Andy Laudato, COO of The Vitamin Shoppe, on scaling innovation, avoiding innovation theater, and why retail leaders keep confusing a good demo for a good rollout.
retail calls it innovation theater, product calls it roadmap theater, but it's the same failure mode.. someone needed to look like they were moving before anyone agreed on what moving actually meant, so the org built a performance instead of a decision
That is so right! IT's almost easier to make it look like your engaged in innovation, but if the underlying reasons haven't been agreed, and the fundamental IT responsibilities and needs aren't being met, then the innovation is just theater - it won't deliver on the promise.
retail calls it innovation theater, product calls it roadmap theater, but it's the same failure mode.. someone needed to look like they were moving before anyone agreed on what moving actually meant, so the org built a performance instead of a decision
That is so right! IT's almost easier to make it look like your engaged in innovation, but if the underlying reasons haven't been agreed, and the fundamental IT responsibilities and needs aren't being met, then the innovation is just theater - it won't deliver on the promise.
Right. Innovation theater is what happens when the org wants credit for the initiative without agreeing what it’s actually for.