Rapid Innovation Means Rapid Evolution

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In the latest issue of MIT Sloan Management Review, Erik Brynjolfsson and Michael Schrage discuss what faster innovation means for corporate America. In short, companies are able to test ideas more rapidly and cheaper than ever before and that’s altering nearly every industry:

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“Technology is transforming innovation at its core, allowing
companies to test new ideas at speeds—and prices—that were unimaginable
even a decade ago. They can stick features on Web sites and tell within
hours how customers respond. They can see results from in-store
promotions, or efforts to boost process productivity, almost as quickly.

The result? Innovation initiatives that used to take months and
megabucks to coordinate and launch can often be started in seconds for
cents.

And that makes innovation, the lifeblood of growth, more efficient
and cheaper. Companies are able to get a much better idea of how their
customers behave and what they want. This gives new offerings and
marketing efforts a better shot at success.”

The bottom line? More rapid innovation leads to more rapid evolution. Companies will also be willing to try new things, because the price
of failure is so much lower. Plus, consumers will end up getting products and services better tailored to their needs.

[image: MIT Sloan Management Review]

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