Follow the Crowd or Create the Marketplace

It’s follow my leader time for the world’s stock markets. Concerns over the state of the Chinese economy have seen markets plunge into freefall, only for some to bounce upwards again a few hours later. At the time of writing, markets are still in flux with analysts divided on the eventual outcome.

The impartial observer may wonder why the sudden panic, why when statistics and warning signs have pointed to areas of concern for a period of time the markets have suddenly moved from apparent inactivity to violent action. This is not a new phenomenon, nor is it confined to the world stock markets. In fact, the history of business could easily be written in terms of a giant game of follow my leader.

What’s right for you?

The fact is that like so much else in life different ideas work for different organisations. And whilst the principal may be sound and may be entirely appropriate at a headline level, it is how leaders shape the basic idea to work for their organisation that makes the difference between boosting business success and yet another change failure.

“Innovation is not a one size fits all solution. “

The innovation roadmap

One of the best ways to make sure that you are creating a solution which is right for your organisation, rather than simply a copy of someone else’s idea, is to take time at the outset to really understand where your business currently stands. This innovation cultural assessment should employ a mix of qualitative and quantitative assessments which are designed to enable the leadership to not only understand the current level of innovation maturity but also to gauge areas such as employee engagement.

To read full blog about Follow the Crowd or Create the Marketplace visit Innovation Management