Do we innovate?
Some weeks ago I attended a Conference organized by the European E-business Support Network, an European network of organizations that support and try to introduce innovation and the development of ebusiness in the small and medium European companies, as a tool for competitiveness.
One of the subjects that were dicussed is the fact that, although innovation is perceived by most of the companies as a very positive factor, very few of them really apply it and incorporate it to its day to day practice. This fact is even more evident if we are referring to small and medium sized companies that, we have to take into account, constitute more than 90% of European companies.
It is possible that one of the reasons of this situation is that a great part of European Smes's (unlike North American) do not have growth as one of their primary goals, in other words, they lack ambition. Another reason is that innovating needs changes, very often related to the culture of people and organizations. And, unfortunately, our Smes (and their managers) are, most of times, not prepared to confront these changes.
Therefore, although a great part of the Smes think that an electronic marketing strategy is essential in the mid term, very few face it seriously. Maybe because, as I have commented in other articles, the development of this kind of strategiy requires a previous reflection and, probably, cultural changes that few companies are ready to make.