If you ever wondered ‘How Did I Get Here?’ – Here is a recent interview I gave that may be helpful if your early in your career.
Did you ever wonder ‘How Did I Get Here?’ (link) – This is a recent interview I gave that may be helpful if you are starting your career.
Listen to this short podcast interview series by Jason Fish on anchor.fm – listeners can also find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and many other listening platforms. Enjoy! ##careerpaths #innovatorsmindset #orgchanger
Join me for my guest lecture on “Innovation Management – Metrics and Success Factors” as part of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship track in the MBA International Business Management and Leadership curriculum at the Hochschule Kempten, University of Applied Sciences, in Germany on June 01, 2019.
Join me for my upcoming guest lecture on “Innovation Management – Metrics and Success Factors” as part of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship track in the MBA International Business Management and Leadership curriculum at the Hochschule Kempten, University of Applied Sciences, in Germany on July 26, 2020.
In this track, we also discuss the teaching case study ‘Boehringer Ingelheim: Leading Innovation’ (available at Harvard Business Review) featuring Stephan Klaschka’s corporate career as an innovator and intrapreneur at Boehringer Ingelheim.
This case study was written by the Ivey Business School, University of Western Ontario, Canada, and is used for education by universities and colleges across Europe, America, and Asia.
Join me at the Automotive & Mobility Forum, NYC, 24.Mar.2020
Join me for my guest lecture on “Innovation Management – Metrics and Success Factors” as part of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship track in the MBA International Business Management and Leadership curriculum at the Hochschule Kempten, University of Applied Sciences, in Germany on June 01, 2019.
Join me for my upcoming guest lecture on “Innovation Management – Metrics and Success Factors” as part of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship track in the MBA International Business Management and Leadership curriculum at the Hochschule Kempten, University of Applied Sciences, in Germany on June 01, 2019.
In this track, we also discuss the teaching case study ‘Boehringer Ingelheim: Leading Innovation’ (available at Harvard Business Review) featuring Stephan Klaschka’s corporate career as an innovator and intrapreneur at Boehringer Ingelheim.
This case study was written by the Ivey Business School, University of Western Ontario, Canada, and is used for education by universities and colleges across Europe, America, and Asia.
Students of the Creativity, Innovation and New Value course at Colorado State University discuss the popular teaching case study “Boehringer Ingelheim: Leading Innovation” (available at Harvard Business Review (HBR) and the Ivey Business School) with intrapreneur Stephan Klaschka.
Intrapreneurship Case Study at the Foreign Trade University (FTU),
As a cooperation between Colorado State University (CSU) and the Foreign Trade University (FTU) in Hanoi, Vietnam, FTU students are tasked to develop an opportunity in a team and conduct a feasibility analysis on the opportunity that they present to the class on June 4, 2018.
I will join the students and visiting CSU professor Robert Mitchell for a live discussion of the teaching case study “Boehringer Ingelheim: Leading Innovation“, which is available at Harvard Business Review (HBR) and the Ivey Business School,
In this teaching case study, the case writers Professor J. Robert Mitchell, Ph.D., and Ramasastry Chandrasekhar, of Ivey Business School, follow the footsteps of Stephan Klaschka’s intrapreneurial approach to innovation within a global pharmaceutical company (FORTUNE Global 500, Top 20 Pharma).
This intrapreneurship teaching case study is used by staff and students of Intrapreneurship and Innovation in business schools around the world. and features my career as an Intrapreneur at a major pharmaceutical company.
Students of the Creativity, Innovation and New Value course at Colorado State University discuss the popular teaching case study “Boehringer Ingelheim: Leading Innovation” (available at Harvard Business Review (HBR) and the Ivey Business School) with intrapreneur Stephan Klaschka.
On April 26, 2018, students of the Creativity, Innovation and New Value course at Colorado State University discuss the popular teaching case study “Boehringer Ingelheim: Leading Innovation” (available at Harvard Business Review (HBR) and the Ivey Business School) with intrapreneur Stephan Klaschka.
The case writers Professor J. Robert Mitchell, Ph.D., and Ramasastry Chandrasekhar, of Ivey Business School, follow the footsteps of Stephan’s intrapreneurial approach to innovation from within a global pharmaceutical company (FORTUNE Global 500, Top 20 Pharma). This intrapreneurship teaching case study is used by staff and students of Intrapreneurship and Innovation in business schools around the world. It is available for download at
Intrapreneuring and Corporate Entrepreneurship are very different and directly affect business outcomes. Read about both approaches, their distinct opportunities, and challenges.
For many years I have worked as an Intrapreneur. I advised startups, built intrapreneurial eco-systems across global organizations, and mentored corporate teams applying Lean Startup and other entrepreneurial methodologies in Corporate Entrepreneurship programs.
The question that came up frequently was about the difference between intrapreneuring and corporate entrepreneuring: Are they the same?
The quick answer is ‘No’ as there are significant differences on many levels that directly affect the business outcomes. Both approaches come with distinct opportunities and challenges (see also the comparison table below):
In a large company, jobs are small. The increasing complexity and high specialization of work in a large organization narrow the responsibility and job descriptions for the individual employee. In a small company, in contrast, jobs are big since there are only a few people who need to step up and cover all aspects of the business – the individuals ‘own’ and contribute to the success of the business directly and to large degrees.
The Idea Origin and Ownership are key to the single most important driving force for an Intrapreneur: Passion.
The importance of being passionate about the idea is essential because passion is needed to persist and to bring about change against the resistance many obstacles an Intrapreneur runs into. The resistance of the organization is a sign of meaningful change entailing the intrapreneurial idea; therefore, facing resistance can be a positive sign.
‘Intrapreneur’ is a self-assumed role in the organization and, therefore, operates without a formal mandate, organizational support or assigned resources. On the upside, the Intrapreneur does not have an answer to a superior. The challenge is, however, to get creative to find allies and resources in an organization unprepared to formally support the Intrapreneur. This lack of formal authority and institutional support by management also comes with considerable risk for the Intrapreneur and the idea.
The Corporate Entrepreneur has a clear mandate and already receives support from management usually within the given operational framework of the approved project. The project scope is narrow which translates into limited resources and restricted freedom to navigate. Furthermore, the project comes with timelines and expectations by sponsors whose patience can run out fast when the team misses milestones or falls short on expectations. Thus, Corporate Entrepreneuring, more often than not, is a glorified term for ‑usually‑ quite ordinary projects of incremental nature along established processes.
The limited scope, resources, and overall operational framework define a ‘box’ for the Corporate Entrepreneurs to operate in within the larger organization and the path on how to get there. Often enough these limits extend also into the mindset and open-mindedness of the team and their approaches. Real or perceived restrictions can originate from various factors present in the established organization such as formal process and procedures, authority and hierarchy, values and norms, group-think and taboos, etc.
Corporate Entrepreneurs operate openly and under the constant scrutiny of the larger organization. The latter can take uninvited influence on the project scope, progress, process, resources, results, and success as well as on the project team itself. Being able to leverage the resources of the larger organization can be very helpful when it comes to implementation and scaling (if it ever comes to his point) but operating in the limelight is not always helpful and may easily lead to compromises, trade-offs, and scope-creep induced by powerful stakeholder.
The Intrapreneur is not as limited by the formal boundaries, practices, and culture of the organization. Being able to operate outside the box lends itself to pursuing a bold and disruptive idea, taking unconventional and stealthy approaches and pathways that help to move the idea forward ‑ the sky is the limit. Operating in the shadows initially avoids drawing broader attention to the idea. Preventing premature exposure to the ‘organizational immune-system.’ Once triggered, it tends to quickly put an end to the unconventional idea and their champion. A stealthy Intrapreneur can more cautiously test the waters, find experts and executive supporters also outside the own business unit, and allow the idea to take shape, evolve, and mature before taking the risk of exposure.
Exposure comes with a range of possible outcomes where the idea can then can slip beyond the control of the Intrapreneur including:
I have seen all of these outcomes many times throughout my career as an Intrapreneur and executive consultant.
What are rewards can look very different for Intrapreneurs and Corporate Entrepreneurs. The latter delivers a project and may get recognition for it, a bonus or promotion even, before moving on to the next assignment.
The Intrapreneur, however, has a much greater sense of accomplishment and fulfillment for the passionate Intrapreneur having brought a great idea to life against all obstacles and resistance of the organization.
Comparison in Summary
From my perspective, the main difference is that an intrapreneur has a calling, a vision, that he or she wants to bring to life for the better of the organization even against the resistance of an organization. Intrapreneuring is an active expression of organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB), i.e. ‘helping behaviors’, with going beyond the call of an employee’s duty. It requires intrapreneurial spirit with passion and guts to pursue challenges and to overcome obstacles day after day which includes taking risks including to stand all alone against the organization at times. This can make some Intrapreneurs even leave their organization to make their dream come true elsewhere or on their own.
While Corporate Entrepreneuring propagates introducing entrepreneurial methods within an established organization, if you look beyond its fancy label and a vendor’s prospectus, the approach ‑most often in my experience‑ remains shackled by numerous institutional constraints. Therefore, these program falls short to deliver the true potential of entrepreneurship or intrapreneurship. Instead, the solutions tend to remain in the more predictable space of incremental improvement that large organizations are more accustomed to and feel comfortable to operate in.
Thus, the average Corporate Entrepreneur is not an Intrapreneur by any means and not an entrepreneur either. Corporate Entrepreneurship then resembles a non-controversial, risk-free, and feel-good version of the intrapreneurial experience out of the safe position as an appointed corporate cogwheel in a glorified project with a marketing blast and a defined career path waiting at the end of the project.
Now having said all this, there is no reason why true Intrapreneurs and Corporate Entrepreneurship programs should not be compatible in ways where they can benefit from each other mutually.
A savvy Intrapreneur could use company’s Corporate Entrepreneurship program as a vehicle to forward the Intrapreneur’s agenda somewhat in alignment with company goals and avoiding a frontal collision with the organizational immune system. In return, the company benefits from a driven Intrapreneur in the driver seat who can bring intrapreneurial passion to the project – with a lot of ‘If’:
All these ‘If’ remain the biggest obstacles across corporations to embrace Intrapreneurs. More recently, the phrase “culture fit” tends to disqualify Intrapreneurs and their passion ‑or‑ as the Contently founder Shane Snow puts it: “When an organization has an ethos rooted in ‘culture fit,’ a nasty hidden habit develops. Whenever someone has an idea that doesn’t ‘fit’ the established way of thinking or of doing things, they’ll either shut up or they’ll get shut down.”
There is something about the passionate individual and somewhat renegade employee with a vision and a transformative idea that challenges the status quo, group-think, or widely accepted goals in
an organization who may just need that disruptive or transformational idea to grow, outrun their competition, or even survive while rejecting the change initially. In the end, it comes down to the power of one individual that envisions greatness and brings it to life against all obstacles.
Intrapreneurship: Designing sustainable innovation ecosystems! – New Executive Webinar Series in Oct/Nov 2017
Register now for my new Intrapreneurship series of Executive Webinars starting in October 2017 and powered by Ijona Skills:
The three webinars build upon each other and provided maximum value when attended in this sequence (they are being recorded, so no you can catch up if you missed one)
Global CEOs, Top HR and Key Influencers share strategies
Register (at the bottom of the webpage) to join Global CEOs, Top HR and Key Influencers share strategies at the
Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business 601 Lexington Ave. 26th Fl. New York, NY 10022
How to stay ahead and aligned in today’s fast changing markets, talent compression, regulatory shifts and technology disruptions. A fast paced, highly interactive collaboration among global leaders on emerging trends.
Sign up for this unique professional development opportunity, where health and wellness professionals and social innovators from organizations around the world will come together to innovate in this online course.
Four years ago, I helped to launch the “Social Intrapreneurship for Innovation in Health and Wellness” program of ASHOKA in cooperation with Boehringer Ingelheim. With overwhelming success, the program was repeated every year since 2014 and is being offered again this year from April 24 thru June 2, 2017!
Sign up for this unique professional development opportunity, where health and wellness professionals and social innovators from organizations around the world will come together to innovate in this online course.
Social Intrapreneurship is a methodology for cultivating and advancing social innovation within institutions by adopting agile, strategies while building essential skills such as leadership, empathy, teamwork and change-making. This 5th edition of the course is sponsored by the Making More Health initiative – creating a healthier world for individuals, families and their communities through social entrepreneurship and intrapreneurial thinking.
Check out the course sign-up page: http://bit.ly/socintspring2017
Space is limited and based on a first-come, first-served basis. Participants will also be vetted based on criteria and fit for the course. We strongly encourage Boehringer Ingelheim employees, as well as health and wellness social entrepreneurs and professionals to apply.
Course Details
Application Opens: NOW
Application Deadline: April 13th
Course start date: April 24th
Course end date: June 2nd
Expected Time Commitment: 2-3 hr/week time-flexible, self-paced and interactive.
If you have any questions about the course, please feel free to email the organizaers at courses@ashoka.org
Join my session on “Building a Sustainable Innovation Ecosystem in a Global Corporation” in the Innovation Culture & Ecosystems track on March 21.
Meet me at the International Society for Professional Innovation Management (ISPIM) Conference 2017 ISPIM Innovation Forum XXVII- Fostering Innovation Ecosystems in Toronto, Canada on March 19-22, 2017!
Join my session on “Building a Sustainable Innovation Ecosystem in a Global Corporation” in the Innovation Culture & Ecosystems track on March 21.
Large pharmaceutical (and other) organizations struggle with the tectonic shifts and fundamental changes across the landscapes worldwide. The traditional mindset and business models are failing. A rejuvenating and holistic transformation effort is needed to get nimble again and adapt to the new reality.
How do you change a stagnant innovation culture and create a sustainable ecosystem within a global organization that stands the challenges of real life?
As an example, this case study discusses the comprehensive yet practical approach that mobilized hidden talent and resources transforming Boehringer Ingelheim, a Global FORTUNE 500 pharmaceutical company, from within on a global scale. It generated exponential returns and fundamentally changed the culture of the organization from leadership training and managerial decision-making down to bringing grass-root ideas to a break-through and new career paths for employees.
The issue is universal and not limited to a pharmaceutical or healthcare company: There is no lack of great ideas aiming beyond incremental improvement at the grassroots of large organizations. There is also no lack of funds or support for break-through ideas on the top of the hierarchy; in fact, leadership is constantly seeking for good ideas. However, there are many obstacles bringing them together.
One problem is how to connect the people with great, disruptive ideas with the ones that have the authority and resources to making them happen in the organization?
A second problem is how to find and vet the ideas that have a game-changing potential and develop them with limited risk?
The third problem is that even with executive support it can be hard to implement a new idea against the resistance of the organization, which rejects them as disrupting the equilibrium of the status quo.
The proposed session illustrates and discusses the real-life experiences of building and operating a holistic and sustainable framework that successfully addressed the issue, overcame resistance on many levels, and yielded an exponential return-of-investment. It resulted in a visible and measurable way changed innovation mindset and changed behaviors throughout the organization to bring disruptive ideas and projects to life.
Visit my blog OrgChanger.com to read more about intrapreneuring with case studies and real-life success stories!
Sign up for RETH!NK HEALTHCARE! – Big Data, Augmented Reality, Wearables
and visit my workshop “Digitale Disruption im Gesundheitssystem: Was sind die Risiken und Chancen für Pharmaunternehmen?” in the heart of Berlin, Germany, on April 11, 2017! – Follow the event on Twitter #rethinkhealthcare17
Expert advice on open innovation from executives with experience at Bayer, Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim published in the December/January 2017 issue of the Healthcare Sales & Marketing Magazine (HS&M) e-magazine:
With improved technology, especially, Artificial Intelligence, what physicians will be needed in the future?
Join the Executive Round Table event on Nov. 22, 2016 featuring “The innovation and technology convergence in Life Science and Healthcare industry”
Life Science Quest and the Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association, Connecticut (SAPA-CT) work together bringing a series of high-level professional and business development events to Life Science and Health Care industry in the TriState Metropolitan area, providing high level business networking, round tables discussions and business seminars.
This joint event of Life Science Quest and SAPA-CT in the Life Science & Healthcare series is to be held 22 November 2016 6:00 PM at Mount Saint Mary College (330 Powell Avenue, Newburgh, NY. Aquinas Hall room 163).
The Art of Innovation: How to Become a “Partner of Choice” is an insightful interview with seasoned innovation professionals discussing what it takes to build a Partner-of Choice-relationship with Open Innovation in the pharmaceutical industry.
The Art of Innovation: How to Become a “Partner of Choice” is an insightful interview with seasoned innovation professionals discussing what it takes to build a Partner-of Choice-relationship with Open Innovation in the pharmaceutical industry.
Join me at Singularity University’s first Germany Summit, Berlin, 20-21.Apr.16
On April 20-21, 2016, Singularity University, the most innovative and forward-looking institution, has chosen to host their SingularityU Germany Summit in Berlin—one of the most vibrant cities in the world. SingularityU Germany Summit is a local Chapter and community organization of Singularity University. It is one of the largest two-day events in Europe aimed at bringing awareness about exponential technologies and their impact on business and policy to thought leaders and executives from breakthrough companies.
What can you expect at SingularityU Germany Summit?
Leading experts from the global high-tech community will present the latest trends and cutting-edge developments in Mobility, Organization, Manufacturing, Artificial Intelligence, Computing, Robotics, 3D Printing, Machine Learning and Design Thinking. Together we strive to inspire and empower European leaders and influencers in using exponential technologies to solve today’s most pressing issues. SingularityU Germany Summit is an ideal platform to network for both alumni as well as first time attendees, leaders, government representatives, entrepreneurs, investors, NGOs.
500 attendees ranging from CEOs to young innovators from across the globe are expected to attend the event. Together we will explore issues such as: How can technological evolution be transformed into a sustainable and value-based growth for any industry? What ethical standards and responsibilities do global leaders have to account for?
Meet me in Bonn, Germany on April 14, 2016 for the 7th installation of DeTeCon’s Life-Science meets Telco series.
This year‘s event focuses on a very special aspect of the Digital Transformation – the cross-industry collaboration and exchange.
How can digitalization be implemented to make a difference in every patient’s life? What best practices from other industries can be transferred to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries? These and many more questions we will answer at this year’s event.
You can expect a great atmosphere for networking as well as exciting discussions on:
Don’t miss this opportunity! Save the date and stay tuned for more information!
After exploring German innovation barriers to digital transformation. As a follow-up, let’s look at an example of a successful industry already known for high-tech. And which example would be more moving than the iconic German automotive industry?
We explored German innovation barriers to digital transformation in German Innovation Insider: The Brakes on Digital Innovation previously. As a follow-up, let’s look at an example of a successful industry already known for German high-tech innovation: the iconic German automotive industry.
Automotive is the largest industrial sector in Germany. Vehicles and parts make up some 20% of total German industry revenue with auto sales and exports worth 368 billion euros ($411 billion) in 2014. Car-making is a German strong suit with luxury cars being the most profitable segment.
Disruptive players emerged with electric car concepts for years. They were generally ignored by the established car makers despite the high eco-consciousness of German society in general. The new technology was not considered a threat nor as profitable as the existing businesses. So electrical vehicles were disregarded so not to disrupt or cannibalize the traditional business with combustion engine vehicles.
The influence of the car industry remains strong and has an outspoken lobby also in Germany. This contributes to failing the German government’s announced goal of leading the electric mobility market with “one million electric vehicles on the road by 2020” since only 8,522 new electrical vehicles were registered in German in 2014 (up from under 3,000 in 2012).
The game changed when disruptive niche player Tesla Motors started cutting into the highly profitable luxury car segment with its high-end and high-tech electric vehicles. Tesla also receives outstanding customer service reviews in key markets such as the United States. Suddenly German car builders scramble to catch up to protect their stakes: everyone wants to offer at least one electric vehicle in their luxury car portfolio as a ‘Tesla Killer.’ Finally, negligent or halfhearted governmental support of the program just changed course by offering temporary tax breaks and other incentives.
Now, disruptive innovation may not make cars obsolete. We still want to get from A to B, so incrementally improved cars (better safety, quality components, etc.) will remain in demand and customers will continue to pay a premium for luxury models. Take a closer look at Tesla though to see the difference of their bigger and bolder view: the Model S versions, for example, are constructed all the same except for the model sticker on the back.
The true battlefield is no longer the physical car alone. From the steering unit to the breaking-system Tesla’s are built from pre-assembled, tried-and-tested components from quality manufacturers; including parts from some German hidden champions such as Stabilus (liftgate gas spring) and ZF Lenksysteme (steering mechanism).
Nonetheless, it’s the software configuration in the Model S that makes the difference from regulating the available battery capacity (extended range) to other features (acceleration) that become available to its passengers. Tesla added ‘Autopilot’ functionality and a self-parking feature to its fleet just recently – simply via remote software update. Voila!
Reaching beyond the individual vehicle the software running the car became the key to future mobility. The question becomes who will own the car operating system of the future? Chances are it’s the exponential silicon players from sunny California who are best positioned, experienced and deeply understand both, digital integration and exponential innovation.
Mercedes meets the software threat and opportunity by aiming to control this pivotal technology, which may otherwise be seized by more avid digital players such as Google, Microsoft or even Tesla. Mercedes made some progress when it just announced its new E-class vehicles connecting and sharing relevant information with each other.
German luxury car-makers proudly announce their future ‘Tesla Killers’ playing catch-up with high-end electric cars of their own, such as Audi’s Q7 E-TRON Quattro, BMW’s i5 or Porsche’s performance vehicle Mission E (the latter two not available before 2019). Tesla hardware is even coming under attack with future competition getting ready; among them Silicon Valley’ Atieva and Tesla clones from China.
In true sports car fashion, Porsche’s marketing highlights 600hp for 0-to-60mph acceleration in under 3.5 seconds. Tesla already achieves this mark today. So where is the actual ‘kill’?
The real question aims at the next step: where will the drivers of the new Audi’s, BMW’s and Porsche’s charge their batteries on the road?
Looking at future mobility as an arena rather than just vehicles, Tesla’s venture also crossed other industries such as the critical battery business in partnership with Panasonic. In addition, Tesla offers a wide-cast net of ‘SuperCharger’ power-stations free of charge for its customers at many highway rest-stops and gas-stations positioned to allow Tesla drivers to reach most areas of the continental U.S. already today.
Here, Tesla secured the first-mover advantage in securing the precious real-estate needed at busy rest-stops. In the long run, it appears doubtful that rest-stops will grant additional dedicated slots with proprietary pumps to every car-maker to recharge their line of vehicles.
So the German car manufacturers may be forced to cut a deal with Tesla adopting the Tesla technology and paying for using Tesla’s high-speed pump space on-the-go in the future. Tesla even announced it will not enforce patent protection for anyone who, in good faith, wants to use the Tesla technology, which may smoothen over the adoption by other car-makers.
Looking into the crystal ball, the automotive industry is not just about introducing more electric vehicles but is morphs to become a new mobility arena as Tesla is demonstrating. Being still at the early stage of an exponential growth curve, Teslas are certainly not cheap to buy – yet.
Looking at electric vehicles simply as sophisticated hardware components, however, we may just enter a scenario in the not-too-distant future that reminds of Amazon’s successful strategy: giving the Kindle eReader (hardware) devices away cheap. Amazon is not interested in hardware but the content, the vast library of eBooks (software) fueling the customers’ demand, which makes all the difference and holds the keys to a proprietary, digital kingdom with recurring high revenues.
German innovation gets trapped in the very mentality focusing on building quality products ‘Made in Germany’ that the country got well known for. Holding on to vertical product improvement, however, obstructs crossing industry barriers, convergence, developing game-changing business models, and coming up with breakthrough innovations with potential for exponential growth and returns.
A recent research study of the Centre for European Economic Research confirmed Germany leading by far with 1,550 hidden champions. Companies are commonly considered a hidden champion if they are no. 1 or 2 on the world market, make less than EUR 1.5b revenue and their name is not overly well unknown to the general public.
Note that mid-size companies comprise 80%(!) of German industry and resemble the backbone of the German economy altogether. According to the Berlin School of Economics and Law, 90% are focused on B2B.
See if you recognize a few examples of hidden champions that are leading global players:
Inside the Vertical Tunnel View
Among the 1.500+ market leaders, only two German companies are leading software companies (Software AG and SAP). The vast majority focuses on more tangible product innovation leaving this digital industry somewhat isolated, underdeveloped and vulnerable like an economy’s Achilles’ Heel.
You get a good sense of a vertical bias in product innovation, when you read German open job postings for innovation lead position of sorts: As an innovator in an automotive company, you require a solid background in engine engineering, for example, or as an innovation leader in a chemical consumer goods company, you will not be hired without in-depth knowledge of adhesives, for example. It becomes painfully obvious how the vertical product innovation fosters a mindset of inbred solutions and can miss out on transformative opportunities beyond the own domain, bridging and converging industries.
Point being: Innovators are usually hired from within a vertical industry. This leaves little room for a creative influx from the outside. Since meaningful innovation ‘happens’ at the crossroads of disciplines in a horizontal cross-pollination of different industries and domains. This inflexible German practice lends itself to incremental improvement of products rather than disruptive transformation of businesses, entire industries or even across industry arenas. Within a vertical mindset, ecosystem cross-pollination withers and innovators are less suited, prepared, capable, or enabled to disrupt.
When it comes to digital transformation, German companies got disrupted and steamrolled mostly by large-scale digital disruptors coming out of the United States from either California or the East coast technology ecosystems with huge global impact and a different approach:
The above examples differ from traditional products not only by bold out-of-the-box thinking but also by paying close attention to the customer. Their business models rest firmly in the digital world with a software business and an internet backbone.
Uber and Airbnb offer digital platforms – that’s it, no tangible goods. Nonetheless, they shake up the established industries of transportation and hospitality in ways unheard of. They also reap exponential returns by creating new digital arenas that generate highest recurring revenue in the digital space.
Missing the Digital Train?
Back in Germany, its 1,500+ hidden champions flourish in a robust economy, so Germany must be doing something right overall with a vertical focus set on tangible quality products within industries. Good money is still made in Germany by holding a steady course of vertical product improvement.
This practice also goes hand-in-hand in hand with protecting and not challenging enough the traditional sales-driven business models to avoid cannibalizing the status quo for next-generation innovations. It reminds of the Kodak-Eastman story having invented the first digital camera but rejecting the technology in order to protect the business around the existing analog film products – and we all know what happened to Kodak.
Truly putting the customer in the center and embracing digital business requires a radical transformation of the existing business and its operations. The critical interface between IT and Marketing, for example, often is not well developed in Germany, where traditional companies lack understanding of the digital potential and struggle with developing new, digital business models in time.
It is not a question but painfully obvious that -with the current mindset and strategy- Germany misses the train on digital transformation. While the world moves online, many companies in Germany failed or simply ignored the emerging technological opportunities to develop digital business models consequently, in a structured fashion and timely.
In fact, German companies practically ‘gave up’ across entire industries including media, travel, and retail. In a recent wake-up call, the German government asked companies and industries to focus on digital transformation in a widely proclaimed initiative called “Industrie 4.0” ‑ a race to catch up internationally. And catching up is much needed: the narrow German ‘inside focus’ presents a vulnerability to be exploited by foreign disruptive players. The gap widens steadily as the competitors advance fast, build up huge resources and become increasingly experienced to develop and apply digital transformation with new business models.
The high level of disruption and uncertainty does not come easily to a less flexible German mindset: Having experienced hardship many times during the not-all-that-distant history, Germans tend to seek and value predictability and safety. Anxiety and fear of the unknown forms an undercurrent in the mindset of German society, which is expressed by seeking refuge in insurance policies to prepare for unknown future events.
As an example, not only do Germans over-insure their daily lives with a myriad of insurances, Germany also holds on to one of the largest amounts of hospital beds and bunkers per capita. You find more hospital capacity in the Berlin-area alone than in all of their neighboring country, The Netherlands!
In general, start-up funding is not as easy to come by as in the U.S., for example, where venture funding is a more common practice. When I arrived in Germany a year ago, I came across a serious government program that ‘supported’ a new start-up or entrepreneurs with grants tied to a projected positive return-on-investment (ROI) within the first year. Now, building a profitable business from scratch within in year is an unrealistic goal. Consequently, the desperate entrepreneur in need of funding would have to submit a bogus business plan right off the bat, which is a set-up for disappointment down the road. So, either the government program is not meant serious (unlikely) or is designed by people not knowing the first thing about starting a business (likely).
Overall, the German mindset tends to be more critical regarding new and unfamiliar technology. Seeking to avoid risk comes with a tendency to ‘over-regulate’ in the sense of applying regulations just because it is possible to regulate rather than because it is necessary to come up with regulation.
Since a long time, Germany has the strictest data privacy laws (that recently translated into GDPR, Europe’s new General Data Protection Regulation). The domestic law protects the individual by granting them the right to control their personal data online and offline. These regulations are rooted in the country’s dark experiences during its Nazi-past but are also is a reflection of the outspoken suspicion among the broader population towards digital data technologies and their application. Thus, Germans tend to be more reluctant to share personal data on social media out of fear of exposure and losing control.
The protective (domestic) legislation means well but can only be effective in a closed system, which the (global) internet is not. In a digital world, international boundaries are artificial. Given the nature and proliferation of digital technology and interconnectivity of people around the globe, keeping up the aspired high standards proves increasingly cumbersome if not impossible.
The German island can hardly be defended effectively over time. It may protect the citizens from some harm locally but in return also isolates them and denies them access to the benefits of a technology that ever progresses globally.
Given a rather pessimistic Germany mindset that is reluctant to fully immerse in the digital world, digital-resistant citizens appear poorly prepared for ‘moonshot’ visions, embracing the opportunities of Big Data Analytics or the vast potential of the Internet-of-Things (IoT).
The present German ‘generation of heirs’ inherits the wealth created by their parents’ generation during the famous post-WWII decades known as the economic “Wirtschaftswunder” boom. Very much in contrast to the U.S. or Asia, many Germans do not share the venturing spirit anymore. They show reluctance to trying out something new such as building a business as an entrepreneur for several reasons:
For all these reasons, visions tend to be smaller in Germany. They are more designed to control risk than seizing exponential business opportunities. Thinking too small, not disruptive enough and too focused within an industry prohibits to compete with the digital global players that emerged with exponential business models, such as the Googles, Apples, Amazons, Airbnbs, Ubers, and so on out there.
What keeps the brakes on the German innovation machine is the inbred mindset and vertical tunnel vision with a focus more on products instead of customers, and the risk-avoidance and fear of applying digital technology to its full potential. It traps many German companies in a self-limiting disadvantage compared to American or Asian competitors, which prove more venturous, flexible and generally optimistic.
The U.S., in particular, entrepreneurs come not only with a more flexible and optimistic mindset but can also tap into unique startup eco-systems in place (Silicon Valley, Boston, and NYC areas primarily) with easy access to bright minds, cross-pollination and venture capital.
There remains a demand for physical, quality products in the future, such as the machinery, tools or cars we value today as Made in Germany, so the 1,500+ hidden champions look into a bright future. Their reluctance to embrace the digital age, however, and transform to embrace new digital business models, however, may steadily push them to the sidelines as industries and arenas change beyond their input or control.
The pharmaceutical industry struggles with the fundamental changes of the healthcare systems worldwide. For many reasons, the traditional mindset and business models of the past are failing today. New approaches are needed for innovation “beyond the pill” to stay profitable and ahead of competitors.
But how to change a large organization bottom up and from within?
Sign up for the Masterclass: “Beyond-the-Pill” Disruptive Innovation within the Pharmaceutical Industry webinar hosted by the Intrapreneurship Conference at 5-7pm CET (11am-1pm ET) on February 23, 2016!
Why? The pharmaceutical industry struggles with the fundamental changes of the healthcare systems worldwide. For many reasons, the traditional mindset and the business models of the past are failing. New approaches are needed for innovation “beyond the pill” to stay profitable and ahead of competitors.
But how to change a large organization bottom up and from within?
This session offers you a unique birds-eye and worms-eye view on pharma innovation and its shortcomings under the current paradigm, before diving into real-life case studies of intrapreneuring, disruptive transformation and strategic innovations within and beyond a Global FORTUNE 500 pharma company.
Join this masterclass and learn on how to bring intrapreneuring and transformation to life in a large pharma company.
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