An innovation’s success is determined by 7 factors (see below). For many of our clients, Qindle represents success factor #7: a dedicated interdisciplinary team and in-house innovation accelerator. But with EXPLORE, ACCELERATE and CREATE, we are able to always connect people, garner leadership support and understand (and managing) different stakeholders. In this way, we are able to influence success factors #1 through #6 as well.

1. Consumer orientation: constant process of understanding your consumer’s needs and market drivers: competition, culture, regulations, science and technology.  Build a company culture that thrives on being steps ahead.
2. Leadership with a vision: most companies anticipate a future based on the past. Don’t try to predict the future, especially a future based on the past, but instead develop a vision and a purpose that can function as a compass for an unpredictable future.
3. Innovation with purpose: people need to understand the ‘why’ of an innovation. Without that ‘why’, an innovation process always loses out to short-term business performance and financial goals.
4. Guided innovation: “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” Innovation is an open journey, but embracing a few sensible navigation tools – like roadmaps, quick scans, prototyping, qualitative research, stakeholders’ alignment, well-defined, but flexible, execution processes – go a long way in helping you reach your destination.
5. Decision-making based on collective intuition – or gut feeling – with the full support of company leadership. The autocratic top-down decision-making model is over. It’s not about consensus, but about engaging all relevant stakeholders and supporting a passionate champion capable of making decisions.
6. Taking risks, because you have no choice. Let your competitors move in ‘obvious’ directions. Taking risks, even big ones – even seemingly irrelevant ones – are needed to gain a competitive advantage. Entrepreneurial risk as a value.
7. Interdisciplinary team, dedicated to the innovation process, and resourced with multiple creative skills – from collaborative workshops, ideation techniques, visualisation and storytelling to mock-up, prototyping, UI/UX design presentation techniques. Without the interdisciplinary team ideas remain just that: ideas.

Qindle has developed its own tools and approach to tackle these challenges. None are pre-defined or templatized, but we bring a process that easily adapts to the needs, culture and circumstances of our partners. Each organisation is unique and deserves its own and ownable processes, innovation programs, tools and workshops. In this way, we are able to totally align with company culture, solve actual challenges and achieve success.

Want to know more about the Qindle way? Read about our collaboration with European confectionary, chocolate and nuts player Cloetta to develop a global innovation program.