Abstract

We all know how to innovate don’t we? You need a good idea, a bit of hard work to solve the technical problems, a good business plan, a bit of money, and the world will want to buy our better mousetrap. It sounds easy. But why is it that so many excellent ideas fail? Or worse, why is it that the people who copy the innovation are often more successful than the innovators themselves?

Winning the innovation game requires careful management. It requires us to develop a clever strategy, and manage the network of other services and products that are needed to render the innovation successful. It needs good project management, excellent protection of the intellectual property, the ability to cope with risk, knowledge creation and diffusion, and so much more. It is dependent on good communication and marketing; and above all we need to listen to our potential users around the world.

In his talk, Arnoud explores how we can win at the innovation game.

Arnoud De Meyer is Director of Judge Business School, University of Cambridge and has more than 25 years experience in the management of innovation, both as a researcher and a practitioner. He has worked and lived in 6 countries, been actively involved in several start-ups (not all equally successful), and is non executive director of several hi-tech companies. Before coming to Cambridge he worked at INSEAD .