3 Things You Must Learn From Startups
But please, don´t pretend to be one
In the last years became fashionable to make pilgrimages to Silicon Valley. Something like the Camino de Santiago, but for aspiring entrepreneurs and traditional companies managers.
The idea was to receive a high dose of “disruptive innovation” in dozens of startup presentations, guru conferences and, guided visits to iconic companies.
Corona slowed it a little bit, but the trend is still in place.
Managers return to their companies in a cloud of enthusiasm and start firing intrapreneurship contests and brainstorming sessions by the bucketload, sometimes with positive results and sometimes not so much.
This California fever, which some call “innovation theater,” can be traced back many years.
With every management, fad comes legions of fanatics and new converts who practice the faith with absolute dedication.
The current fad is innovation, if possible, “Silicon Valley-style.”
But please don´t get me wrong.
Innovation is essential, and we have a lot to learn from Silicon Valley (in fact, we do).
Internal innovation programs can also be beneficial when they are aligned with a strategy and have a practical translation.
I am saying that these efforts must have a direction, a strategy, and, above all, a practical application
It is not the appearance that counts; it is the results
Going with fashion and pure imitation of form has the same elegance (and effectiveness) as a recently divorced middle-aged man who re-enters the dating circuit by imitating how his 20-year-old son dresses and speaks. It’s not necessary.
And it doesn’t help.
Just as it doesn’t make sense for you to pretend to be who you’re not because that’s what’s in (or what you think is necessary), you don’t need to put a foosball table or a basketball hoop in the company to make it look more like Google.
What you want is to improve your business model.
Improve what you do and how you do it to make it more profitable.
So, what can you do to learn something valuable from the startup world and the Silicon Valley galaxy?
Where do the show-off end and the valuable and practical learning begin?
In my opinion, there are three things we can do:
1. Study their strategy
What you are looking for, first of all, is to understand.
Understand why new companies emerge, what they bring new and why their product or business model is better suited to the market or customer preferences.
- What kind of technology do they use, and how do they leverage it?
- How do they define the product?
- How do they segment customers?
- How do they generate revenue?
- How is that model different from what is commonly used in the industry?
Once you identify these differentiating characteristics and their economic rationale, you can consider whether all or part of these strategies and models apply to your company.
Sometimes it is possible, even without all the paraphernalia of innovation theater and trips to Mountain View.
Business innovation is, first and foremost, common sense and a practical approach.
2. Incorporate them
If it is impossible or does not make sense to modify the corporate strategy, there is always the option of incorporating the capabilities or resources of one or several startups.
This can be done simply with an investment or partial purchase or through a partnership when this is not possible or convenient.
Different business models often present many options for complementation through partnership.
As long as the value and novelty offered by the startup are not affected, a large company always has ways to sustain and enhance the operation of a startup without stifling it.
3. Create independent units
Indeed, it does not make sense to pretend that a large company (or even a medium-sized company) behaves like a startup.
This does not mean that a company cannot create its own startup or business unit with a certain degree of autonomy and, therefore, the flexibility and a culture similar to a startup.
A business unit with a greater degree of independence can give us the best of both worlds: the flexibility, freshness, and capacity for change of a startup with the predictability and stability of a large company.
In the end, innovation has always been a successful combination of inspiration plus process.
Don’t disguise yourself as anything. Look for inspiration where it is and incorporate it into your processes.
