Kore Kalibre

In principle, value is distributed fairly between innovators and financial resource providers. The financial resource provider, an angel, bank or venture fund gets ownership in proportion to the risk they bear. As ambiguity increasingly disappears over time and real validation of possibilities begins to appear, risk decreases. Thus in later rounds of funding, more money buys you lesser ownership. But as innovators become better at describing their quest and possibilities, some perceived risk may be mitigated. One of the main reasons for risk is lack of information. Some information is unavailable or unsought and some is truly unknown. If innovators become savvy at obtaining as much information as possible to crisply support their quest, it could garner more rewards than what the average market conditions dictate. This is possible because there is abundance of capital for superior well thought through ideas.

Consumer, the driving force behind innovation, continues to become more discerning. In healthcare, US consumers have a sense of entitlement that they would not give up any time soon - we want the best care, immediately and free. We look at the health insurance firms to pay the bills for diverse needs - MRIs to annual health checks. Expectations are to get the best help, without delay, and with no out of pocket expense. Innovators in the healthcare space can understand such trends and identify opportunities that can take the system closer to delivering on such ideal expectations. However, questions have been raised on sustainability of this attitude. Healthcare costs continue to escalate. Solutions to this problem are not clear yet.

Today we know more about the workings of the human brain than we ever did. However, we have also learned how much more there is to know. The mechanisms of subconscious and intuitive thought are still a mystery. The chemical and electrical transmissions of trillions of neurons in billions of connections formulate our thoughts. Creativity births in the folds of our amazing brain. Therefore, it is essential to develop good fundamentals and then follow our thoughts. Good fundamentals become the foundation of our sub-consciousness and intuition. They would often guide us in the right direction.

The state of economy plays a crucial part in fostering innovation. There are several stakeholders in the US economy. The investors, individual and institutional, should have the emotional fortitude to resist greed in market hypes and not flight in unnecessary panic. This makes sense as long as many other groups play their part to keep the economic engine running well - the Central bank has kept an eye on controlling inflation before it gets embedded, the office of the president has been proactive with marginal tax relief when necessary, and policy makers are more often engaging in formulating how to create wealth for most citizens.

Adding more useful features cost effectively to your products can create competitive advantage. In addition to your own knowledge, ideas for these features can be obtained from observing other fields or successful products. They can be obtained even through licensing of new patent concepts inside or outside your company.

Frontline employees are in the position where they can listen to and observe consumers. If you encourage them to notice and interpret information about the likes and dislikes of consumers they interact with, you can find inspiration for new ideas and useful product features. They can be your best allies.

As scientists unravel the secrets of our brain, we are learning more about our mental faculties and sources of prowess. Foresight comes from imaging products and the products' impact on people’s lives in the future. This imagination can utilize information already in your memory. It can induce inquiry for new information. It can also derive missing pieces of information through an analogy. For example, if you deal with cell phone products, you can imagine the 70 million people who do not yet have the phones. What features or prices would they desire? What is your own experience? What are experiences of others with different needs? People like music, can musical ring tones find a innovative foothold?

Communication devices like the cell phone are changing rapidly. Product innovation, its delivery to the retail shelf, and the release of new product information to the end-consumer are all very critical in recent fast paced introduction cycles. Though you want to continue creating new "fresh lettuce", that is new products, if the end-consumer does not learn about it quickly enough you may lose your window of opportunity to sell.

The context in which innovative ideas unfold is critical. If one is too focused on product features and consumer needs alone, institutional factors like regulation could be overlooked. In transportation, healthcare, food or communications sectors, regulations takes center stage. What are the existing regulations that can impact your innovative product or service? What regulations are likely to come about in the life of the product? Are these opportunities or threats? Such questions should be answered in the exploration phase. David chose JFK airport as his hub because of the potential 2.5 million passengers living within its 10 mile radius. He was able to procure flying slots. However, he was still challenged by the problem of potential delays due to traffic congestions at this lucrative but busy hub of international flights. He studied the regulations and found that if JetBlue flew under 16,000 feet it could avoid the congestion created by transcontinental flights that had to fly at above 30,000 feet by regulation.

Identifying an opportunity is the first step towards innovation. One has to read a pattern of what could be adopted by customers in the future. One of the easiest ways is to look at an existing product, and find ways to provide it to a wider audience that is presently un-served. This segment may aspire for such goods or services, but may presently have restricted access or affordability due to factors non-obvious to most people. If such factors could be uncovered by aspiring innovators - it would be the beginning of an innovative foresight!