Nobody reading this will be surprised that Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Netflix, Orange, Tesla and Uber rank among the most innovative companies in the world. Innovation, after all, is what got them where they are today.
But what’s Dupont, founded in 1802 during the presidency of Thomas Jefferson, doing on a list of today’s top corporate innovators?
And ditto Procter & Gamble, founded in 1837, Johnson & Johnson started in 1886, Renault (1899), General Motors (1908) and Marriott (a relative youngster, which began life in 1937 as an A&W root beer stand)? Aren’t these companies, almost by definition, dinosaurs?
If by dinosaur the suggestion is that they’re slow, lumbering and obsolete, the answer, of course, is no. Sure, they’ve all been around a while. But age doesn’t necessarily make a company any more or less adaptable, agile or creative or in any other way impede or enhance its ability to innovate. And it would be a mistake to think so.
In short, age doesn’t matter.
Another factor that doesn’t seem to matter is the business you’re in. While many top innovators are tech firms, and technology frequently drives innovation at non-tech firms, most of the companies on BCG’s 2016 “50 Most Innovative Companies” list are mainstream “white bread” manufacturing firms, producing apparel, automobiles, chemicals, consumer electronics, industrial goods, household and personal care products, and pharmaceuticals. Entertainment, financial services, hospitality and travel companies complete the roster.
The ranking is based on a survey of more than 1,500 senior innovation executives—across a wide range of countries and industries—as well as an analysis of select financial metrics.
In addition to Tesla, six other automakers are on the list: BMW, Daimler, GM, Honda, Renault and Toyota. Not since the days of Wilhelm Maybach, Gottlieb Daimler and Henry Ford has innovative ferment been so apparent in the auto sector, whose smart cars may soon provide an antidote to careless and distracted drivers.
And what’s a Baltimore clothing and footwear company doing on the list? Michael Ringel, Andrew Taylor and Hadi Zablit, authors of the BCG report, provide a ready answer: “Calling Under Armour an apparel company is somewhat akin to saying that Apple is a hardware company.
“Just as Apple innovates on the basis of empowering users,” they say, “Under Armour innovates on the idea of making athletes better.” This led the company to segue from “the high-performance fabrics that were the company’s genesis” to connected fitness devices, fitness tech “wearables” and, most recently, a new venture, Under Armour Connected Fitness, which “seeks to transform fitness and performance through an ecosystem of digital devices, tools and data that help users plan, monitor, adjust and enhance their fitness and athletic activities.”
They made this transition, my colleagues write, through “a combination of internal and acquired resources.” And that’s the big story: Like most of the world’s most innovative companies, Under Armour “cast a wide net” as it looked for potential innovations.
Vision and technology are just part of the innovation equation. Leaders must not only have the ability to identify new ideas and technologies that could help propel their companies, they must be willing to embrace these ideas regardless of the source. If the innovations are generated internally, that’s great. If they come from outside the company, that’s okay too.
Having such a mindset is not universal. As the BCG trio explains, many companies encounter internal resistance when they try to incorporate promising new technologies from outside sources.
Any executive who’s been around long enough has probably encountered the phenomenon. Resistance to change is common, whether its new leadership, new procedures, new processes or new technology.
The best innovators don’t let this happen. They find innovations wherever they can be found and do their best to bring them inside. That’s how they get and stay on top.
Innovation is in their DNA. And the words “Not Invented Here” are banned from their vocabulary.
