Comments on: How Companies Kill Innovation – A Good Laugh

By: Nigel Barlow

Nigel Barlow — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:18:14 +0000

Great piece and wonderful cartoon illustration of something that captures the process really well

By: Smruti

Smruti — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:44:57 +0000

The cartoonist has successfully put the real lifecycle of most of the innovations. However, the real situation is even worse than that. Many great innovations are killed unknowingly in various stage in many organizations.

By: Bob MacPherson

Bob MacPherson — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 20:57:13 +0000

Very good capture of the process. In our company we have an additional two steps that ensure that the product project manager will have their arteries hardened even more: first is a matrix organization where the person responsible for completing the project has no actual resources working for them and is entirely dependent on another person who does not know how to lead or delegate. Then to make sure that the process is completely hosed, during the phase where the projects are slowly dying, develop task forces from multidisciplinary groups who are forced to meet without having any ability or empowerment to actually make decisions. These ideas will forever bury the project (and the project manager)

By: Johan Hjelm

Johan Hjelm — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:54:23 +0000

He forgot the worms coming from other apples, bringing the meat back to their own to build their empires…

By: George King

George King — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 05:46:36 +0000

Also the not invented here (by My Department / Division et) is also a real good idea crib killer.

By: Hemant Sahal

Hemant Sahal — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:25:32 +0000

Good one!! its quite true..

By: Mark

Mark — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:07:57 +0000

Most due to the poor internal talent mgmt, sometimes cross-cultural communication(diversity/equality) problem in MNCs.

By: SM

SM — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:53:09 +0000

Oh, yeah, the management indecision!!!

By: Elckerlijk

Elckerlijk — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:20:02 +0000

Cartoonist must have worked with "innovator" Sun Microsystems ? Especially the "Management Indecision" looks familiair.. and the "Stubbornly Marketed as Original Idea" as well..

By: Neil Robinson

Neil Robinson — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:51:13 +0000

Hey, Stephan, well done. Would have worked better as a tomato though. Tomato sauce tastes nothing like a tomato and can't be used instead of it!

But a point well made, none the less. I use the analogy of looking for treasure in a fire bucket in the corporate corridor compared to exploring for it on a global beach.

Look for as long as you like, but you're unlikely to find a gem in a bucket, but look long enough on a beach and the chances are much better. The morale?

Innovation is best looked for outside the organisation, not within it. See my blog post:
http://www.blog.lanzen.co.uk/?p=219