Innovation Principle #5: Speed

A wise woman said to me "There is no difference between a good time to do things and now.” This is true whether it comes to mowing the lawn, writing a business case or speaking to your customers about the quality of your service. However, you should not let speed and quality become enemies. My point is that once you made a decision, every minute between that decision and executing it is time wasted. Time that your competitors are spending doing what you are supposed to do. Hence the lack of speed means a competitive disadvantage. “Big will not beat small anymore. It will be fast beating slow.” as Rupert Murdoch supposedly said. Many industries could probably learn a thing or two from the swedish brand H&M if you consider how fast they act on fashion insights to be able to ship the clothes their customers will want to wear this summer. Speed, not haste, is key for all successful businesses even if product life cycle times differ a lot between industries. Do not let your competitors outbeat you, do it yourself.