INNOVATION

Invention is the mother of necessity. - Thorstein Veblen

Innovation:
An invention is useful only to the inventor unless it is offered to the public, however niche that public may be. If the invention improves some product, process or service for the public, then that invention transforms into an innovation.
An innovation can be big or small. Brand-new or just a bit different, it doesn’t matter. An innovation can be clearly complex or seemingly simple. Innovations are often thought of in terms of technical achievement, but can also be a design. The type, industry and style of innovation are irrelevant; an innovation’s impact determines its qualification.
The presence of a genius can help with innovation – it may speed up the end result by having a person who can see and make the future happen. However, innovation is more than the work of any one “Einstein.” Innovation involves the taking of the work of an individual (or team) of inventors and taking it to a broader audience.
The future of many businesses depends upon their ability to innovate. Competition is fierce. Knowledge spreads quickly. The ability of a company to not only keep up with its current business practices, but to exceed its own – and its competition’s – expectations are critical to survival.
Theorem of Innovation:

There are many different theories of innovation: breakthrough, incremental, open source to name but a few. There are arguments stating innovations have to be disruptive to qualify; others argue that any change—as long as it is measurable—qualifies as innovation. Some people want innovations to be open and available to all as a means of challenging even more growth and ingenuity; others believe that new discoveries and paths need to be developed privately and secretly.
Measure of Innovation:
There are no definitive metrics for innovation. Measures of innovative success vary by company and industry. And, as with any type of statistic, the numbers must be looked at closely in order to withstand analysis. The most common metrics are patent creation and R&D.
• Patent creation – Some companies create patent after patent and boast of their innovative capabilities. While this may be well and true for a few, if the numbers of patented products, processes, and services are now making it to the marketplace, then their relevance diminishes.• R&D – This metric assumes that the amount of money spent on research and development directly correlates to the amount of innovative products, processes and services that get to the public.