Entrepreneur's Handbook
THE DEFINING ELEMENTS AND INFRASTRUCTURE OF INNOVATION
Innovation is a process. The innovation process is carried out by managing many projects inside or outside the enterprise, from finding a new idea to product or service design and commercialization. This process is the process of managing many different internal and external interactions, from the commercialization of a new product or service. On the one hand, this situation requires the enterprise or entrepreneur to act strategically towards the outside. On the other hand, the entrepreneur has to carry out an effective management and coordination activity within the enterprise.
The innovation process starts with the idea stage. Accordingly, first idea, then management and coordination are required for innovation to reach the end. Effective communication with parties that are outside the business or entrepreneur and who contribute in the process of revealing innovation may be the key to gaining a strategic advantage. In addition, the people involved in the initiative should be able to work in a coordinated manner towards the goals and objectives of the innovation. In this process, businesses and entrepreneurs may encounter some problems regarding the development of innovation and distribution of resources. Elimination of problems with effective and efficient solutions also determines whether the process is successful or not. Entrepreneurs must have certain competencies and skills in the following subjects in order to successfully carry out the innovation process by solving the following problems:
- project management,
- linking different functional resources,
- information sharing,
- Managing the developments and changes in technology and the market,
- to benefit from experiences and
- learning
It should not be forgotten that the process that creates innovation also takes place in an environment where social relations are in question and that formal and informal communication is required at different levels. This chain of social and professional relationships, which can be expressed as a network, is a structure that should be aware of in order to effectively carry out the innovation process with all relevant parties.
In the innovation process, the entrepreneur's management of individuals, groups or departments within his business is largely based on learning. Entrepreneurs and other in-house actors should constantly share what they have learned through effective communication and should not experience any lack of knowledge at any point. For this, the entrepreneur should have a mechanism that will enable both learning and the distribution of new information to all actors by establishing an information management system within the enterprise. The entrepreneurial business that continuously learns and ensures the progress of the innovation process with what it has learned, can only advance an integrated innovation management process with such a method.
The entrepreneur who tries to carry out the innovation processes effectively within the business should also consider the connections outside the business. As a matter of fact, the world is not just about business or business done within the business. Fields such as knowledge, information, applications, human resources and financial resources required for the success of the innovation process reveal that relations outside the business should also be carried out with an innovation perspective. Links related to the factors mentioned above in the innovation process; It connects the business to laboratories, universities, competitors, suppliers, intermediaries, customers and other public and private sector organizations related to innovation. In these connections, the efficiency and power of the entrepreneur will bring an important advantage in terms of obtaining the information and resources needed for innovation from outside the enterprise. Based on this, it can be said that the entrepreneur can establish three different types of connections with non-business actors (Oslo Manual, 2005). These are open information sources, knowledge and technology transfer and innovation collaborations.
- Open information sources are information that are publicly available and do not require any permission, cost, or royalty transfer to obtain. General information that does not contain too much detail can be obtained with open information sources. Simple search engine (Google, Yandex, etc.) queries made today can be used to access such information.
- Knowledge and technology transfer does not require interaction with the source of information. In addition, it includes the acquisition of machinery, materials, software or technical information that should be acquired depending on new knowledge and technology. Generally, a price has to be paid to obtain these information and technologies.
- In innovation collaborations, there is a partnership process that requires cooperation with different institutions and organizations related to innovation and includes the purchase of new information and technologies required for the enterprise. Such collaborations are made in certain areas and impose some responsibilities on the parties depending on the agreement.
For a successful innovation, there is no single solution or recipe that will suit all businesses or entrepreneurs, because every business and every innovation can have its own unique process, purpose, goal and characteristics. In addition, some principles or habitual behaviors that will help each innovation process to be successful can be mentioned. (Tidd vd., 2005: 559):
- Successful innovation is strategy based. Instead of talking about a standard strategy for innovation, businesses should have a strategy that they create based on their own experience and characteristics. Nevertheless, in order to create an appropriate and effective strategy, entrepreneurs need to focus on the position of the enterprise in the innovation system, technological experiences and the establishment of the organizational process that will provide strategic learning.
- Successful innovation is built on effective internal and external links. During innovation, it is necessary to be aware of both non-business actors and the dynamics of the market. It is necessary to be aware of the answer to which problem and how the innovation to be made will provide a solution to the consumer, as well as which price, promotion and distribution characteristics of the market structure will be appropriate. In addition, it is necessary to build an open innovation system with information from competitors, suppliers and private or public institutions and organizations. Thus, an innovation system with high interaction can be achieved.
- Successful innovation requires a mechanism that allows for change. Since innovations have to emerge in dynamic market environments, change must be managed well and external changes must be followed closely. Problem solving and decision-making processes and project management and control skills stand out as competencies and skills that entrepreneurs should have to deal with changes.
- Successful innovation will only occur in an organizational environment that supports it. Innovation can only occur in an environment that allows and supports it. The value placed on creative ideas is a prerequisite for successful innovation to be made possible. For this, it is necessary to have an organizational structure that includes organizational arrangements, training and development, rewarding system and communication. These conditions will become more effective when they can integrate with a learning organization structure and create a creative environment that will facilitate the flow of information to produce solutions to problems.
One of the reasons for innovations to fail can be expressed as companies' focusing only on technology-based innovations and overlooking the market and changes in the market. Thus, the commercial success and performance of innovations can result in negative results. Therefore, it is not enough to be technology-oriented for a successful innovation. It is also necessary to consider the situation and change in the market. It should not be forgotten that the people who will adopt innovation, that is, the consumers, do not make decisions based on economic and technological developments or advantages. The cultural and social aspect of this innovation is also important for consumers.
While entrepreneurs fulfill their organizational responsibilities for the success of innovation activities, other innovation actors (government, R&D institutions, universities, etc.) must also fulfill their responsibilities in order to create an innovative infrastructure in the environmental environment. In order for all innovation studies to be transformed into outputs effectively and to ensure synergy in the studies, the said innovation studies should be handled within the national innovation system that ensures the interaction of all actors and activities. If this is not achieved, it will be very difficult to turn the innovation work done individually by enterprises, universities or other R&D institutions and organizations in the country into a commercial result.
Two factors are important for entrepreneurs and businesses to understand the innovation and innovation sources correctly and benefit from them effectively (Afuah, 2003). The first is to grasp the potential of innovation. Understanding the potential of innovation can be possible by understanding the reasons and basic logic behind the developments that can lead to innovation and applying innovation to different products and services. Secondly, the entrepreneur must have the information structure to establish a system that obtains and operates the necessary information about innovation. Such a structure should involve a processing process that filters out necessary and unnecessary information and transforms the information into a useful form. Thus, businesses can continue their innovations effectively.