Ideation vs. Implementation

The prime determinant for the failure of most startups is lack of market need. The reality, though, is failure to identify the right opportunity at the right time. In fact, the inability to track down the exact problem necessitates using ideation techniques. Without this, any innovation-related activity can be riskier than you might think.

Ideation is the creative process of innovation that involves gathering information, idea generation - evaluation, and execution for future advancement. Its main objective is to move ideas from conception to implementation.

Ideation sets the groundwork for a better understanding of what the customer wants. If we do not attract our customers with something unique, we are fighting a losing battle! Whether a customer will return to buy from us depends on how they feel about our brand and how keen they are to return to it.

One can develop new ideas or brand-new products or services to succeed in the market with a perfect setup. One such example is the 15–30-minute delivery time of Swiggy's Instamart. Ideas like this drive the welcoming attraction of advanced commerce and captivate the entire business ecosystem.

Ideas come from brainstorming sessions, which may involve writing down raw thoughts, sketching rough ideas, holding discussions, etc. They also emerge from a person's previous knowledge, influences, beliefs, experiences, and other similar factors.

Discovering the ideal improvement opportunities for your products and services is the primary step in the idea management process and involves two stages.

The first stage is internal, requiring employee participation to find and discuss potential risks and issues. It involves coming up with ideas and then comparing the ones that have received the most attention. The most effective one is picked for the next stage, i.e., implementation. Throughout the implementation stage, business success is actively tracked.

Once the ideas and information from the ideation stage have been verified, the Strategic Planning Model moves into the implementation stage. In this stage, ideas are organized into a set of action groups that assemble authentic proposals and finally execute the ideas expressed during the ideation stage.

An implementation strategy is essential for organizations while developing and carrying out ideas, projects, or methodologies. However, it is hard to get right.

Idea generation is crucial for businesses wanting to innovate and acquire a competitive advantage. And Google’s 20% approach is an excellent example of it. However, ideas alone don’t mean anything, it’s the implementation that counts.

When you generate ideas with your workforce, customers, and beyond, you’ll collect invaluable insights to improve processes, create breakthrough products or services, disrupt markets, etc.

Let's break it down a little more.

There is a higher possibility that your loyal clients will continue to buy your products when you involve them in the ideation process as you want to provide them with the best product value. As a result, your business gains from the customer feedback approach in two ways:

a) A list of suggestions for enhancing your product

b) Improvement in both brand loyalty and customer experiences

During the ideation phase, potential flaws and failures are evaluated in real-time. However, ideation should not mean pursuing only the best business practices. The concept of best practice is contrary to good decisions. Managers should know that there are no best practices but only approaches that work best for each situation.

The idea of "best practices" in businesses is fundamentally incorrect for the following reasons:

• It is an assertion-based argument rather than one supported by logic and evidence
• "Best" is relative rather than absolute
• It promotes stagnation by discouraging innovation

Although principles and techniques of ideation are universal for all businesses, there is no fixed standard for moving from ideation to implementation. There are many efficient ideation techniques to find fresh ideas:

1. Brainstorming

Brainstorming is one of the well-known ideation approaches. The purpose of brainstorming is to use the group's collective intelligence to expand each other’s ideas

2. Method 6-3-5

In this method, six people come up with three ideas in five minutes. After the allotted five minutes, team members pass their sheets to the next person so the teammates can enhance their ideas

3. Five Whys Analysis

In the "Five Whys" technique, team members are compelled to question "why" five times. This technique was popularized by Toyota. The exercise's objective is to identify the problem's underlying cause, which may require posing one or ten "why" questions

4. Prototyping

Prototyping is the act of making a physical representation of your idea. Prototyping makes it easy for employees to envision how their products will operate. This allows the team to get feedback from internal and external stakeholders earlier in the development cycle

5. Storyboard

Through storyboarding, businesses can create a visual narrative about their problem or solution. Teams can use the activity to depict their potential customers and the several ways they might interact with the company

Innovation is at the heart of every sustainable business plan. If done right, ideation helps executives determine the right problem and ideas to solve it. Businesses rely on ideation to assist in gathering, assessing, and implementing the best ideas. In fact, it becomes a win-win situation for both business and the customer

Someone in your business is about to come up with a brilliant idea. Why not invest in innovation to advance your business?

Key Takeaways:

• Ideation involves developing ideas, while implementation helps execute them
• Ideas themselves have no actual use on their own. The correct implementation of ideas is where the real value emerges
• Ideation and implementation go hand in hand to help an organization survive and thrive