Jonathan Kestenbaum, NESTA‘s Chief Executive, opens the day at the Innovation Edge conference in London with a review of what he has learnt about how innovation can flourish. Kestenbaum sees three broad elements that lead to success in innovation:
- It’s all about risk – you’re at your best when you take risks, do things differently and experiment. You need risk-takers for innovation to flourish – pushing the boundaries of imagination and flare.
- The power of collaboration – some may be unexpected but in these partnerships lies real innovation. When you combine disciplines you can get something really new and different.
- The appetite for change – there’s a huge appetite for change and for doing things differently. It’s there ready to be harnessed.
This makes objective sense – to really innovate you need to have the appetite for change, be prepared to take the risk and also have the ability to identify people who can help you with your ambition, even if they come from outside your sector or discipline.
