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Percursos e percalços da inovação
1. innovation
convention convention
community1
agrees on & is shaped by
A community is a system of people who interact within an agreed
set of rules—conventions.
may fail to recognize pressure (external)
decay (internal)
a model of innovation
Innovation is a holy grail of contemporary society, and especially
business. A flood of books and magazines promote it. Design firms
promise it. Customers demand it. Survival, we’re told, depends on it.
po
Typically, members of a community share a common location or
if strong, raise calls for efficiency, dangerously reducing
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common interests. They may be related by birth or may come Entropy always increases. But what is it? And how do we get it?
together for social or business reasons. Communities rely on Resisting entropy requires energy and variety.
o l
inevitably lead to
individuals to provide the variety necessary for survival— Inevitably, both are limited. We used to ask the same questions about quality. Then Walter
ng
to share perspective, insight, ideas, and inspiration. Shewhart and Edward Deming answered. Today, statistical
-te
process control, total quality management (TQM), kaizen, and
Over time, new members join and existing members depart. These six-sigma management are fundamental tools in business.
rm
changes can affect the conventions the community keeps.
Organizations have become much better at managing quality.
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Quality has become a commodity, or at least “table stakes,”
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necessary but not sufficient. Now, innovation matters more—
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because you can’t compete on quality alone, whether as a
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business, a community, or a society. The next arena of global
to
competition is innovation, but the practice of innovation remains
a
stuck some 40 years behind the practice of quality.
ny
Quality is largely about improving efficiency, whereas innovation
is largely about improving effectiveness. Improving quality is
decreasing defects. It’s about measuring. It’s making processes
more efficient. It works within an existing paradigm.
convention 1 each faces change (disturbance) Business Week design editor Bruce Nussbaum has suggested you
can’t measure your way to innovation—measurement being the
hallmark of quality processes. And though some six-sigma
Every convention exists within a community. Pressure from outside or decay inside changes the advocates disagree, Nussbaum is pointing out a fundamental
s)
disturbs relations creating
relationship between a community and its context. That difference between managing quality and managing innovation.
maintains relationship to
ng
ce
A convention establishes a relation between relationship—formalized as a convention—is no longer Innovation is creating a new paradigm. It’s not getting better at
se n
o
a community and its context. It defines a way comfortable, no longer a fit. playing the same game; it’s changing the rules and changing the
en
m
on ctio
the community expects its members to behave sa game. Innovation is not working harder; it’s working smarter.
qu
in a given situation. It prescribes the tools A disturbance upsets an existing convention.
they can use, even what they can think. This is a root cause of innovation. This poster proposes a model for innovation. It takes the form of a
d c ru
an rd g
n
es r th as e
s c d-o nin
. R - o h lac
concept map, a series of terms and links forming propositions.
be er
io
ult ir te
. ce nd fit,” p
ne est
ed an co r “ one
t
Every innovation has a precedent in a A disturbance has variety of its own.
la
te ad s, s th n in
insight previous convention. Unless a community has corresponding variety to cancel it, The model is built on the idea that innovation is about changing
nin le in ue uce tio
re
lan e d
nd v e ei
paradigms. The model situates innovation between two conven-
s u ab tin ed ova
the variety in a disturbance will overwhelm the community.
ce w on y r nn
in
tions. Innovation transforms old into new. It is a process—
str ion he
Variety cancels variety.
en no e c a . I
ing s
lut “t
np iv
qu t k cl d m re
oy ize
a process in which insight inspires change and creates value.
e.” tly vo as
se no cy an ltu
ce
on re the ns f cu
on an re on
(u eat
w ss tly i ct
d c ts a s tio b o
n
ne nce san tru
The process begins when external pressure or internal decay
an fec n. A ven we
de
la
g a n, i es es
cr
tin thi inc e d
ing ef tio on a
disturbs the relation between a community and its context, a
ris ct va c in
ba
ea wi t iv
rp ire no ed ist
ha at
relation maintained by a convention.
su ind r in lat ex
ly om n t re
im
nt fr io s c
or rthe ts re ions
sa re tat be
fu c t
The existing convention no longer “fits.” Perhaps the context
es ctu mu cri
fe n
af onve
is
inc tru ial des
changed. Or the community. Or even the convention. Someone
C
c s tr r
on i us te
notices the misfit. It causes stress. It creates enough friction,
ld nom ind pe
cr
e o co of hum
enough pain, to jump into people’s consciousness. Perception of
e e ess Sc
misfit almost simultaneously gives rise to proposals for change,
oc ph
context 1 misfit (pain) variety
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for reframing. These proposals compete for attention. Most fail to
Jo
e,
inspire, are ignored, and fade away.
pr
th
th
The changes that survive are by definition those a community finds
effective. They spread because they increase fit (gain) and lower
(environment) A misfit arises when a convention no longer maintains
(experiences)
that is large enough gains
a desired relation between a community and its context. pain or cost (delivering value).
can be superseded by
n i
Misfit manifests itself as pain. It exacts a cost— We rarely recognize innovation while it’s happening. Instead,
cr
Every community exists within a context. physical, mental, social, or financial—on members W. Ross Ashby describes variety as a measure of information. innovation is often a label applied after the fact, when its value is
e
of the community. clear and a new convention has become established.
a
Variety describes a system’s potential to respond to
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Context is the environment in which a community lives. disturbances—the options it has available. Applied to communities,
Ethnography and other research techniques may help identify
s
To survive, a community must have a stable relationship variety describes the experiences—the richness of language and
opportunities for innovation. Design methods may increase the
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with its environment. Maintaining that stable relationship range of cultural tools—they can bring to bear on problems.
speed of generating and testing new ideas. But new ideas are still
e
is the purpose of conventions.
subject to natural selection (or natural destruction) in the political
lik
In a stable environment, increasing efficiency makes sense.
Do what you’ve been doing, but do it better and at a lower cost. process or the marketplace.
e lih
That means narrowing language—decreasing variety.
Innovation remains messy. Even dangerous. Luck and chance,
o
being at the right place at the right time, still play a role. But
od
In an unstable environment, pursuing efficiency may actually be
dangerous. You may get better at doing the wrong thing—at doing heightened sensitivity and persistent alertness may increase luck.
of
something that no longer matters.
This model is not a recipe. At best it suggests ways to increase
The key is to make sure what you produce is valuable, before you the probability of innovation. Our goal is for it to spur discussion.
worry about making it more efficiently. Increasing effectiveness Our hope is that increased understanding will spur innovation
calls for increasing variety—changing perspective, bringing new and increase the greater good.
people, new experience, and new language into the conversation
and expanding the field of action.
recognition (definition)
als ss
Recognition of misfit comes from observation and experience.
Research methods—such as ethnography—help.
st fa
go roce
frames possibilities for
en o
he
op ing
ng am
But identifying a problem requires definition.
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ini fr
Definitions are constructed—agreed to.
ef e
r r t th
ing p
They have constituencies.
s. g o ou
he in ab
fin ing
Thus, definition is a political act,
ac am ns
ro efr tio
an exercise of power.
pp . R es
(re arn
r a als qu
he o e
ot of g rais
ing on ay
le
try iti m
to efin ype
lity r d ot
ibi o rot
possess
ss m p
po le a
ob g
pr stin
Te
(a bit of luck)
innovation requires preparation aids insight (seeing opportunity) comes from individuals drive
Each innovation is a link between two conventions:
the one it replaces and the one it becomes. (immersion) Insight begins a process of restoring fit. Insight remains the most
mysterious part of the innovation process. It may be irreducible, but
Individuals who are prepared to innovate possess:
motivates
benefit from (increase efficiency by) sharing skills within a
must be shared through
n)
olu s
An innovation is a pivot; it transforms one period into the next. it can be aided. Immersion within the context is almost always Optimism
ev es
change
tio
essential. Experience with other domains helps (by increasing Belief they can improve the world
variety). For example, applying patterns from other domains can Openness to change
ial oc
Some organizations have processes by which their members build
(or buy) new ideas at a small scale. The organizations vet (or select help solve new problems. This is the promise of Genrich Altshuller’s Confidence to make it so
fic pr
ly