Enable Innovation and Transformation - one of twelve core competencies for success

 As a key part of the ADAPT Research and Advisory teams focus and content for 2020, we published the 12 core competencies, Australian leaders need to succeed.

With so many conversations related to innovation and transformation at our recent flagship CIO and Connected Cloud and Data Centre events, held over the past few weeks, I felt it timely to share just what innovation and transformation mean in our quest to differentiate and succeed.

What does it mean?

Innovation and transformation must be the drivers of today and tomorrow, if an organisation is not innovative and transformative, it is a part of the legacy problem so many IT leaders continue to be challenged with.

Conventional thinking is that transformation marks the start or the end of an approach to a business, product, process or product strategy. Innovation, on the other hand, is more evolutionary in approach and outcomes to an existing approach or technology. The two need to be considered together in a complementary manner rather than adversarial fashion.

By way of examples, digital transformation is a completely new way of approaching and delivering IT services, solutions and products and hence an exemplar of true transformation. Software-defined approaches, on the other hand, to areas such as networking are innovative as we are ultimately doing the same thing – delivering information and data over a network, except that we are using new technology to deliver it.

What are the key components?

ADAPT has identified three key components that executives should focus on, to enable innovation and transformation:

Build a case for Transformation-led IT initiatives

Technology as an enabler – This does not imply aimless investments in innovative technologies. Instead, it implies that businesses develop an orientation towards technology as a solution, enabler, and a differentiator in solving problems and driving change. Business executives should identify innovative technology investments that support and enable strategic business transformation efforts.

Build a culture of innovation and experimentation as a mindset

Australian business leaders should foster and embrace different approaches and ways of work. They should recognise how technology can offer an effective solution to every problem rather than the legacy mindset driven hindrance it is often perceived as today.

Manage Shadow IT with the view that this is often where innovation is born; foster and reward a culture of innovation. Identify employees who can help drive innovation that supports the organisation’s business growth and transformation strategy.

Identify and learn from market leaders, start-ups and digital disruptors

Think like a technology company, look around and learn from the many disruptive and successful forces that have emerged in recent times – PayPal, eBay, Uber, Amazon, Atlassian. Avoid judging failure as unwanted, learn from it, develop further and pivot to a whole new purpose, if needed. Create highly agile processes that can easily adapt to future changes. This requires a shift from large projects, rigid processes and methods to small and nimble, continuous projects.

How Australia stacks up

Many Australian organisations look to emerging technologies to demonstrate innovation and transformation, particularly as they consider IT decisions and investment.

Australian businesses have become increasingly conservative in their consideration of emerging technologies. Technologies that can be catalysts for innovation-driven business transformation strategies.

We need to ensure we do not let conservatism get in the way of considering how they may provide new and novel ways to approach and solve existing, emerging and anticipated business priorities, challenges and expectations.

Incremental investments in emerging technologies that demonstrate innovation in the workplace and the business will help Australian organisations further reduce the percentage of IT budgets and resources that remain constrained to back-office keeping the lights on initiatives.

The full report: ADAPT introduces 12 core competencies for Australian executives is available here: https://adapt.com.au/adapt-introduces-12-core-competencies-for-australian-executives/