LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Bluefin Solutions, a global independent consultancy, today released its inaugural “Bluefin Solutions Elastic Innovation Index, 2014,” (http://www.bluefinsolutions.com/Hot-Topics/Innovation/Elastic-Innovation-Index) the world's most comprehensive study into what makes a company innovative.
Following an analysis of 5,000 publicly traded companies using big data analytics, the results (http://tinyurl.com/elasticinnovation) reveal that Amazon.com, Google, Live Nation, Nike and Rolls Royce are five of the most innovative companies.
Written by Haydn Shaughnessy, Research Fellow Center for Digital Transformation, the University of California, Irvine, the Bluefin Solutions Elastic Innovation Index is a new measure of digital transformation designed to help business leaders assess and benchmark their organization’s ability to innovate and transform. The Index provides executives with detailed knowledge of how to improve their companies' ability to innovate by tracking 35 new key performance indicators including the use of crowd sourcing, cloud computing and ideation platforms to judge corporate adaptability to change.
"Innovation has been radically redefined. It’s no longer about the next big product or this year’s earnings,” said Haydn Shaughnessy. “Our research reveals that ‘elasticity’ is a common trait among truly innovative companies. They have developed the capability to be truly adaptive and can intelligently respond to new market opportunities at short notice.”
The Bluefin Solutions Elastic Innovation Index is unlike traditional cursory research that has focused on end-user surveys or only a few contributing factors of innovation such as patents, research and development (R&D) spend and stock performance.
"The Bluefin Elastic Innovation Index is a comprehensive, evidenced-based guide that can be used by executives to help determine where to invest in people, technology and data in order to enhance their capabilities to innovate that, ultimately, delivers bigger and faster business returns," said Michael Eldridge, Managing Director, Bluefin Solutions. “Our findings reveal that companies that have developed strong capabilities in social, platform and data, leadership, strategy and business processes outperform industry peers.”
Findings from the report include:
- Of the top 10 innovative companies, six are American, two are Japanese and one each from Germany and South Korea
- The top three most innovative industries are: 1) technology; 2) media and telecommunications; 3) manufacturing. The least innovative industry is pharmaceutical.
- Of the top 50 innovative companies, only 12% are truly Elastic (90-100 index score), while 22% (80-89) and 16% (50-79-50) are using traditional innovation models defined as Service and Industrial, respectively.
Elastic innovation toolkit
Bluefin also released today a self-service toolkit to help employees assess and benchmark their company’s ability to innovate. The toolkit features a five minute self-service online test that provides users with recommendations on where to improve decision-making capabilities based on a total index score of between zero and 100.
The results place a company on a maturity curve that includes three levels starting with Industrial followed by Service and, finally, Elastic (index score of 90+). These levels reflect the ability to adopt and cope with business change. To access the online toolkit, visit http://www.bluefinsolutions.com/Hot-Topics/Innovation/Elastic-Innovation-Index.
About Bluefin Solutions
Bluefin Solutions is a global independent consultancy and SAP partner. We work with you to challenge traditional thinking and bring new ideas to life. Every day, a Bluefin team of industry consultants is listening, advising and helping to create value for large organizations across the world. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, we have offices in Malaysia, Singapore and the United States. To read the latest the industry insights, ideas and innovations, visit www.bluefinsolutions.com.
