Shreyas Bakshi

  In my previous article, I posed a simple question:     "We already innovate!" …Enough?! The answer depends on how leaders assess innovation. Most organisations measure innovation by what they have achieved. Successful innovation leaders also measure how those achievements are strengthening their ability to innovate in the future. That subtle shift changes the conversation from measuring innovation outcomes to building innovation capability. But how do you know whether your organisation is genuinely becoming more innovative? The number of ideas generated doesn't answer that question. Neither do the number of patents filed, products launched or AI tools implemented. Innovation leaders need a way of assessing whether their innovation capability is actually improving. That's where the MijS Innovation Compass ™, one of the frameworks within the MijS Discipline of Innovation ™, comes in. The same Compass can be applied at multiple levels—individual, ...

  During my initial discussions with leaders, one statement comes up almost invariably: “We already innovate!” And this is typically followed by statements like: "We've implemented the latest AI tools." "We've launched new features." "We've improved our processes." "We've automated operations." The leaders who consistently deliver innovation-led disproportionate outcomes ask a very different question. Do we innovate enough?! Enough to stay ahead. Enough to create meaningful differentiation. Enough to shape tomorrow rather than simply improve today. That single shift in thinking changes everything. That's why innovation leaders are never satisfied. Not because they fail to appreciate success. But because every success has an expiry date.  Every innovation raises the bar. The next one must raise it again. Innovation leadership isn't about proving that you innovate. It's ...

  During a recent innovation workshop, the team had generated many ideas. Yet they seemed underwhelmed. When I asked why, one participant said: "We are trying to find implementable ideas." I had heard similar statements before: "Let's focus on practical ideas." "We need something we can actually implement." My immediate response was: "The job of innovators is not to find implementable ideas. The job of innovators is to make ideas implementable." The room paused. Because that simple distinction changes the way we approach innovation. Many organisations approach innovation as a search exercise. The objective is to find ideas that fit existing technologies, current budgets, available resources and established processes. But if innovation is only about finding ideas that already fit the system, how much innovation are we likely to get? Perhaps the real challenge is not finding implementable ideas … but making valua...

  "The world is a lab" is a popular concept.  Here is my take on what it means for innovation . Many organisations invest in innovation labs, centres and similar facilities to support innovation. This is often a sensible investment because innovation can require specialised equipment, technologies, expertise and infrastructure. However, every innovation lab is designed around today's understanding of tomorrow. The technologies selected, the equipment installed and the expertise assembled are all based on assumptions regarding what future innovations might require. Yet truly innovative concepts often challenge those assumptions. A breakthrough idea may depend on technologies that did not exist when the lab was designed. It may require expertise that sits outside the organisation.  It may involve capabilities that have never previously been combined. It may even demand an entirely new ecosystem of partners, suppliers and technologies. As a result, the infrastructure created...

  Many organisations invest in innovation labs, centres and similar facilities to support innovation. This is often a sensible investment because innovation can require specialised equipment, technologies, expertise and infrastructure. However, every innovation lab is designed around today's understanding of tomorrow. The technologies selected, the equipment installed and the expertise assembled are all based on assumptions regarding what future innovations might require. Yet truly innovative concepts often challenge those assumptions. A breakthrough idea may depend on technologies that did not exist when the lab was designed. It may require expertise that sits outside the organisation. It may involve capabilities that have never previously been combined. It may even demand an entirely new ecosystem of partners, suppliers and technologies. As a result, the infrastructure created to enable innovation can sometimes become a limitation to innovation. The challenge is not o...

Innovation is often visible in taglines, narratives, and presentations (PPTs), but does not always translate into outcomes reflected in Profit Before Tax (PBT). For many organisations, the innovation journey often begins with articulation e.g. innovation-led taglines vision and mission statements strategic narratives transformation messaging Some organisations go further and take measures such as: set up innovation labs launch dedicated initiatives include innovation in capability-building programmes establish new operating structures In fact, some organisations even position testing or experimentation facilities as innovation centres. The intent is visible. The aspiration is genuine. Yet in many organisations, the outcomes do not always move at the pace or scale initially envisioned. One possible reason may be that organisations often focus first on visible innovation measures before addressing deeper organisational alignment. These may not alw...

Innovation mindset is often described through familiar qualities – curiosity, exploration, experimentation, openness to challenge. But in real innovation journeys, the question is rarely whether these qualities are present. It is about how each situation is interpreted as it unfolds. While the familiar qualities continue to hold value, much of one’s thinking remains deeply personal. It is shaped by how one has learned to interpret situations over time – and often reveals itself subconsciously in the moment, quietly influencing how the innovation journey is navigated. In such moments, innovation becomes less about applying predefined mindsets, and more about recognising the thinking at play – and what may need to shift. How often do we pause to notice how our thinking shapes our innovation journeys? Across diverse innovation contexts, I have seen meaningful progress begin here. The MijS Discipline of Innovation incorporates this aspect – recognising and working with und...

  In the world of relentless pursuit of success, a mantra often recited is "Failure is not an option" . This is invariably true in ‘business-as-usual’ context where the processes are established, and failures are unpardonable. But, in the context of ‘business-un-usual’ – in other words, innovation, another mantra is more relevant i.e. “Failures are the stepping stones to success” . There are enough examples to illustrate this. The most common one being “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work” by Thomas Edison. Often, failures teach us a lot more than success and need to be made a part of the learning process in the context of evolving an innovative solution. However, failures, even in the context of innovation, can be daunting to deal with unless these are supported by well-designed practices and principles e.g. Aligning the understanding of ‘failure’ All the relevant stakeholders need to have a common understanding of ‘failu...