Ideation, Innovation and Implementation

Having read the article "The random events that sparked 8 of the world's biggest startups" made me wonder if it was the idea or the implementation that resulted in the success of these startup companies. With each of our social ventures, the focus at this point is to pitch a "KILLER IDEA" that will disrupt the current market and help us create our niche. The founders of Twitter had guts to release a social networking product during the peak of Facebook. But the idea stood out. "The SMS of Internet" created a new market that catered to an audience interested in reading only 140 characters to grasp hold of the story.

So, how do I come up with a killer idea?

Here is an article http://www.innovationmanagement.se/2013/05/30/the-7-all-time-greatest-ideation-techniques/ which outlines ideation techniques should we be ever stuck on crossroads. The most innovative technique I found in this article was "Worst idea". In this technique, you write down a list of all possible worst ideas and then challenge yourself to make it better. This technique could spark a lot of creativity and lead to ingenious solutions.

While ideation is important and necessary to create a niche market, I believe the type of implementation of certain ventures sets them apart from the rest. Facebook, was not the first social networking platform, but certainly the most successful.

It is the dedication, passion and vision of certain entrepreneurs that lead their companies to success.  These entrepreneurs demonstrate integrity, lead through relationships, focus on results, and remain customer-focused throughout the execution of their venture. As we have outlined the idea for our social venture and now look into delving to the details, it is important that we stay focused. As we pitch to potential clients, stakeholders or employees we must have a long term vision of our venture. We must identify a goal that is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-based.

I believe these insights will help us prepare for the implementation phase of our projects.