Innovation in Business

that actually lead to innovation occurring. It is a frequent topic for discussion in journals and university lecture theatres. However, in company boardrooms across New Zealand, the term is heard far too frequently and more caution should be applied. Certainly, a recent international survey showed that the idea of innovation is so broad as to appear almost meaningless, with different sectors of the business world - or different divisions inside the same business - often defining innovation in their own way. While there is an obvious attraction to the new, innovation is not always about large scale research and development projects or revolutionary business models; it can be on a small, highly localised scale and involve a step-by-step approach. The famous case study of the drinks company Lucozade shows it can be as simple as adding a screw top to a bottle. This carefully managed change in packaging shifted the public perception of the product from a medicine to a sports drink and Lucozade profited handsomely, clearly showing their approach was successful. So what steps can businesses take to keep ahead in the innovation game? There seems to be a widespread belief that the world's best ideas are sudden and intuitive.…