View from the Top

Arcus Innovation Leaders Series 

How business leaders use innovative approaches to shape their strategies.

 

Unilever’s view on the Innovation Imperative: An interview with Mr. Geoff Craig, VP & GM, Brand Building. Mr. Craig argues that leadership is about having a vision for innovation and creating a framework for action around the vision to allow partners and employees to pioneer new ways of working.      Download the Arcus      Innovation Leaders    Report.    Unilever    Maple Leaf Foods    Siemens    Domtar

 

 How has innovation been translated into tangible results?

 

The true measure is shareholder value.  Success is about superior business results. The best example for me is the Dove “Evolution” campaign. It is a key contributor of success. You can measure it in brand health that ultimately translates into sales. Research shows the second most respected “social mission” brand after the Body Shop.

 

 Is there a context for innovation in relation to consumer expectations?

 

Ultimately, innovation is about affecting the human condition. It needs to be done effectively in context of a changing media landscape. Today, people will trade down if they don’t see value in some way, shape or form, well beyond the physical presence of the brand.

 

 Is the first step to create durable long term value?

 

The consumer’s definition of value is changing constantly. For example, value today is very different from 4 months ago. It’s a combination of price and quality measured in many different ways. In today’s economic times, just being the best isn’t enough. The price-quality value equation outweighs many other variables. The market share of brands can change dramatically in different market conditions.

 

 How important are product innovation centres? Importance of an innovation hub vs. making it ingrained in the corporate culture?

 

It’s important but there isn’t a prescribed way. Some organizations have nodes, they don’t have a hub. If you have innovation as a focus, it needs to start at the top. It has to involve an investment in resourceful people and technology. A lack of commitment leads to a lack of success. There is no generic template for doing it.

There are some guidelines. The success of Dove was driven by a consumer insight that resulted in a highly differentiated proposition based on cultural relevance in a global context. The cultural relevance on Dove was in context of how women defined “beautiful”. Second, an innovative and uncompromising approach to communication leads to innovative results. We focused on unconventional executions like a documentary, digital initiatives that are path breaking. Third, there needs to be a significant emphasis on consistency.  

 

 What is the role of the CEO in innovation?

 

There needs to be some conviction at the top to innovative consistently, especially in difficult economic times. A long term view is critical for effective innovation strategies. It is difficult to measure ROI, especially in social media. The challenge comes down to innovation. An innovation idea that cannot be commercialised isn’t an innovation. Immediate revenue realization needs to be balanced with long term opportunities for growth. I believe that structure dictates outcome. In my previous role in product innovation in Canada, the tone was set at the top. Innovation is important to us. It’s enabled at the top and a prerequisite at the top. Then it’s the marketer’s job to make it happen.

 

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