HEADS UP!
Heads Up! A weekly update on the world of innovation brought to you by Innovation University, a best practices program of the Innovation Network.
"We don't do it like that around here."
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When you bring up the topic of innovation, often people will say, "Oh,
our R&D division is very innovative." Or, "The people in
new product development are responsible for innovation."
In a recent article in The Wall Street Journal, entitled "On a Roll: The Techies Grumbled, But Polaroid's Pocket Turned Into a Huge Hit," writer Alec Klein spotlights innovation driven by the guys in marketing. Polaroid's I-Zone camera became the best-selling camera in December, the first such hit for Polaroid since the '70s. In order to attain success, the pocket camera concept had to climb over the obstacle of the engineers who feared that the low-quality pictures would ruin the company's reputation for "elegant products based on high technology." In fact, Polaroid executives were so concerned about the company's reputation that they made a concerted effort to distinguish the brand as distinct from Polaroid.
The pocket camera, which costs about $25, appeals to teenagers who use the sticky-backed pictures, at $7 roll, to decorate their school books and binders. Twenty-five percent of Polaroid's revenue for '99 came from sales of the pocket cameras, despite the fact that it was available for only the last quarter of the year in U.S. markets.
CEO Gary DiCamillo is credited with recognizing the product's potential and serving as a referee between the opposing camps. It would be interesting to know more about the process of selling this innovation within Polaroid.
In your organization, are there ideas that were shelved because they were inappropriate or not in alignment with the current strategy? Are there some worth dusting off? What would it take to sell an unpopular idea in your company?
Do you have ideas on how to advance an innovative idea or pet project?
If so, please reply to andrea@thinksmart.com.
Thanks to Dr. Deanna Berg, Faculty Chair for Innovation University, for the referral to the Polaroid article. To read the complete story, go to http://www.wsj.com, and search the archives for the May 2 article on Polaroid.
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| Andrea Woodward |
E-mail: andrea@thinksmart.com PHONE: 805-563-1438
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