While innovation is a nice word, it might feel daunting to begin implementing actual innovative strategies in your business. In this article, we’ll help you understand why these types of strategies can help you, as well as why New Zealand is the perfect place to do so. 

What is innovation? 

At its core, innovation is the concept of trying something new. The very best innovations are not just new for the sake of being new, but are presented as the solution to a problem. This can take the form of a new product, a new business model or process, or even a small change in how you run business meetings. In other words, it’s a way of breaking barriers and changing the status quo. By doing so, it creates value. 

But more than just the product, service, or other outcomes that are often associated with the word innovation, the concept is just as much about having an innovative outlook. If you tackle issues and projects at work with the attitude that something new and meaningful is possible, and that change is part of the process, that allows for a freer business model which can be more resilient and healthy.  

Why should we care about innovation? 

All around the world, businesses are changing their budgets and calendars in order to focus on innovation. But does innovation actually matter? And even if it does, why should we care about it? 

There has been a large range of studies on the effect of innovation on businesses and markets, both from the perspective of revenue and general financial health. Overall, the studies show that there is a large range of positive impacts from implementing innovative strategies. For example, innovative businesses are more resilient. The Boston Consultancy Group found that the global top 50 businesses were able to recover a lot faster during the pandemic, where they outperformed the 2020 market by 17 percentage points.  

There is also the case of increased competitive advantage and business growth. Companies with a clear focus on innovation will attract workers with a strong affinity for development. Attracting stronger workers will lead the company towards a stronger goal orientation which will most likely increase efficiency and productivity, thus leading to business growth. 

Related to the previous point, companies that do not focus on innovation will soon lag behind. Not only has innovation become an “it”-word in global literature and seminars, but a study by BCG also found that 75 per cent of global companies list innovation as one of their top three priorities. As the concept of innovation grows in popularity, businesses that fall behind in prioritizing it risk losing out on the market to those who do.  

How can you implement innovative strategies in your business? 

So, what can you do to bring more innovation to your company or project? There are several good innovation strategies out there, but we will mention a few here. 

• Set a clear goal. The first step to bringing everyone on board the innovation train is to create a common goal. Perhaps it’s a value goal, such as working to create valuable solutions rather than focusing on material goals. Perhaps the goal is more hands-on for reaching a certain solution or even becoming nominated for an innovation award.  

• Interdisciplinary processes. Innovation happens when people work together. Therefore, bring diverse sectors to your project evaluations. Bring different groups, both from within the company and external members (such as customers or supply chain partners), together to evaluate and brainstorm projects. This will also build a sense of overarching purpose, rather than individual and isolated group efforts. 

• Innovative friendly leadership. Innovation is about taking risks. This also means that the company needs to be a space where employees feel supported when trying new ideas. Therefore, the leadership needs to be supportive and encourage experimentation without penalizing it.  

Incorporating Innovation New Zealand NZ 

New Zealand is one of the top countries in the world that have managed to promote innovation and growth in its national economic strategy. It is among the top freest economies in the world, so it is easy to start a business as well as promote innovations NZ in the Oceanian state. Building on these market foundations, there are also innovation funding programs such as the NZIB that aid innovative Kiwi start-up companies. 

There is also a social foundation for innovation in the country. The most innovative companies tend to be the most diverse. New Zealand almost always stands out in global diversity and equality rankings, thus providing fertile grounds for innovative ideas and cooperation to sprout.  

As we’ve mentioned in a different article, New Zealand not only makes it easy to be innovative but is also very good at celebrating it. There are plenty of innovation awards New Zealand where both large and small companies can compete and be recognized. The wide array of NZ innovation awards is also a clever part of a larger innovation promotion strategy, as research has found that these types of events also help improve the public’s perception of the public sector.