Innovation is a top priority for companies looking to grow in the wake of the economic downturn, but flaws in managing innovation may hinder their progress, according to three studies released by Accenture.
In one study of more than 630 US and UK executives across a number of industries including automotive, banking, consumer goods, electronics and retail, almost half (48%) of those surveyed said their companies had increased funding for innovation in the preceding six months, while one-third (33 %) said their innovation funding remained the same.
Additionally, nearly nine out of 10 respondents (89%) said that innovation is as important, if not more important, than cost reduction to their company's ability to achieve future growth.
However, several flaws were found in the corporate management of innovation including failure to learn from mistakes, widespread risk aversion, the need for more collaboration and too much emphasis on making incremental improvements.
The second study focused on innovation in the consumer technology industry in North America, Europe and Asia. The third focused on the communications industry across the U.S. and Europe.
"Companies can't afford to avoid risk; they must learn from their mistakes and make the bold moves required to grow their company and position it for the economic upturn," said Mark Foster, Accenture's group chief executive, Global Markets and Management Consulting.
"Managers must lead by example, collaborate across departments, communicate the business strategy down the line and inspire their teams to engineer the next category-defining product," Foster said. "Companies that fail to do so may lose significant ground to competitors who understand the value of innovation and manage it well."
Nearly three-quarters (73 %) of U.S. respondents and nearly one-third (30 %) of U.K. respondents said their organisations failed to learn from their mistakes.
Among the reasons respondents from both countries cited most frequently for new product or service launch failures were their inability to meet customer needs (57 %), being late to market (54 %) and incorrect pricing (52 %). They also cited the lack of a new or unique customer-perceived value proposition (50 %), supply chain issues (44 %) and incorrect forecasting (43 %).
For more information about innovation and this research please visit www.accenture.com/growth-innovation