Last week, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) held their annual re:Invent conference in Las Vegas. Gigaom’s Barb Darrow summarized her Top-5 lessons learned from the conference here. Specifically for CIO’s, there were a number of things coming from the conference that every CIO should take note of. One of those is to prepare for innovation. It is not a matter of if; it is a matter of when.
Innovation is not a destination, but rather a journey. The path is not always rosy and presents a number of challenges along the way. The upside is an outcome that positions the CIO, the IT organization and ultimately the company in a unique position among their competitors.
There are a number of core items that prepare the CIO for advancing down the innovation path:
- Keep it simple: The world of Information Technology (IT) is getting complex, far more complex, and not simpler. Yet, the importance to become agile and responsive to changing business demands is ever-present. The IT organization must find ways to streamline their processes across-the-board. We all know the KISS principle.
- Create innovative culture: Innovation is not innate for most. Current culture may actually inhibit innovation within the organization. Understand that culture must change. A good friend and CIO, Jag Randhawa wrote the book “The Bright Idea Box: A Proven System to Drive Employee Engagement and Innovation.” Jag outlines a process that he found to be successful and applicable to many different types of organizations.
- Avoid constraints: It is easy to find ways to avoid problems. Preparing for innovation can cause disruption. However, questioning the status quo may be exactly what the organization needs. Look for ways to address constraints whether from technology or from conventional thinking.
- Find leverage: IT is not able to do everything. In the past, it was necessary for IT to do everything (relatively) since there really was no other alternative. Fast-forward to today and there are many more options available. Identify what is strategic and should be a focus for IT. Find leverage for the other points to avoid distraction and paralysis.
- Seek difference: Being different is often a scary proposition. Many see differentiation as a sign of risk. The thinking that there is safety in numbers. But the thinking must change. Differentiation is something not just to be cherished, but sought out! Look for opportunities to change and provide differentiation.
The combination of these mantras set the stage for a different perspective and line of thinking. Are these the end-all, be-all list of steps? No. But they present a good short-list to start with. Start small and do not expect the changes to happen overnight. It will take time and reinforcement.
Many of the discussions taking place last week at AWS re:Invent spoke of innovation and new ways of thinking. They spoke of a future state for IT. Consequently, traditional thinking had a hard time gaining a platform for discussion.
Connecting the dots
Yet, much of the challenge traditional enterprises have is around connecting the dots between current state and future state. For the CIO, setting the stage, cadence and direction is much of the challenge. It is a lot of work, but still needs to be done.
The first step is in setting a vision that aligns with the business strategy. Understand the core business of how the company makes and spends money. Seek out ways to provide innovative solutions. Start out small, learn from the experience and grow. Look for ways to streamline how IT operates and continually improve IT’s position to become more innovative.
Innovation is about the journey, not the destination. Innovation is an opportunity for differentiation that must be accepted and celebrated. Innovation presents a significant opportunity for companies from all industries. And IT plays a key role in driving today’s innovative processes.