2021-05-31-埃森哲-Governing_innovation_The_strategy_to_intensify_innovation_24页_5mb

Summary of the 2021 Accenture Middle East Innovation Maturity Index

Core Content

The 2021 Accenture Middle East Innovation Maturity Index evaluates how companies in the Middle East are adopting innovation practices and strategies. It outlines a framework to measure innovation maturity across two main pillars: Innovate by Design and Innovation Practices. The report highlights the importance of innovation governance in driving business growth, especially in the context of global disruptions such as the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, trade volatility, and contagion.

The report identifies Innovation Champions—companies that have embedded an innovation framework and adhere to 12 key innovation habits—as leaders in the region. These companies demonstrate significantly higher employee productivity and profitability compared to the rest of the companies surveyed.

Main Points

• Innovation Maturity Index (IMI):

  • Measures innovation maturity across two pillars: Innovate by Design and Innovation Practices.
  • Companies that adopt these practices are better equipped to respond to disruptions and transform their businesses.

• Innovation Champions:

  • Comprise 14% of the surveyed companies.
  • They invest heavily in breakthrough and disruptive innovation, particularly in emerging and growth businesses.
  • They are 5.6 times more innovative in emerging businesses and 2.3 times more innovative in growth businesses compared to the rest.
  • They focus incremental innovation on core businesses for steady cash flow.

• Innovation Framework:

  • Innovate by Design includes:
    • Strategy: Focus on disruptive advances, not just incremental improvements.
    • Culture: Reward creativity and new thinking.
    • Architecture: Clear processes for innovation from ideation to commercialization.
  • Innovation Practices include:
    • Data-driven: Use data to deliver safe, secure, and efficient innovations.
    • Hyper-relevant: Address changing customer needs.
    • Talent-rich: Use AI and flexible workforces.
    • Asset-smart: Efficiently manage assets and operations.
    • Inclusive: Engage a broad range of stakeholders.
    • Network-powered: Leverage ecosystem partners.
    • Technology-propelled: Master emerging technologies.

• Key Findings:

  • The overall IMI score in the Middle East showed a marginal increase in 2021.
  • Innovation Strategy scores rose from 57 to 71, reflecting a strategic re-evaluation due to the pandemic.
  • Innovation Architecture and Innovation Culture scores declined slightly, indicating a gap between traditional and digital ways of working.
  • Only 5% of companies in the region are agile in enabling their workforce to work flexibly.

• Champions' Performance:

  • Achieve 42% higher employee productivity and 27% higher profitability than the rest.
  • Expect to more than double their profitability by 2025 through extensive innovation governance.
  • Their innovation intensity is significantly higher, especially in emerging and growth businesses.

Key Challenges

• 67% of companies struggle to build an inspiring innovation strategy.
• 86% lack the ability to ideate and experiment effectively.
• 87% have difficulty scaling new initiatives.

Innovation Governance Habits

Accenture outlines 12 Innovation Governance Habits that Champions adopt to intensify innovation:

1. Place innovation at the center of corporate strategy
2. Communicate the innovation agenda to employees and the investor community
3. Build a culture of innovation
4. Generate ideas from the entire workforce
5. Generate ideas from a team of experts
6. Identify disruptive ideas with the help of tech partners
7. Create room for experimentation investments
8. Fund experimentation investments gradually
9. Conduct experimentation with an innovation factory
10. Scale with technology partners
11. Scale with talent partners
12. Scale through an innovation factory

Innovation Phases

1. Inspire:

   • Innovation should be at the core of the company's strategy and culture.
   • Champions are expected to be masters at inspiring innovation by 2025.

2. Ideate:

   • Generate ideas from both the workforce and expert teams.
   • Champions focus on disruptive ideas through collaboration with tech partners.

3. Experiment:

   • Invest in experimentation as part of the budgeting cycle.
   • Use internal innovation factories or ecosystem partners to test and develop ideas.

4. Scale:

   • Leverage ecosystem partners to scale promising innovations.
   • Champions frequently use these mechanisms to accelerate innovation.

Case Studies

• Leading Middle Eastern Bank:

  • Used AI and a technology partner to develop a future workforce model.
  • Identified opportunities for upskilling and automation.

• Almosafer:

  • Deployed an omni-channel travel experience with interactive stores and digital tools.
  • Enhanced customer experience and operational efficiency through incremental innovation.

• Multinational Oil & Gas Company:

  • Implemented Industry 4.0 solutions with advanced automation and decision support systems.
  • Collaborated with stakeholders and technology partners to achieve efficiency and output gains.

Call to Action

• Companies should transition from selective to extensive innovation governance.
• Key steps include:
  • Assessing internal innovation objectives and capabilities.
  • Ideating widely by studying trends and consumer behavior.
  • Experimenting through prototypes and innovation factories.
  • Scaling successful ideas with the help of ecosystem partners.

Research Methodology

• Surveyed 200 large companies in Saudi Arabia and the UAE from August to October 2020.
• Companies span various industries: oil and gas, banking, retail, transport, tourism, and consumer goods.
• 30% of companies have revenues over $1 billion, 40% over $500 million, and 20% over $100 million.

Conclusion

The 2021 Innovation Maturity Index underscores the importance of innovation governance in enabling companies to thrive in a rapidly changing environment. While the overall index showed marginal improvement, the 12 innovation habits and the four-phase approach provide a clear path for companies to enhance their innovation maturity and drive sustainable growth.