道）

为戛那电影节举办之地
 

The different talents that drive innovation-capabilities

推动创新能力的各种人才

 

"Innovation” is the result of a project that comprises 5 different processes, namely: the ideation, the inspection, the imagination, the initiatives and implementation, and the follow up that may feature improvements – extensions -new innovations. (1) Each of the aforementioned processes involves a different cast of characters.

<> The ideation is an exiting and somewhat unpredictable process where motivated and talented creative people interact in the frame of a pluri-disciplinary team. Often, such teams are familiar with the creativity and with the team-management tools such as advocated by Total Quality Management. Proper training and good leadership can help ideation teams to operate fairly efficiently. Yet, excessive pressures of efficiency may strangle creativity.

<> Taking ideation a step further will require additional tangible and intangible resources. To allocate those resources, the management will ask for an objective outlook on the risks-rewards-timing. Analytical type of persons will be called upon to check the feasibility, and the profit potential of the ideation.

<>形成创意的能力是一种正在消失且在某种程度上是不可预测的方法，积极且有才能的创造性人才会在由多专业人员组成的团队中互相影响。通常情况下，这样的团队熟悉创造力，也熟悉团队管理的工具，如全面质量管理所倡导的工具。适当的培训和良好的领导能力可以帮助创意团队高效地运作。然而，追求效率带来的过度压力可能会扼杀创造力。

<>将创意能力推进一步则需要额外的有形和无形资源。要分配这些资源，管理者需要对风险回报时程（risks-rewards-timing）进行客观的展望。这就需要善于分析的人检查创意的可行性和潜在的盈利性。

 

<> The imagination process combines the emotional/creative as well as the rational/result oriented perspectives in order to find the best way to bring the approved ideation to market, and to secure a sustainable success. This is a hyper-critical part of the whole project, because the innovators are very exited, and may underestimate the challenges that will follow.

<> The initiative & implementation as well as the following improvement - extensions - innovation phases are fairly self-explanatory.

Having outlined the innovation-capabilities of innovation-projects, let us now look at the 5 levels of increasing sophistication of innovation-projects.

<> 为了找到将经过认可的创意变成产品投放市场以及确保可持续成功的最佳方式，想象过程要将情感/创意和理性/结果导向的观点结合起来。这是整个创新计划极为关键的部分，因为创新者都非常激动，很可能会低估随之而来的挑战。

<> 创始和实施以及下来的改进－扩展－新创新阶段则是不言自明的。

在概述了创新计划所需的创新能力之后，我们接着要探讨提升创新计划成熟度的5个层次。

 

The innovation-projects and the value-chain

It is important for the life-forces of the organization to see where, how, how much business-value is created/destroyed in the sequence of operations that start with the supply of materials that are transformed by the enterprise, and then delivered to the costumers.

创新计划和价值链

重要的是，企业员工要按照经营的顺序看清企业的价值是由哪些方面创造或毁坏的、如何创造或毁坏的以及创造或毁坏了多少价值，而企业的经营是从经过企业转换的原材料供应开始，最后是向消费者交付产品。

 

Prof. Michael Porter developed in 1980 the model of the value-chain. It focuses on the value-added by the operations management and by the staff functions to the different processes of the supply-chain. Oddly enough, Porter’s model omits the value added by the management! Moreover, in practice, it can be difficult to figure out how much value that has been added and the costs that have been incurred by the links that take place inside the organization.

The Total Quality Management focused the attention on the processes. Today, we look at the management of projects, and every link on the value-chain is a project. Projects combine the inputs of strategy or policy, of the resources or powers, of the significant partners, of the processes in order to generate outputs or products. And so, for the evaluation of the value added by the projects, I propose to evaluate 5 , i.e. the policy, the powers, the partners, the processes, and the products.

全面质量管理重点关注流程。今天，我们要讨论创新计划的管理，价值链上的每一个环节都是一个创新计划。创新计划使得战略、政策、资源、权力、重要合作伙伴和流程的投入结合在一起，以生成结果或产品。所以，为了评定创新计划带来的增值，我建议评价 5个P，即政策（policy）、权力（power）、合作伙伴（partner）、流程（process）和产品（product）。

 

The senior management focuses on the top 3 , and it sets the objective and the resources allocation for the projects, it is involved in the management of the relations with the partners. The operations management focuses on the bottom 3. It manages the relations with the partners, runs the processes, and it takes responsibility for the quality of the products.

企业高管的重点是前3个P，它设定了创新计划的目标和资源的分配，它涉及与合作伙伴关系的管理。运营管理侧重于后3个P，它管理与合作伙伴的关系和流程的运行，并为产品的质量负责。

 

The estimation of the value added and of the costs incurred link-by-link on the value-chain is important in order to understand what links should be out-sourced, and what links should be improved or innovated. However, it is of critical importance that the enterprise establishes a good cohesion and coordination of all the key links on the value-chain.

 

The 5 levels of sophistication in the management of innovation projects

Companies develop their innovation-capabilities over different levels of sophistication in the management of innovation-projects. I propose the following classification.

<> The first level of innovation-projects is run by one or several groups in the operations. They focus on improving & innovating some products and/or some processes. Their action spans on just a few links of the value-chain. At this stage, most likely the senior management just keeps a distant watch.

<> The second level of innovation-projects should get the senior management involved in order to build awareness for the importance of innovation so as to spread the efforts company-wide over a broad spectrum of the value-chain. Increasingly, companies must control a large part of the value-chain in order to resist competitive attacks.

<> 创新计划第一层次，指的是一至几个运营团队在运行。他们专注于改进和创新某些产品和（或）流程，而且他们的活动会跨越价值链的几个环节。在此阶段，高级管理者最有可能只是远远地观察。

<> 创新计划第二层次，为了增进对创新重要性的认识，以便让全公司的努力辐射到更广泛的价值链中，应该让高级管理者参与进来。逐渐地，为了抵制竞争对手的攻击，公司必须控制大部分的价值链。

 

<> The third level of innovation-projects should involve the partners and mobilize the powers of the enterprise in order to sustain a flow of evolutionary innovations. Here, the senior management must work closely with the operations management.

<> The fourth level sees the leadership applying the 5 to the management of the innovation-projects, and the senior management may launch projects that concern radical innovations.

<> The fifth level of innovation-projects sets a portfolio of innovation-projects. This portfolio enables the enterprise to synergize evolutionary and radical innovations, and, as a result, to optimize the overall balance of risks-rewards-timing. Building and continuing to strengthen a portfolio of innovation-projects is the key to sustainable success with innovations.

 

Companies do not compete with a single product or with a discrete innovation.

They compete with their portfolio of products, and of innovation-projects!

企业不是在单个产品或零零散散的创新上开展竞争。

他们的竞争体现在产品组合以及创新计划上！

 

Managing an innovation-portfolio entails the following advantages.

<> It optimizes the synergies among the different innovation-projects as well as the balance of risks-rewards--resources.

<> It optimizes the learning curve concerning the management of innovation-projects.

<> It heralds the achievements internally and externally; it celebrates the results and distributes the rewards; it promotes the development of the innovation-capabilities company-wide, and it reinforces an innovative corporate-culture.

Progressing on the 5 levels of sophistication in the management of innovation-projects is not easy, but some of the biggest obstacles are created by the enterprise itself.

 

The disconnects that hamper innovation

According to executive surveys run by global consultants, the following shortcomings stymie the innovation and the organizational-capabilities of some of the Western companies. The following are excerpts from my book. (1)

<> A vast majority of the polled executives acknowledges the fact that innovation needs to integrate the corporate strategy in order to get the support of the senior managers.

And yet, only a third of the surveyed senior executives say that they set formal priorities concerning innovation during their planning process: Moreover, only few hold their managers accountable for innovation.

 

The disconnect between innovation and strategy is the 1st of the key problems

that hinder the management of innovation.

在妨碍创新管理实现最优化的关键问题中，

创新和战略之间的脱节排在第一位。

 

<> The operations management has to focus on their short-term financial objectives. Hence, they look to achieve organic growth through products and customers in the existing markets because this entails fairly predictable income.

As a result, most innovations are limited to the innovation of some of the products and possibly of some of the processes that concern the links at the end of the supply-chain. And so, without being clearly driven by corporate strategy, and without much support from the senior managers, innovation remains sparse, haphazard, and sporadic.

 

The limitation of the scope of innovations is the 2nd of the key problems

that hinder the management of innovation.

在妨碍创新管理实现最优化的关键问题中，

创新范围的限制排在第二位。

 

<> Sometimes the senior management sets up special structures to work on a business breakthrough. However, separated from the core business, the special structures that handle the breakthrough projects may have difficulties getting the necessary resources from the business-units, and eventually they may also find it difficult to integrate the core business when the time has come to supplement the radical innovation with evolutionary innovations.

 

The disconnect between the innovation-projects in the operations and the business breakthrough

is the 3rd of the key problems that hinder the management of innovation.

在妨碍创新管理实现最优化的关键问题中，

经营中的创新计划和突破性产品计划的脱节排在第三位。

 

<> Innovation is made by people, with people, and for people. And so, companies fight to get top talents in order to outperform. According to an executive survey published in 2012, talents are the number one issue on the mind of the polled business-leaders, and yet 75% of the

 

Poor management of the talents is the 4th problem that stymie innovation.

对人才的管理不善是阻碍创新的第四个关键问题。

 

<> The talents need the right culture to sparkle, just like plants need the right soil to grow. However, the corporate culture and the management of talents are merely two elements of a bigger framework that gets people to act and to interact so as to achieve the common goals, namely the organizational capabilities.

 

The disconnect between talents and the corporate culture is the 5th of the key problems

that hinder the management of innovation.

在妨碍创新管理实现最优化的关键问题中，

人才和企业文化的脱节排在第五位。

 

<> The former Arthur Andersen Consulting published in 2000 an executive survey, which showed that over 80% of the respondents recognized the importance of investing in intangible assets, however less than 30% of them said they acted accordingly.

According to Kaplan & Norton, intangible resources now account for 75% of the value of companies. And so, the traditional organizations, which fixate the tangible assets, stare at the tip of the iceberg while missing out the bulk of the value of the organization.

 

The disconnect between the tangible assets and the intangible resources

is the 6th of the key problems that hinder the management of innovation.

在妨碍创新管理实现最优化的关键问题中，

有形资产和无形资产的分离排在第六位。

 

<> Senior managers recognize that their enterprise must excel in creating superior value with and for their significant stakeholders. Yet, most of their innovation efforts are focused on the external value-chain, i.e. on the customers and on the supply chain. However, the internal value-chain of traditional organizations remains tightly trapped by traditional tenets, which stymie their innovation-capabilities. Thus, the business-value-added by the different hierarchical levels, and by the staff functions is under-managed.

 

The disconnect between the internal and the external value-chain, and between the senior

and the operations management is the 7th of the key problems

that hinder the management of innovation.

在妨碍创新管理实现最优化的关键问题中，

企业内部和外部价值链之间、高级管理者

和运营管理者之间的脱节排在第七位。

 

Conclusions

There is no lasting success without innovation, but there can be innovation without lasting success !

In the first part of this paper I have outlined some of the dos and don’ts concerning the building the innovation-capabilities in order to achieve sustainable competitive advantages.

In the second and last part of my paper, I will discuss the innovation of the management.

没有创新就不会有持续的成功，但有可能存在着无法持续成功的创新！

为了实现可持续的竞争优势，我们需要培养创新能力，而培养创新能力该做什么和不该做什么已在前面进行了概述。接下来，开始讨论管理创新。

 

 

Bibliography

(1) Willy A. Sussland “The Innovative Enterprise – How to transform a traditional organization in an innovative networking enterprise”,2014

(2) Michael Porter “Competitive Advantage” Free Press 1985

(3) V. Govindarajan & C. Trimble “Beyond the Idea” Martin’s Press 2013

(4) Kaplan& Norton “The Balanced Scorecard” HBSP 1996