Innoboard

The old-fashioned garages are now called innovation labs

Why Do So Many Innovative Companies Start in Garages

The legend of the multibillion dollar company that got its start in a garage is almost a cliché at this point, and has elevated the humble garage to a symbol of grit, determination, and passion. Starting a company out of a garage, a dorm room, or other makeshift office has become almost a given in the backstory of many famous founders. To Google founders, the garage they worked in was so ingrained in their origin story that they bought the house and garage in question on the company’s 8^th anniversary. But why are garages seemingly such a hotbed of innovation and success?

Read More

“It is not about changing structures, but changing the mindset”

Tobias Jost, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Hackerbay

Innoboard: There is no consistent definition of innovation. Every industry and every department perceive it differently. How would you define innovation as co-founder and CMO at Hackerbay?

Tobias Jost: Innovation for me = hacking. Hacking is the process of overcoming limitations by creating unique and abstract solutions (through a series of rapid, short-term successes). The number of experiments in the field of digital innovation is crucial to its successful outcome in the long term. It’s all about trial and error. To be innovative, you certainly do not have to build everything from scratch– this is a common misconception. Chances are, what you’re trying to achieve has already been done, or at least parts of it. As a result, using existing best practices and assembling them in a new and unique way is actually the most innovative process you can undergo.

Read More

Why Innovation Can Mean Going Back to Basics First

Innovation: the word itself implies new, transformative ideas and technology. However, innovation depends heavily on what came before—the basics. When companies try too hard to be innovative, those efforts can often fall flat if they lose sight of basic principles. This is especially true when innovation continues blazing on ahead, but the conditions that first spurred that innovation have changed drastically. While it’s very important to have creative people on task to introduce exciting new ideas, it’s equally essential that everyone understand what basics they’re building on in the process. Innovation for innovation’s sake won’t lead to success. Here are a few examples of why it’s important to respect and consider innovative ideas, while paying attention to the solid principles of the basics ideas are built on—and backtracking when necessary.

Read More

FAQ Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence

101 Questions – 101 Answers

Many firms that were once successful have been marginalized by competitors, and such an evolution may potentially affect the majority of large established companies in many sectors. The underlying reasons for this threat are the trends towards digitization, the Internet of Things, Industry 4.0 and artificial intelligence. Consequently, most firms simply do not have a choice. They need to respond by means of digital trans- formation. By now, most firms are aware of the challenges, but they struggle with developing appropriate strategies and managerial responses.

Read More

DAX 30 Digital Disruption

The findings of our survey of the German DAX 30 corporations underscore the importance of innovation and digitization in these firms.

The findings of our ‘Death by Digital Disruption?’ survey of the German DAX 30 corporations underscore the importance of innovation and digitization in these firms. Both activities are becoming increasingly inseparable, and they are the keys to sustaining superior financial performance over time. Experts from all 30 DAX corporations participated in the survey, which is complemented by insights from additional interviews of experts, and by our project experience. Moreover, a peer evaluation by industry experts identifies the top five digital transformers among the DAX 30 firms.

Read More