Archimedes realized that you can measure the volume of an object by measuring the amount of water it displaces when submerged. What does that have to do with business? Well, I think you can measure the value of an idea by its ability to displace, or in the more common vernacular "disrupt", existing products, ideas and services. I'm not suggesting that all ideas should be disruptive, or have to be in order to have value, but unconventional approaches today can often become the convention of tomorrow revolutionizing businesses and even whole industries as Henry Ford did with the assembly line in 1908.

When you are looking at new ideas and their ability to be disruptive here are a few criteria to consider:

1) By definition of being disruptive, the idea should challenge the ststus quo.

2) The idea must, in some way, improve upon the efficiency, economics, societal benefit (et al.) of the process, product or service. If you aren't making it better, you are wasting your time and the idea won't have long term success.

3) The disruptive idea should be constructive not destructive. It's easy to be disruptive and destructive but that really defeats the purpose.

4) The means by which you are improving something should offer measurable results. It may sometimes seem "intuitive" that your idea is a better way, but if you can't really prove it through measurable means you will have difficulty making your case and gaining acceptance for the idea. More importantly, what seems to be an obvious way (to you) of improving something may not always turn out to be better when the numbers come in. I've been surprised more than once by this.

Remember, if you can measure it you can test it, and if you can test it you will know if it's really an improvement.

Disruptive ideas can be revolutionary but don't necessarily have to be massive in their initial impact either. For example, winglets on aircraft result in about a 3% fuel efficiency on some aircraft, so I have been told by an aerospace engineer friend of mine. Either way this this should illustrate the point. If you were testing an idea and saw a 3% improvement you might not get too exited. But put into the context of the amount of fuel used daily in commercial and non-commercial aviation, the fuel (i.e. cost) savings adds up very quickly and is easily cost justified. Had winglets been your idea you would have had little difficulty making a case for airplane manufacturers to license your technology and for existing airlines and cargo-carriers to retro-fit existing aircraft with them.

Just because an idea isn't disruptive doesn't mean it isn't good, in fact most ideas won't be disruptive, but "thinking disruptive" is good for generating ideas and approaching things in new ways . Just be prepared for some of your revolutionary ideas to get shot down or not succeed and don't get married to the idea if it isn't a good one (again measure to find out) or isn't a good fit for your current business. Sometimes they just don't work but when they do, look out!

Labels: ideas