Accidental Innovation? It Happens at Some Companies: Deloitte Online Poll

Business leaders also wrangle over cost reduction or investing in innovation
in the 'Innovation Can Wait - or Can It?' Deloitte Debate

NEW YORK, Aug. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new Deloitte online poll, 31
percent of executives surveyed believe innovation happens by accident at their
company. Meanwhile, only 25 percent of respondents say their companies
encourage innovation as a mandate.

"Companies need to build innovation into their DNA instead of relying on
chance," said Mark White, principal, Deloitte Consulting LLP and moderator of
the webcast. "Bad times in the economy present opportunities for organizations
to refocus on innovation as a difference maker to driving their business
performance and being in the best possible position to deliver results. That
is why in Silicon Valley cycles of recession are cycles of innovation. Web 2.0
and semiconductors were churned during a recession."

The survey was conducted during a Deloitte July webcast titled, "Vicious
Circle or Virtuous Cycle? The Balancing Act Between the Mandate to Innovate
and Pressure to Optimize." With more than 450 respondents participating, only
14 percent said innovation is clearly defined within their organization,
compared to more than 67 percent who said innovation is either very loosely
defined or tackled project to project.

Doug Standley, principal, Deloitte Consulting LLP, believed the reason for
some of these polling results is because most major companies are not
organized around innovation. "Companies clearly need direction and a more
focused approach to innovation as a basic fundamental building block for
success. When only six percent of the respondents say that innovation in their
company is funded as a separate entity, there can be a disconnect between
innovation and how it impacts a company's performance."

Additional polling results during the Deloitte web cast included:

-- Approximately 12 percent of the respondents reported the word
innovation
is not applicable in their company's structure.
-- Innovation financed via "off the book" funding was reported by
seven percent of respondents.

-- Almost 40 percent of respondents claimed innovation is handled
project-to-project.

Dr. John Kao, chairman and founder of the Institute for Large Scale Innovation
and a senior advisor on innovation to Deloitte, also recommended the following
foundations for success to the executives in spurring innovation:

-- Develop and communicate a clear organizational narrative of what
innovation is, the business purpose it serves and how it relates to
organizational vision.
-- Create platforms, practices and funding pathways to support the work
of
disruptive innovation.

-- Link the work of innovation to strategy processes within the firm that
illuminate future trends and latent customer needs.

To listen to an archived version of the webcast please visit:
www.deloitte.com/us/dbriefs/futurete.

Kao also noted in the latest Deloitte Debate, "Innovation Can Wait -- or Can
It?" that business leaders are asking themselves whether they should they stay
focused on cost reduction, or is now the time to push even harder for
innovation? "In many ways, the choice between cost reduction and innovation
is a false one," said Kao. "You can do both at the same time and technology
can play a big role in making it work. Just do not substitute innovate
technology for the process of innovation itself."

To view Kao's points and counterpoints around these issues, as well as
additional perspectives from the public and human capital sectors, please go
to www.deloitte.com/us/Debates/InnovationNowOrLater

This topic is one in a series of Deloitte Debates that examine today's
pressing business issues from multiple perspectives. New debate topics are
added weekly. For a full library of Debates, please visit
www.deloitte.com/debates.

About the Polling
The polling responses came from more than 450 business professionals ranging
from chief technology officer to consultant across multiple industries who
responded to survey questions during Deloitte's July 9 webcast.

About Deloitte
As used in this document, "Deloitte" means Deloitte Consulting LLP and
Deloitte Services LP, separate subsidiaries of Deloitte LLP. Please see
www.deloitte.com/us/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of
Deloitte LLP and its subsidiaries.

Contact: John La Place Charles Zinkowski
Public Relations Hill & Knowlton
Deloitte +1 212 885 0630
+1 212 492 4267 charles.zinkowski@hillandknowlton.com
jlaplace@deloitte.com

SOURCE Deloitte

John La Place, Public Relations of Deloitte, +1-212-492-4267,
jlaplace@deloitte.com; or Charles Zinkowski of Hill & Knowlton,
+1-212-885-0630, charles.zinkowski@hillandknowlton.com, for Deloitte