We need to think now especially when we say today that’ India is a nation of innovation’, but we are not able to solve these basic fundamentals
Innovation can happen in three ways:
- In building a product
- Through changing a process, or
- Coming up with something innovative in service
Innovation is not only about building a product, but is also about improving a product. Let us say today if a petrol car giving around 14 to 15 miles is worked upon and its efficiency is improved up to 35 miles, then that becomes innovation. We are not building a product but rather improving its efficiency, and the technology can be patented as well.
Advancement can be in a business disruptive as well. For example, in the online market we had Snapdeal and Flipkart, and so many online products, but among them Amazon saw in India a big market with 130 crore population, and came up with a consumer-friendly idea to deliver the product, that if the buyer does not like the product they can return it and immediately get their money back. That ways Amazon augmented its credibility and also increased its revenue.
Today, when I buy a mobile from Amazon, I can simultaneously view the trending mobiles in the market, what are the best products available, what offers am I getting in them and what not. That ways they understand the pulse of the customer, they are able to read what you need and give an alternative. For example, I ordered for something, that they were not able to deliver on time.
They send me the product immediately without charging, I said I don’t want it, to that their response was ‘sorry but please accept it, and you do not have to pay for it’. This is how they are improving the customer’s experience, and that is innovation.
We have seen products like mobiles coming and capturing the market, but innovation is also there in service. If one wishes to launch a portal, where all the electronics and molded gadgets will be available with details, like the product’s warranty, it’s service centers located in the nearby area etc, then that too is a way of creating a market, and thus is innovation. Advancement can happen in any way. It could be in business or on the fields of technology and science too.
People look at India from a very different prospect. We all use innovation, but we still do not know what it means. Novelty does not only mean that I invent a new product; it also means to improve the existing product. For example, we worked on one of our products and from 228 parts we brought it down to 106 parts, thus we increased the efficiency of that particular engine by 45% and reduced its weight by 38% that is innovation.
Today, what we need is education in innovation. The fundamentals of our academics have to change. There is resistance because most of the academicians are above the age of 50 or 60 and not ready to modify, whereas revolution has to come from them. The student is ready, but the academics and institutions are not able to give good and quality education.
The mindset has to change! We need to think on the lines of why India needs innovation and what is the meaning of the word and also what kind of improvement do we need. Let us take for example the political system and the whole concept of e-governance. The Government needs to change its policies and operational style. It needs to integrate everything. Today, if I have to pay property tax I would have to go somewhere else, for electricity bill payment I need to go somewhere, the Government should do something which can help me pay all my dues and 10 or 20 transactions in one click. There should be measure of doing it. Also, if someone wants a duplicate certificate in 10th standard, there should be a proper procedure to follow.
Therefore, we need to start working on improving our fundamentals and that would be the source of innovation. This country needs fundamental understanding, and needs to think out of the box, and accept change, in fact that would be the biggest change.
