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Letter from the Founders

“Innovation is the difference between getting there and staying there.”

Innovation. What does it mean to you? The first thing that comes to mind might be the creation of a new “thing” — a product, widget, or material. But innovation exists in many forms, and sometimes innovation makes the biggest impact when you create a new process, position, or business model. In this edition of The Jabian Journal, we explore what innovation is, how it is put to use, and where companies can look to find innovation opportunities.

In the article How to Create a Culture of Accountability,” the authors explain how companies can creatively move from a culture of complacency to a culture of accountability by engaging employees, not blaming them. Highlighting the idea that innovation isn’t just focused on products, The Evolutional Convergence of Technology,” examines how the next big thing isn’t going to be a thing at all. In our feature article, Business Model Innovation: Mining for Innovation Gems Hidden in Plain Sight,” the authors explore how companies can transform their businesses by identifying gaps in profitable opportunities. Understanding core capabilities and transferable intellectual property can help companies struggling to grow find themselves in untapped markets ripe for the taking.

Innovation is also a key theme in our three feature interviews. We spoke with Mark Dunson, president of Emerson Climate Technologies, Retail Solutions, on how the company’s use of data and insights are transforming the HVAC industry from a focus on manufacturing to a focus on smart, connected technologies that work to enhance entire ecosystems. When we spoke with Chris Brown, senior enterprise innovation manager at Vodafone, we learned that innovation is at the very core of how Vodafone goes to market. Their customer-first approach to co-innovation is a model for all companies looking to build deeper customer relationships while pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. In The Final Word, we recap a conversation with Sangram Vajre, co-founder of Terminus, a new B2B online advertising solution that has revolutionized the efficiency and scale of reaching the right people. He explains how making the jump from an executive career at Salesforce to a new startup never looked better.

The articles that follow present ideas and solutions that came from asking “why.” At Jabian, we believe good consultants never stop asking “why” and that answering it requires looking past the obvious to find those solutions that might not be readily apparent. We hope after reading these articles, you’ll look at your own company and be able to ask “why” a little more often.

We hope you enjoy this edition of The Jabian Journal, and we welcome your feedback.

Thanks,
Chris, Brian, and Nigel – The Jabian Founding Partners

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