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| The Game Changers |
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The Economic Times – April 11th, 2008
Innovation ain’t just a fancy idea anymore. The business and social sectors in India have embraced it wholeheartedly - Team CD WHEN INNOVATION’S THE clarion call, India Inc responds en masse. Companies both large and small competed for the Innovation For India awards this year and the awards ceremony itself saw CEOs turning up in large numbers to celebrate the Big I. Such was the enthusiasm that Ravi Kant wanted to bring along the Nano for the event, a plan that was nixed at the last moment when the management of the Hilton regretfully informed the Tata Motors MD that there was no way he could drive his new car — innovative though it may be — into their ball room. No matter the Mumbai audience didn’t get a chance to oooh and aaah the Nano, the award ceremony was an exuberant affair that presented some inspiring examples of innovation at all levels. Little known companies like Maharani Paints and Bhinge Brothers stood tall along side corporate majors like Bosch and Titan and it seems India Inc has already embraced Ramesh Mashelkar’s idea of ‘inclusive innovation’ that can transform society. Mashelkar, who is the chairman of the Innovation Foundation, said that innovations like the Nano exemplify the kind of ‘Gandhian engineering’, which go into making society more equitable. “Very soon, your chauffeurs will drive to your house in a Nano,” he said to the CEOs gathered for the event. “You will need to make space in your driveway for your chauffeur’s car, but more importantly, you will need to make space in your minds for this transformation.” That the spirit of innovation now runs deep in India is demonstrated by the sheer number of entries received by the Innovation Foundation for this year’s awards. The foundation received 206 entries this year, up from 162 entries in 2006 (the year the awards were first instituted) and half of these entries were for innovations in the social sector, a sure sign that our corporates (and NGOs) are doing something right. The competition was tough indeed, so the achievements of those who emerged the winners this year are very impressive. There’s Bosch India, which has created an engine component that cuts car emissions down to Euro 6 levels, at a cost of only 45 euros. There’s Kirloskar Brothers, which beat global firms to create a system for lifting the waters of the Narmada over a plateau, at one-forth the cost. There’s Maharani Paints, which invented a process to convert deadly industrial paint sludge into high quality primer that’s now used by Hero Honda and Punjab Tractors. There’s Evalueserve, which found a way to unbundle knowledge intensive processes like equity research, patent filing and market intelligence and thereby invented the Knowledge Process Outsourcing industry. And there’s Titan, which has simply created the world’s slimmest watch. Titan’s feat is all the more remarkable for the fact that the Swiss watch experts had earlier declared that it wasn’t possible to make a watch that slim without loosing water resistance. How did Titan have the confidence to address a challenge that the traditional world leaders had given up on? Or, for that matter, how did the engineers in Bosch India’s research and development department manage to steal a march on their counterparts in the German parent company? While attempting a pathbreaking innovation, it’s natural enough to wonder “could we possibly have thought of it first?”, but as the case studies featured on page two and three show, systematic market surveys dispel the initial self doubt. Most important innovations, said Rajiv Narang, CEO of Erehwon Innovation Consulting, the knowledge partner for the Innovation For India awards, require a major rethink from those involved and are most often led by the CEO (followed by R&D — the marketing department, statistics show, is rarely the initiator). To make his point on the mind set required, Narang quoted mountaineer Todd Skinner: “You cannot lower the mountain, so you must raise yourself...Always adjust the mind to what is possible, do not adjust what is possible to the mind.” One of the best things about creating a major innovation is that you usually get lots of free publicity. India’s big-mountain innovation today is the Tata Motors Nano and MD Ravi Kant received special honours at the Marico Innovation For India Awards. He promised that the Nano was not a quick-fix but is going to be a “wholesome, cute-looking car.” Tata Motors has recently created a new team to look into further cross reductions in the Nano, and Kant informed the audience that both he and chairman Ratan Tata are closely involved in the costing details. “The Nano’s next big innovation will be in distribution — we will be revealing the details soon.” said Kant. The Innovation Foundation’s own innovation for the evening was reserved for the end — a lively discussion on innovation in the creative arts, with Aamir Khan and Prasoon Joshi on stage, and Arun Maira, chairman of Boston Consulting Group, playing interviewer. Khan, who has been the star of hat-ke films like Lagaan, Mangal Pandey, Rang De Basani, and most recently, the award-winning director of Tare Zameen Par, said, “I enjoy surprising my audience. It takes a lot of work to turn an innovative script into a commercially viable project. But I enjoy extending myself, doing something new and exciting. People said I was crazy when I started on Tare Zameen Par, but whenever I’ve followed my heart, I’ve succeeded. It’s when I’ve tried to be too clever that I’ve fallen flat on my face.” The creative arts is one field where innovation is of the essence and talented personalities like Khan and adman, lyricist, script-writer Joshi had many insights to offer. “We’re all lazy deep down and so we constantly look for a formula,” said Joshi. “But I’ve always been wary of becoming repetitive — it’s a dead end, a trap. At the same time, you can’t be creative for your own satisfaction, at least not in my field. You have to give people what they want, and still surprise them.”         |
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