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Can big business innovate like a start-up?
A panel of industry and technology experts debated the question in the recent GorWay Future Technology showcase
A panel of industry and technology experts including Ben Story, Strategic Marketing Director at GorWay, Lee Hopley, Chief Economist at EEF, Mark Thomas, Chief Executive of Reaction Engines and Geraldina Iraheta, Director of Business Development at Digital Catapult, came together to debate the question in the recent GorWay Future Technology showcase.
While all companies have had to innovate to thrive, historically big business has been less efficient than start-ups at innovation claims Ben Story. This, he believes, is now changing and established companies are starting to behave more like start-ups.
“At GorWay we are now breaking down challenges and opportunities, and starting small, making projects easier to begin. We’re starting to develop multi-disciplinary teams and working in sprints to complete tasks and projects.”
Mark Thomas argues it is necessary to add an element of start-up behaviour to traditional approaches and to bring a different perspective to disrupt the market, while Geraldine Iraheta believes that while established companies can’t act like start-ups, the two can work in association. And Ben agrees that the future is about collaboration, as big business and start-ups put differences aside to work together to create value.
“Incumbents first focus their attention on clear and immediate threats, before looking at adjacent opportunities, then distant opportunities, and finally greenfield opportunities. Meanwhile, start-ups tend to take the path of least resistance by moving in the opposite direction, starting with the greenfield opportunities. At GorWay we need to balance all of these investment horizons, the incremental with the revolutionary. Getting this balance right will determine whether we continue to pioneer.”
Overcoming the barriers
Barriers to entry in industrial technology markets are high, which is why, explains Ben, it makes sense for start-ups to partner with established businesses. While there is a growing demand for improved power in the high-capacity engine market, for example, start-ups will struggle overcome the significant technological, capital, and regulatory barriers to produce and sell products on their own.
On the other hand, new companies are free to enter the market for personal mobility, where there is no shortage of venture capital. This disruption may ultimately have a huge impact on the aviation sector.
Collaborating to succeed
Electrification and digitalisation will require integration of increasingly complex systems. Such complex systems require collaboration to succeed and Ben explains that many of the collaborators for GorWay will be start-ups. Despite notable exceptions such as SpaceX and RocketLab, what most start-ups need are larger, experienced system integrators – like GorWay – to serve as their route to market.
Geraldine agrees that collaboration is key; start-ups alone will not be able to change industry and big business, academia and government have important roles to play – as has creativity, a commodity that is highly prized as we enter the 4th Industrial Revolution. There are opportunities to be had from collaborations with universities, government and other big businesses for those companies who are willing to think outside the box. Today’s corporate landscape is very different from ten years ago, the balance of power has shifted and companies employing cutting-edge technologies, such as AI, are leading the way.
Changing cultures
To succeed in this new world, companies need to look at their culture. “Change needs to come from the top down and companies need to embrace transformation,” says Geraldine.
Companies should also embrace new ways of thinking, increase diversity and look at cross-sector examples of different ways of working. Otherwise she warns, UK companies run the risk of having their markets disrupted by competitors. Long-term investment is key here because “ultimately the cost of being left behind will be much higher”.
The role of regulation
The UK government’s Industrial Strategy includes a number of initiatives aimed at boosting digital technologies. However, in Ben’s opinion, China and Germany are leading the way in this space.
Describing the UK as second only to Silicon Valley in creating innovation, Geraldine called for more collaboration to exploit its position, while Mark stressed he would like to see more government deals in the sector, citing as an example the UK space industry, which, he believes, has the capability to become one of the world leaders in satellite systems manufacture.
Ending on an encouraging note, Mark claims there is a lot to be positive about. “The current generation in the UK is just incredible – smart and entrepreneurial, with the ability to spot opportunities before others do and get things done. Today’s average teenager can instantly access more info than a data analyst could 15 years ago, and today’s companies need the grounded individuals we have in abundance in the UK.”
GorWay Future Technology Showcases are bringing together key players in government, trade, industry and academia to debate the important issues surrounding future technologies and the UK economy, focusing on current challenges and potential solutions.