No company, however successful, can afford to rest on its laurels.
Business is a dynamic process, and your customers’ needs and expectations will change more quickly than anyone can predict. To stay in the game, companies must put innovation at the heart of their strategy. But exactly how do you make your business more innovative?
For companies bringing products to market, design is a key aspect of innovation. A Design Council survey in 2005 found that those businesses that see design as integral are more than twice as likely as others to see rapid growth. Truly innovative businesses embrace design and creativity throughout their operations. They will encourage a passion for design among their employees and make design a significant issue in their corporate strategy. In an innovative business, the workplace is a creative place where all employees are encouraged to contribute their thoughts and new ideas are allowed to flourish.
One example of a business with design and creativity at its heart is Richardson Sheffield.
Founded in 1839, the business is one of the oldest surviving cutlery firms in Sheffield. Design has always played an important role in the company’s business, but never more so than today. ‘The company philosophy is that all our customers should be able to enjoy good design in their home, whatever their budget,’ says Richardson Sheffield marketing manager Andrew Kenny. ‘We spend a lot of time understanding the needs of our customers, conducting extensive market research, holding focus groups and studying purchasing behaviour. We want to understand what designs customers like and what they don’t.’
‘All our product designs are created in-house by our award-winning Design Group,’ says Richardson Sheffield senior designer Andy Wardle. ‘We develop the designs from initial sketches, through prototypes to the final product. Of course, the design process has changed somewhat since 1839 – we now use the latest CAD and prototyping technology to help both refine and speed the process.’
The company combines a respect for its heritage with an understanding of the need to embrace new thinking. ‘It’s often difficult to radically change the design of, say, a traditional kitchen knife. However, we try to create new points of interest and innovation in everything we do throughout the housewares industry, from traditional products to more extreme contemporary designs,’ says Wardle. ‘We’re always on the lookout for ways to make our new products even better – from a pure styling perspective through to new manufacturing technologies, new materials and new finishes.’
A recent success story for the company is its Balance knife range.
‘The reason a customer chooses a particular knife is often down to the feel of the knife in the hand,’ says Andrew Kenny. ‘As the name indicates, we designed the Balance knife to be perfectly balanced for performance. Each forged steel knife has a precisely counterbalanced handle – a unique innovation. The unusual shape of the handle is actually very ergonomic and encourages the knife to be held properly.’
Innovation also extends to the Balance knife block, in which magnets are used to help ‘lock’ each knife into place.
Another design success has been the Gripi range. ‘Our Gripi scissors have tough but flexible plastic handles,’ says Wardle. ‘That flexibility might not sound desirable in a pair of scissors, but we found that the innovation actually gave users a better grip and provided extra comfort while cutting. As the non-slip handles are symmetrical and flex in use, they’ve also proved very popular with left-handed customers, who can find traditional designs uncomfortable to use.’
Design agencies and consultants can advise on ways to maximise the creativity and innovation within your business. Good first steps include finding ways to encourage and nurture creative ideas from your employees, perhaps through cross-department brainstorming sessions or company-wide suggestion schemes. Don’t forget that innovative ideas can also come from your customers and suppliers. It’s also sensible to keep a central record of your company’s ideas for ongoing reference – with changing circumstances, yesterday’s off-the-wall suggestion could become tomorrow’s company-transforming innovation.