Innovative Corporations?

Are all large corporations innovative, are they really innovative?

Poor innovative corporates

Well let's not beat around the bush with this one. Clearly all corporations are not innovative, or at least they are not innovative all of the time. Let's list a few failures that failed because they were not innovative.

Kodak took a major hit when it failed to innovate camera technology. As other, more innovative companies, introduced the wonders of digital camera Kodak was resting on its laurels and clearly missed the need to change from traditional film based cameras to digital cameras. The consequences for the company were not good. Even a basic Innovation Strategy would have prevented this huge fundamental mistake.

Similarly, many engineering companies worldwide and in the UK were caught out resting on their laurels. Rayleigh bicycles once had a good business but they failed to adapt and innovate. This put the company into serious difficulties.

There are many such examples. Some went the way of the dinosaur and became extinct and others just about survived through one means or another. You can still find references to the names of these companies today: some apparently survived (by name) but are they really the same companies [?].

It is so easy to become complacent when you are at the top and to think "why do we need to innovate when we are the great brand X?". However, the truth is every organisation has to innovate, and has to continue to innovate, for as long as it wants to survive.

Innovative corporations

Can you think of corporations that are innovative?

Here are some well know brand names (and a few lesser known names) that are, or were, associated with being innovative: 3M, Amazon, Apple, ARM, Baidu, BMW, BT Group, Google, IBM, MIT, Mercedes (Daimler), Microsoft, Samsung, Toyota, Tesla, Virgin, and Yahoo!.

Note: MIT is a university rather than a corporation, but it is so "innovative" that I thought it worthy of inclusion. Having said that it doesn't quite meet the definition for innovation though. See What is Innovation?

Now that is an interesting list because some of those are now considered innovative corporations, but some are no longer considered innovative.  Are some of them starting to rest on their laurels, and about to go the way of the poor innovators described above? Time will tell.

My award for most innovative corporation, by far, goes to a name not listed above. The most innovative corporation is... Alphabet.

Learn how to innovate effectively and how to stay innovative!