Riding The VUCA Wave

Nothing can promise sustainability in a VUCA world than an innovative mindset.

- Dr Aseem Chauhan, Manoj Joshi And Suhayl Abidi

Innovation is an outcome of an idea that can be inferred as something new. Innovators innovate and create ‘wealth’, or add to what is existing. Growth comes from innovators who may also be entrepreneurs who lead to employment generation. These innovators and even entrepreneurs bestow new value on old assets. Internet startups like Oyo Rooms, Myntra, ShopClues, Lenskart, redBus, Grofers, BookMyShow, and Pepperfry have virtually created wealth from nothing. Aggressive ones like Mu Sigma, Flipkart, InMobi, Quikr, Zomato, Olacabs, and Paytm have scaled to become unicorns with over $1billion as investment. There are many more who have created wealth with barely any base. Many large companies have also been successful in the creation of wealth, like Wipro, Bharti Telecom, and Infosys. This wealth creation trend is similar around the world. Has agility and precision added to their innovativeness?

Most of these firms have moved ahead to being distinctively classified as innovative companies, who faced continuous challenges in a VUCA environment. According to a recent Forbes survey on top 100 innovative firms, North America had 51, Europe 17, and Asia 22. The top of the list had firms such as Salesforce.com, Tesla Motors, Amazon.com, Netflix, Incyte, and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals from the US, while Shanghai RAAS Blood Products from China and Naver belonged to South Korea. Interestingly, Hindustan Unilever and Asian Paints from India got an entry into top 10 innovative firms. These innovative firms were from verticals ranging from technology to beverages, real estate, and pharmaceuticals. It is worth dissecting and learning what they did in special to stay ahead.