Marc Drucker

I have lead innovation programs for Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola Kraft, Keurig, Shark-ninja and a number of companies you have not yet heard of. Throughout my career in innovation I kept asking why some companies are successful innovators and others are not. Through research, interviews and experimentation, I found the answer lies not in the things companies do right, but in the things company leadership does wrong.

The saying goes ‘Hardware is hard’ (and the same foes for software, foods, beverages and packaging) but it really isn’t. Many companies are able to successfully strategize, develop and launch new products. This can only happen if the skills, process and tools to innovate are widespread and mastered by many. There are many companies that consistently launch successful new products. It’s one of the reasons Apple, Tesla, Dyson, Disney, Shark Ninja, Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola, and Sony have created trillions of dollars of value. Every corporate leader should ask why their company is not one of them.

Most importantly, every leader should ask themselves if they are the ones f-ing up innovation.