How to Spot Winning Innovation

Lorraine Marchand, author of "No Fear, No Failure," discusses the five Cs of innovation—culture, chance, change, customer, and collaboration—and how they apply to business growth and investment strategies. She emphasizes that companies should reframe failure as learning, invest in risky but potentially transformative projects (following a 70-20-10 ratio), and prioritize customer needs over internal perspectives. Marchand highlights the importance of adapting to change proactively and fostering collaboration across different functions within an organization. Drawing from her experience at IBM Watson Health, she shares a cautionary tale about a failed cancer diagnostic project, underscoring the need for thorough customer research and understanding of existing processes. She also points to NVIDIA as an example of a company that has successfully innovated by closely aligning with customer needs.