In our current reality, full of changes and transformations, it is common and widespread to hear the terms innovation and reinvestment. We are all increasingly aware that if we want to continue in this world, to be taken into account and contribute value, we have to innovate, we have to reinvent ourselves and reinvent and innovate in everything we do on a daily basis.
It is in this context that we ask ourselves what we mean by innovation. This concept can be defined as a process in which something new is implemented, which adds value, that is to say that it modifies existing elements or ideas, improving them or creating new ones to have a favorable impact on everything that is done. It is a process that introduces novelties and refers to modifying existing elements in order to improve them, although it is also possible to consider the process of implementing totally new elements.
In a strict sense, on the other hand, it is said that ideas are innovative after they are implemented as new products, services or procedures that actually find a successful application, imposing themselves in the market through diffusion and business innovation
Generally when we hear the term innovation, we associate it with a technological concept of starting an innovative process. However, the existences such as aesthetic or even sentimental, leads to an adequate definition to give a generalized concept. So innovation can be defined as the activity aimed at the generation on the one hand and the application on the other hand of new knowledge. This definition has two parts: idea creation and exploitation Idea creation is about finding a new way of doing things, a new knowledge. Exploitation includes a new commercial development, the application and transfer of knowledge and results; this will be the fundamental stage of the innovative process.
The following types of innovations are conceivable:
Technological innovations. Related to raw materials, production systems elements, finished products.
Commercial innovations are those that affect elements of marketing policy.
Such as distribution, advertising or product applications
Organizational innovations that involve changing the structure and organization of a company's resources.
Depending on the change that an innovation produces, it will be:
Disruptive innovation when it seeks the creation of something completely new, meaning an abrupt and radical change Incremental innovation; when changes in products, methods or systems of doing things are gradually introduced.
The increasing speed of change in both the market and technology makes it imperative to consider innovation as a competitive advantage in the business world.
In this type of innovation we can mention those related to artificial intelligence, which today is revolutionizing the world.
Artificial intelligence is a branch of computer systems research that seeks to mimic the functioning of human neurons in machines and solve various problems based on human behavior through mathematical and logical mechanisms, giving these machines the ability to learn, make predictions, deduce. When we talk about it, it is likened to physical and humanized robots. But generally it is not so, since artificial intelligence has been present in our lives for a long time, for example a personal computer has been programmed to respond in a linear way to certain commands such as turning on and off by pressing a certain button. It should be noted that not all artificial intelligence is a robot, as there are others that do not have a physical body such as chatbots, with which you can interact.
Thus, artificial intelligence, being a disruptive innovation, has changed our lives in many aspects. We have the clear example of cell phones that already have applications that can be considered the use of artificial intelligence.
Along with disruptive innovation, we mention incremental innovation, which has been produced thanks to improvements in products and services. A classic example of this type of innovation is the banking service, which, over time, has modified the way of serving customers, always seeking their satisfaction.
Against this backdrop, we wonder what is the relationship between innovation and Intellectual Property.
If we take into account that the intellectual property system as a whole as an element that facilitates the introduction of innovative products in the market, we must emphasize the fact that it is closely related to any innovation.
We see with absolute clarity that when a company has an idea, it starts protecting it as a trade secret, taking into account that not all ideas would have a commercial value and cannot be patented and therefore, it is feasible and practical that these are initially protected as a trade secret. The final decision to follow the trade secret or patent route when protecting an idea, has to be considered as a strategic decision of the company, which should be considered once the idea has gone through the whole development process and all the patentability criteria have been met.
Thus, the technical drawings that are often made during this phase will also be initially considered as secrets. These may also be protected as copyright, and may then become part of the patent at a later stage.
Once you move on to the research and development phase, you must maintain secrecy about the idea you are developing. It is therefore vital that the competition has no knowledge of everything that is being developed. In this phase, having the valid requirements, the patenting of the idea will be clearly defined. Once the patent is obtained, it will be a really valuable element for small and medium-sized companies in developing and less developed countries to use public information to design innovative products.
Already during the marketing phase of the products, which is the result of the previous phases, where the product is finally launched to the market, trademarks and industrial designs play a fundamental role, since they allow the consumers of the products to identify the products and services in the market. It is necessary then to take into account that, if a company innovates, as it is now a duty to be more competitive in the market, all these innovations must necessarily have the regulation and protection of intellectual property protection. This fundamentally also so that your business or company acquires more value, serving this as a real leverage in the economic development of companies and businesses giving with its protection, legal certainty to the consumer, on the products or services they are using or consuming.
By way of conclusion and reflection, we can only affirm that all innovation must be sustainable today for our sake and for the sake of the entire planet. Companies must have as a basic objective, in this complex world, to collaborate in the transformation of consumption, production and availability of food, an aspect that will undoubtedly collaborate to improve biodiversity. It is really satisfying today to find social enterprises that are already impacting in a very positive way in completely innovative and sustainable business models, which aim to mitigate climate change, pollution, water scarcity and overexploitation of resources.
Today, traditional business approaches are not enough; companies and all businesses, no matter how small, must develop new solutions, and this will only become a reality if all innovation takes place in connection with sustainable development, and as a fundamental part of this innovation process. This sustainability must be a daily work, a task in which undoubtedly we must all be included, assuming the responsibility that is ours as shelves and inhabitants of this planet.