Hutter, who refers to herself as a “recovering patent attorney,” recommends looking even further outside of your organization for ideas – to patents.
“When you file a patent, you have to open your kimono and tell people what you’re interested in,” Hutter says. “You have to reveal to the outside world your business interests, research investments, corporate investments, core competencies and missing competencies.”
Though patents today are usually perceived as legal rights to your intellectual property, they were originally developed to spur innovation by disclosing information about other people’s inventions.
“It’s better for innovation if you know what other innovators have done,” Hutter says. “Innovation begets innovation.”
Patents reveal the innovator’s core competencies as well as weaknesses, she explains. You can look through those documented skill sets for opportunities where you could complement their weak spots. Patents can also illustrate how others have tried solving certain problems, keeping you from reinventing the wheel.
“Patents broadly disclose technology but narrowly claim the product,” Hutter says. “So you can start R&D on the 30-yard line instead of the end zone.”
But you have to remind yourself that it’s not just for innovation’s sake. Hutter encourages her clients to understand the difference between something that’s merely patentable and something that the consumer actually cares about.
“In a business sense, the reason you have an invention is because the consumer had a problem,” Hutter says.
[Watch a video of Hutter explaining how patents can fuel innovation.]
Interested in more innovation? Smart Business spoke with a couple of other leaders who attended the forum. See how they’re innovating their companies.
Charles Rotuno, president and CEO, OEConnection
