Author Archives: Eugene Ivanov

About Eugene Ivanov

Eugene Ivanov is the founder of INSILICONOVATION, a consulting company that helps resource-constrained organizations diagnose root causes, surface hidden assumptions, and choose practical next steps before they spend money, time, or political capital on the wrong fix.

Are We Going Crazy about Using the Word “Innovation”?

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

This past weekend, I made a routine shopping trip to Lowe’s. Strolling around the store, I was stunned to see a large poster marking the entry to one of the aisles: New Innovation. My first reaction was that this was … Continue reading →

Posted in Innovation | Tagged Innovation, Innovation Management, Lowe's | 1 Comment

Working a Crowd

Posted on September 24, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

If crowdsourcing has not yet become a mainstream innovation tool, this is definitely not for the lack of attention. Crowdsourcing remains a topic of intense academic studies, and a recent paper by researchers from Simon Frazer University in Canada is … Continue reading →

Posted in Crowdsourcing | Tagged “not invented here” syndrome, crowd-voting, Crowdsourcing, idea crowdsourcing, InnoCentive, Innovation, Innovation Management, innovation tools, internal innovation networks, micro-task crowdsourcing, Open Innovation, open innovation services providers, Open Innovation Tools, R&D processes, Simon Frazer University, solution crowdsourcing | Leave a comment

Not All Innovation Models Are Created Equal

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

It’s one of the most popular topics in innovation discussions: why innovation fails? How many times have you heard the following narrative? With great fanfare, the XYZ Company launches an innovation initiative. Employees are urged to submit ideas, and a … Continue reading →

Posted in Innovation | Tagged Crowdsourcing, Innovation, innovation challenges, innovation contests, innovation jams, Innovation Management, internal innovation networks, Open Innovation, R&D processes | 14 Comments

Innovativeness=Competitiveness

Posted on September 3, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

The Global Competitiveness Report 2014-15 is out. It’s described as an assessment of the “competitiveness of 144 economies based on 12 “pillars” which include institutions, infrastructure, health and education, labor market efficiency, technological readiness, innovation and business sophistication.” Here is … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Innovation | Tagged 2013 Global Innovation Index, 2014 Global Innovation Index, competitiveness, Creativity, Global Competitiveness Index, Global Competitiveness Report 2014-15, Innovation, Innovation Management | Leave a comment

What Can Crowdsourcing Do?

Posted on August 21, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

I’m often asked questions about crowdsourcing. Usually, they’re revolving around this central theme: what can crowdsourcing do? Can crowdsourcing solve this problem? Can crowdsourcing solve that problem? On occasion, a more perceptive question is posed: can crowdsourcing define a problem? … Continue reading →

Posted in Crowdsourcing | Tagged Crowdsourcing, diabetes, Drug Development, Harvard Catalyst, Harvard Medical School, Innovation, Open Innovation, Open Innovation Tools, Type 1 diabetes, unmet medical needs | 3 Comments

New Survey: Incentivizing Employees to Innovate

Posted on August 19, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

(This post originally appeared on Innovation Excellence) More and more businesses view innovation as a new paradigm for achieving competitive advantage. Now businesses must focus on how to make the innovation process more effective. Experts and innovation practitioners agree that … Continue reading →

Posted in Rewards and Recognition | Tagged C-suite, Doug Williams, Innovation, Innovation Excellence, Innovation Management, IX Research, Rewards and Recognitions, SurveyMonkey | Leave a comment

All Innovation Is Local

Posted on August 15, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

I like this phrase: all politics is local. Ascribed to the late Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Tip O’Neill this phrase means that all political decisions, regardless of their purpose and scale, must take into account the interests … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Care | Tagged Clinical Trials, consumer-centric healthcare, Crowdsourcing, disease advocacy organizations, Drug Development, druggable molecular targets, FDA, Innovation, Innovation Management, Open Innovation, patient groups, Phase III clinical trials, R&D processes, rapid prototyping, Tip O’Neill, Transparency Life Sciences, unmet customer needs, unmet medical needs, VOC, voice of the customer | Leave a comment

Should We Celebrate Failure Worth A Billion?

Posted on August 5, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

As every popular topic, innovation is a powerful magnet for clichés. Some of them obliterate more than illuminate. For example, I’m not sure that mixing innovation with DNA is a good idea. Though I kind of understand what Clayton Christensen … Continue reading →

Posted in Portfolio Management | Tagged cancer, Clayton Christensen, Clinical Trials, Drug Development, FDA, Innovation, Phase III, The innovator’s DNA | 11 Comments

No Change On The Top Of Innovation Olympus

Posted on July 23, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

Recently, I wrote about the annual 2013 Global Innovation Index (GII 2013), composed by Cornell University, European Institute of Business Administration and World Intellectual Property Organization, that ranked 142 world countries’ innovation capabilities and achievements. I made a curious observation that … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Innovation | Tagged Cornell University, European Institute of Business Administration, Freedom House, Freedom of the World Report, Global Innovation Index, Innovation, World Intellectual Property Organization | 1 Comment

Show Me The Money!

Posted on July 19, 2014 by Eugene Ivanov

(This post originally appeared on Danish Crowdsourcing Association website) I strongly believe that as an open innovation tool, crowdsourcing has a bright future, but only if it proves its economic worth. In other words, when properly designed and executed, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Crowdsourcing | Tagged Crowdsourcing, Danish Crowdsourcing Association, Forrester Consulting, Harvard Medical School, InnoCentive, MegaBLAST, Open Innovation, R&D, return on investment, Syngenta | 2 Comments