Ram V Chary: Understanding the Place of Innovation

Innovation is often called the lifeblood of business success, but what does it mean? Ram V Chary stresses the importance of properly defining the term before applying it to a business strategy.

At its core, innovation is about creating new value for customers by introducing something new or improving upon something existing. It's not just about coming up with the latest and greatest idea but about understanding your customer's needs and finding creative ways to meet them. For entrepreneurs looking to achieve financial success, innovation is a crucial component of their long-term strategy.

Technology has grown quite rapidly in only a few years. The pace of growth has influenced how many business leaders view their assets and how they inevitably deal with their companies. There is a self-imposed need to do things fast, the presumption being that speed is essential.

This mindset also colors the way business experts define innovation. Speed is translated to the invention. Companies constantly compete – and sometimes within themselves – to develop something newer, better, and more appealing to consumers.

Ram V Chary explains that while this is relatively understandable among scientifically-oriented companies, many business coaches see unrelated fields dipping their toes into inventing even when they don't need to.

Innovation can also be defined as the ability to adapt and change given particular circumstances. It has an element of newness but does not necessarily suggest inventing new practices.

In addition, Ram V Chary says that innovation for business success needs to happen sustainably. It is where many businesses fail. They become complacent or, worse, unmotivated to continue.

Innovation means continuously looking at events, decisions, and actions that affect the company. It also includes looking at the myriad of interdependencies within the company and between crucial partners. It means understanding how the company operates and then shifting strategies that are not working while strengthening policies that do.

Entrepreneurs use innovation to become excited about the state of their company, always on the lookout for what can be improved, explains Ram V Chary.

Can you give examples of innovations at your workplace?

Ram V Chary's thoughts and insights on business and management are featured on this page.