I quite often find that there is a lack of shared understanding of what managing innovation is or what it means. Some see it as a structured process, characterised by clear steps, set goals, and predetermined outcomes, others as a just do it activity. An activity that one starts on a hunch, with no necessary alignment with strategic goals.
Bridging these two extremes is the newly emerging concept of liquid innovation. Developed as a response to today’s rapidly changing, uncertain, and complex global environment, liquid innovation recognises the necessity for flexibility, adaptability, and ongoing change, reflecting the fluid nature of contemporary market dynamics and consumer expectations. It reflects a broader conceptual and ontological shift in innovation thinking, a shift away from viewing innovation as a linear, discrete process towards understanding it as dynamic, incomplete, and continually evolving. It builds on previous developments such as design thinking, agile, and lean startup methodologies, but embeds them within a deeper recognition that fluidity itself is the new normal.
Liquid innovation refers to the movement away from rigid, well-defined innovation processes toward approaches that are deliberately flexible and perpetually evolving. “Liquifying” innovation does not mean abandoning all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) or discarding effective methodologies. Instead, it involves designing and implementing services or products as platforms with modifiable architectures, capable of adapting as new needs, opportunities, and technologies arise. Think of the Decent Espresso machine or Tesla cars: both products were launched with features (sensors and cameras) for which specific functionalities had not yet been developed. Or consider how modern applications dynamically adapt to users to create tailored experiences (a hallmark of data-centric organisations). In this environment, change is the norm, incompletion is a feature, and innovations are expected to address shifting identities and evolving meanings (something I will explore further in a future edition).
Basically, under liquid innovation:
Of course, it is important to note that liquid innovation is not a universal prescription. Some industries, environments, or projects might still benefit from more structured or hybrid innovation approaches. Liquid innovation tends to thrive where volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA conditions) are dominant, and where continuous responsiveness is crucial to survival and success.
For those wishing to apply the logic of liquid innovation, here are a few points to consider:
Develop Flexible, Incomplete Offerings – Design products and services that are flexible and incomplete at launch, allowing for continuous improvement and adaptation based on immediate user feedback. The goal would be to enable rapid responses to consumer needs and technological advancements, thus prolonging product relevance and user satisfaction.
Implement Fluid Strategic Objectives – Rather than rigidly adhering to long-term goals, organisations should define adaptable strategic objectives that can flex in response to external disruptions. Goals should be revisited and refined regularly based on new insights or changing market conditions.
Leverage Customer Data Platforms – Data from CDPs enable swift adaptation and scale. Innovation managers could leverage these platforms for product development, distribution, and customer engagement. This facilitates quicker pivots, broader reach, and more personalised interactions.
I rely on third-party tools to keep improving. Accept or reject. Either way is cool.