Sparks to fire up your innovation combustion
This coaching session discusses how to define the problem that needs an innovative solution.
Starring: Inna (Innovation Leader in a large Pharma corporation) and Wim (coach for Innovation Leaders). [Transcription far below]
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Are you looking for a personal innovation coach?
- Do you want a soundboard, a sparring partner?
- Do you want to run an idea by a passionate outsider?
- Did you just start an innovation program or want to improve it?
- Do you need practical ideas to stimulate innovation?
- Do you want tips on how to manage an innovation portfolio?
If yes, I’m ready to help you!
- I believe in KISS: Keeping Innovation Super Simple. High focus on passion, low focus on processes.
- I have coached more than 50 innovation leaders across the globe in Pharma/healthcare.
- I work as independent coach: per hour or as long as you consider valuable.
- You can reach me (Wim Vandenhouweele) at wimvand@outlook.com
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Transcript
Inna:
⁃ Hi Wim. You told me Innovation is about solving problems. How do you define a problem?
Wim:
⁃ This is the most important question an Innovation Leader should focus on. We don’t innovate for the sake of innovation, but to solve business or customer problems. Let’s try it out. What is the biggest problem your company has?
Inna:
⁃ Increase sales for our key brands in all countries.
Wim:
⁃ That is very broad. When you define a problem to the employees of a corporation too broadly, you will get a wide range of solutions. Most of those ideas may not be relevant for the specific issues you really want to address. 1. you may waste your time. 2. employees that come up with innovative ideas may become frustrated if they don’t understand why their ideas were not acted upon. Let’s try to get more specific. Is there a common issue across all your brands?
Inna:
⁃ Indeed: Adherence! Patients don’t take their chronic therapies the way doctors prescribe them.
Wim:
⁃ Great! Why don’t patients adhere?
Inna:
⁃ Many reasons. In some cases, patients forget, are afraid of side effects, find the drugs too expensive, think their disease has been cured, …
Wim:
⁃ That’s it! When you provide a problem with this level of detail, you’ll get innovative ideas that are actionable. For example, if you ask for innovative ideas to help patients to remember to take their daily dose, you may get solutions like setting reminders on Amazon Echo. If you ask for innovative ideas to help patients to pay for their medication, you may get solutions like smaller and thus short term more affordable packages
Inna:
⁃ That makes sense! Another issue: we have across many countries is that patients have problems to have access to our medicines.
Wim:
⁃ What are the reasons for this?
Inna:
⁃ Mostly: Affordability – too expensive and Availability – not available when needed.
Wim:
⁃ Excellent! This is the level you may want to be at. For example, if you ask for innovative ideas to help patients who cannot pay for a medicine, you may get solutions like micro financing. Or if you ask for innovative ideas to ensure the medicine is available when the patient needs it, you may get solutions like transportation by drone.
⁃ You may go even deeper and ask a few more “why’s”. Like, why is a medicine too expensive for a patient: don’t they have the money, or don’t they have the cash flow (meaning, they will have the money over time, but do not have the full sum today). Both scenarios will generate different types of innovative ideas. Also, always make sure your leadership agrees and endorses this focus for innovation.
Inna:
⁃ Thanks! Why, Why, Why, Why, Why.
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