By: Giorgos Aspiotis / Nikos Kokkinoplitis
We frequently hear in regards to the idea of innovation and its significance in enhancing the competitiveness of a corporation—nonetheless, the extreme use of this time period has distorted its true that means and content material.
A lot is the overuse and the abuse of this phrase that it come to suggest virtually nothing. As a result of this distortion, we’ve got come to impose to ourselves subconsciously synthetic constraints that blind us from seeing the actual huge image.
To begin with, most individuals affiliate modern organizations with both high-tech startups or massive know-how companies similar to Apple, Google and Amazon. However, an modern enterprise might be even a small neighborhood barbershop, offered that it provides or does one thing totally different that has impression. In any case, the criterion is neither the turnover, nor the know-how, nor the trade.
One other limiting perception relating to innovation lies in figuring out the idea with the event of a brand new product. Innovation inside a enterprise can seem not in a single, however in ten (!) distinctive methods, such because the income mannequin, the organizational construction, the enterprise processes or the product.
The ten Varieties of Innovation Framework
Properly-known writer Scott D. Anthony defines in his e book The Little Black Ebook of Innovation, the time period “innovation” as “a course of that mixes discovering a possibility, blueprinting an thought to grab that chance, and implementing that concept to attain outcomes.” In layman’s phrases, innovation refers to one thing totally different that has impression. It will be important that we take into account these definitions, as a result of by them we’ll be capable to establish and separate modern organizations from the group.
The Case of Curry Specific
An instance of an modern enterprise that breaks all innovation stereotypes and completely matches to the aforementioned definitions is Curry Specific, a tiny Indian road meals restaurant that has introduced the heart beat of Indian gastronomy within the coronary heart of Athens. Curry Specific is a wonderful paradigm of innovation, in a saturated (in accordance with many) market in Greece—the catering sector. In our interview with Ina, the proprietor of the restaurant, we had the chance to discover the important thing success components of Curry Specific, in addition to to style the distinctive Indian delicacies in a street-food model.
The restaurant opened lower than a yr in the past and it has been left “untouched” by the COVID-19 pandemic, as it really works primarily by supply service. Curry Specific innovation is recognized in three most important areas: the product, the shopper expertise and the manufacturing course of.
Firstly, it’s well-known that Indian gastronomy is related to wealthy and intense flavors accompanied by rice, pies and intense spices. The fee for a full Indian meal in Athens normally exceeds 10 euros. Within the case of Curry Specific, nonetheless, the patron can get pleasure from an entire meal for simply 5 euros (!) with out struggling any high quality reductions.
However how is that this even viable for the enterprise? The reply lies within the idea of product innovation—i.e. the event of a brand new product that displays the wants of customers and is presently not obtainable within the Greek market. No, this has nothing to do with patents, partnerships with RTOs and laboratory analyses. This innovation refers back to the mixture of two separate merchandise (on this case most important dish with facet dish) to type a brand new one at a a lot decrease price. This reminds us of T. Freston’s definition on innovation: “Innovation is taking two issues that exist already and placing them collectively in a brand new manner.” The “bowls” as they’re referred to as, include half the quantity of rice and half the quantity of cooked meals, each sufficient to fulfill a hungry client. As Ina instructed us, bowls are standard in India, however not in Greece, since Greeks are usually not accustomed to Indian road meals.
Bowl of rooster korma with rice
One other component that bought our curiosity in Curry Specific has to do with the looks of the meals. All dishes are ready in such a manner that it’s enticing for pictures and sharing on social media. That is definitely not one thing new. Quite the opposite, if one takes a take a look at the rising developments shaping the meals trade, he/she’s going to discover that the manufacturing of visually interesting meals is a transformational development that performs a major position in the best way meals is processed and ready on the market. Meals isn’t just a main want, however a life-style assertion or perhaps a assertion of political opinions. If we predict that each month round 250 million posts with the hashtag #meals are uploaded on Instagram, then we will really perceive the ability and impression that social media have on meals trade. Subsequently, the efficient exploitation of this disruptive development by meals producers and eating places, may help these companies improve their clients’ expertise in addition to construct robust model consciousness. That is what Curry Specific so efficiently does and that is the place buyer expertise innovation lies in!
Lastly, the best way through which the manufacturing strategy of the restaurant has been organized is one other supply of aggressive benefit for Curry Specific. Typical Indian restaurant menus are excessively lengthy, suggesting a really big selection of meals and flavors. On the distinction, a extra conservative method has been adopted by Curry Specific, with comparatively fewer dishes chosen based mostly on pace of preparation and sustaining top quality. The restaurant workforce targeted its efforts on the standardization of the manufacturing course of, whereas in search of small however equally vital enhancements in product high quality (incremental innovation). Τhis slight differentiation from the competitors gave Curry Specific the flexibility to keep up the top quality of merchandise at a a lot decrease price in comparison with different Indian eating places in Athens, as properly the aggressive edge wanted to face out from the group.
Curry Specific Restaurant
The case of Curry Specific is a good instance of an modern enterprise that breaks stereotypes and highlights the other ways through which innovation can seem and be applied inside a enterprise or group. These small variations within the manufacturing course of, the product and the shopper expertise, are “the totally different” that Scott D. Anthony mentions in his definition on innovation. We could not have state-of-the-art applied sciences, and R&D division and a pitch deck, however we do have impression and in the long run, that is what really issues.
In regards to the Authors
Nikos Kokkinoplitis, Innovation Administration Advisor, Seven Sigma P.C.
Nikos Kokkinoplitis has a BSc from the Division of Administration Science & Know-how of Athens College of Economics and Enterprise, specializing in Data Methods & Digital Commerce. Additional to his distinctive tutorial efficiency, he boasts vital volunteer exercise within the space of multicultural occasion planning, in addition to essential distinctions in enterprise thought competitions. His most important analysis pursuits comprise Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Digital Advertising and marketing, E-commerce and Data Methods. Throughout his research, he labored at Seven Sigma P.C, on the design and implementation of the digital technique of the corporate, whereas he additionally developed innovation roadmaps for a number of enterprises. He has additionally labored as Analysis Assistant at ELTURN, an E-Enterprise Analysis Heart, the place he participated -amongst others- in doctoral analysis within the discipline of Enterprise Analytics and co-organized a brainstorming workshop for executives of a giant multinational enterprise. To complete his diploma, he interned as a Cloud Purposes Advisor at ORACLE S.A., performing necessities analyses and configuring Buyer Expertise Cloud Purposes. After his commencement he served as an Military Aviation Soldier within the 2nd Group of Military Aviation at Megara Attikis, the place he organized and carried out a seminar on Innovation Administration that was attended by the officers of the airport. At present he works as an Innovation Administration Advisor at Seven Sigma P.C. In 2019 he participated in a examine on behalf of the European House Company, for the identification of person necessities within the Greek maritime sector that may be benefited from house belongings. Additionally, in 2020 he participated in a Program Improvement Research for the event of an Worldwide Meals Incubator and Innovation Heart in Greece.
Giorgos Aspiotis, Innovation Know-how Advisor, Seven Sigma P.C.
George Aspiotis has an instructional background in Laptop Science (College of Piraeus, Division of Informatics). He has a sound data of a number of programming languages and methods (C#, C++, Python, bash, ORMs, SQL dialects and RDBMSs and many others.) and expertise of their utilization for growing and testing software program platforms, purposes, and instruments (full stack growth). Working for Seven Sigma as a Software program Engineer & Advisor, his most important duties contain digital options growth (customized software program and net purposes growth, system testing, advertising content material creation, analytics and planning), IT methods help and software program options consulting.
