There is a quote from Albert Einstein doing the rounds on social media and numerous GIFs that has him say, “Innovation is everyone’s responsibility, not just R&D’s.”
I can find no proof that he did say this, but still part of me likes to think he did. It holds a lot of truth.
Nowhere more so than in the chemical industry, which is constantly at the forefront of scientific discovery. Indeed, the American Chemical Society (ACS) states that, “In 2014, chemical companies invested $59 billion in research and development to support innovation. In fact, the chemical industry invests more in research and development than leading industries like electronics, automobiles and healthcare.”
But while chemical industry R&D investment is important, so is innovation.
As Pat Confalone, Ph.D, Vice President R&D at DuPont Crop Protection, made clear in his speech to the ACS 2013 Entrepreneur Summit, when he said, “We all know the importance of R&D investment and how it leads to the creation of jobs, a vibrant economy and a better quality of life. But there are in fact two major steps between R&D investment and job creation. There first has to be an invention, but that in itself is not sufficient, there really has to be true innovation.”
He continued by comparing Nicolas Tesla with Thomas Edison. “Tesla was an inventor; he spent money to create his inventions, but was unable to monetize them. Edison was an innovator; he made money from his ideas.”
In the modern world, both inventions and innovation are important, but with a global economy and research being conducted on every continent on the planet, in multiple specialties, creating the correct chemical company structure, leadership hierarchy and culture has never been more important.
With over 30 years experience at Evonik (‘one of the most innovative companies in the world’), and in his current role as Head of International Innovation, Peter Nagler is something of an expert on the matter. He set out his thoughts in a recent interview, stating that, “I believe that Evonik has followed a promising approach to foster innovation in global organizations,” although he does admit that, “Innovation in a complex and global organization with more than 35 R&D sites is a challenge.”
In his presentation at the upcoming CIEX 2016 conference that will be held on Sep 28-29 in Frankfurt, Nagler will, “Show examples of what has been achieved so far [at Evonik] as well as things that did not work.”
Additionally, as an event based on the sharing of ideas, attendees will be given every opportunity to give their opinions on how to create a working environment where innovation can thrive. The event will also, “… question whether our traditional organizational and leadership models will be adequate to respond sufficiently to the faster-than-ever changing requirements to innovation.”
As Nagler says, “Innovation is about leadership and the involvement of people. Or, in other words: it is a lot about the right innovation culture in a given organization.”
Sounds like something Einstein might have said, but which he probably didn’t.
You can join Nagler and 20 senior-level speakers from Fortune 500 companies at CIEX on Sep 28-29 in Frankfurt. Companies participating at CIEX include Henkel, L’Oreal, Dow Chemical, BASF, Lonza, Covestro, Swarovski, Natura, Dupont, Ineos, DSM, McBride and many more!
CIEX is created for R&D and Innovation experts from the consumer, industrial and specialty chemical sectors. By bringing together all players in the chemical value chain, we create a unique platform for participants to learn, exchange ideas and connect with potential partners.
Join us at CIEX 2016 on Sep 28-29 in Frankfurt! Spot Chemi readers benefit from 20% OFF!
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