75% of companies want to innovate but most will fail. There is a good reason as to why.

Over 75% of companies will say that they want to innovate but most struggle. Innovation is difficult which is why planning for it can be remarkably difficult. So what is the answer?

The answer will naturally lie in how new partnerships can be developed between companies and true innovators/entrepreneurs. It has long been argued that the corporate player needs entrepreneurs just as much as vice versa. Companies will need to properly invest if they want to possess real innovation and it is not just investment in a new idea, or entrepreneur but into their own cultures as well.

Too often the internal culture is not open-minded enough to work with an entrepreneur. Often it believes, wrongly, that it knows better. There was once a group of accountants who came together to discuss why they were not entrepreneurs themselves. After discussion, they concluded that the reason was that they were too bright and intelligent as most entrepreneurs came up with ideas which were too simplistic but this worked with the consumer.

This may seem extreme but so many internal cultures do start with a belief that they are better than the person pitching the idea or concept. The truth is that they are properly not. It is not hard to find executives who will patronise those who take risks in their careers; it is far harder to find those who possess the courage to take the risk and place their careers on the line.

The world is changing. Consumers have changed. Clients have changed. People want new values and approaches.

At the same time, there are always blockers to anyone doing something new – the business prevention squad. Every company does possess such a group. How many companies really possess policies which encourage a partnership with a company which is a start-up? Remarkably few but what if the innovation can really be transformational?

The first investment often does need to be internally; to create an openness to see the difference between innovators and corporate employees in a positive way. It has been said that Google encourages their employees to dedicate 20% of their work time to side projects. It is argued that this is one of the main reasons why the company is one of the most innovative today.

The famous All Blacks did the same with their players. Their purpose was to broaden the mind-sets of their players and to improve perspective. It worked. They went onto dominate the world for the next decade.

It is one of the strangest contradictions. We all are open to learning through education and then so many become more defensive and closed in work. The challenge is to reverse this.

The world is changing. Consumers have changed. Clients have changed. People want new values and approaches. 2022 can really be the time to invest in being more open and innovative regardless of the team. At worst, it may improve services and understanding. At best, it could be transformational.