Exploring Management Buzzwords: Innovation

Exploring Management Buzzwords: Innovation

This is the twentieth in a series of essays that addresses management topics. The first ten explored "hot button" issues; the next ten explore management "buzzwords." I base these essays on countless provocative lectures and irreverent discussions as a nutty professor of Business Administration.

So many buzzwords, so little time. The contemporary management lexicon is so full of terms, it is hard to address all the buzzwords that are in common use. I have addressed nine in previous essays, and in doing so, touched upon more. Here I address a word that is so central to business success, it has commanded an immense amount of scholarly and practitioner attention, and never goes out of style. So in one sense it is not a buzzword at all, but here I address some misuses and misunderstandings.

The word innovation has several formal definitions, all good. Without resorting to any one in particular, the essence of all definitions of innovation captures several themes.

One theme is obvious. Innovation involves newness. However, we obsess on technological innovations, and forget that newness can happen anywhere. Worse, we obsess on only a few of the thousands of technologies that exist. We use terms like "mature" and "emerging" to describe technologies that are in different stages of their life cycles, and it is true that the opportunity for innovation wanes and differs in kind as the life cycle of any technology progresses. But don't be fooled, newness can and does come from anywhere, not just in a couple of newsy technologies.