| | October - 20188OPINIONThe Innovation Merchants of the XXI CenturyBY Victor Guixer Martin, Managing Partner, Guixer and PartnersToday, we see most board of directors and C-levels around the corporate world embracing change into new digital paradigms with mixed enthusiasm and fear. From the most technology-driven corporates, to the less digital-savvy ones, innovation and technology investments are starting to become critical discussion topics with direct impact on the day-to-day operations of the business.The truth is that innovation is not a tradable asset, nor something you grow in a small corporate capsule. Innovation dynamics are complex and require a profound cultural conversion and the necessary cooperation from friends, enemies, and a diverse plethora of stakeholders. Understanding innovation dynamics is not an easy task for any organization. It requires a strong willingness to turn the whole industry ecosystem around the client, and most of the times, a strategic cooperation with small technological companies, backed by smart venture capitalists."When I started Guixer and Partners, I found in nearly every sector, unpredictable results from interactions of mutually disconnected stakeholders along new incumbent technologies challenging their established business models. Corporates needed to design lean operation models while protecting their current status quo. Startups needed smarter funding sources and proper guidance, while private investors were interested in getting access to cross-innovation for new investment ideas while complying with their own risk policies. I needed to start closing the investor-corporate-startup virtuous circle to allow for innovation to nurture profound digital transformation programs."There was a time when the "spray and pray" modus operandi embraced by angel investors and venture capitalists was acceptable, as technological jewels would shine brightly above all. It is a consensual view that today, the angel investment/venture capital model no longer guarantees innovation in a given industry, as capital constraints lead to concentrate investments in only a few consensual bets. Accelerators are not necessarily creating quality deal flow either, as they tend to concentrate in quick problem solving, plus digital talent selection for traditional corporates. Venture capital vehicles are moving away from their traditional earlier stage funding role as risk aversion grows following a time where liquidity (and valuations) was high.We do not believe that governments or similar institutions are solving complex, multifaceted innovation industry issues with hackathons and grants, leaving aside the benefits derived from delivering an excellent PR exercise. Unlocking value has more to do with initiatives like Elon Musk's horizontal-to-deep focus in different, sometime unrelated, knowledge areas. If a global innovation market ever exists, innovation merchants would be needed to ensure the right incentivisation of stakeholders.Innovation merchants are tomorrow's investment bankers, driving digital Victor Guixer Martin
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