And The Most Innovative Company In The World Is...
Fast Company picks Team Obama as the most innovative company in the world. If you argue Team Obama isn't really a company, well the editors at FC choose Google, followed by online video dispenser Hulu.
But if you ask Innosight President Scott Anthony for his pick, you get back a potentially surprising answer: Amazon.com. Fast Company doesn't get to Amazon until Number 9 on their list.
So what makes Amazon the most innovative company in the world? According to Anthony, it's one word: Reinvention.
"At the beginning of the decade, Amazon was a retailer that mostly sold books. Today it sells a diverse range of products, subscription services (Amazon Prime), hosts third-party retailers, products (Kindle), and Web services. That, to me, is an innovative company," he writes on Harvard Business Publishing.
At the center of Anthony's definition of innovation is the ability to continually move out of the core business and into new lines. That's why he disagrees with the Google pick. For all that company's invention, says Anthony, Google still relies on search and advertising as its growth engine.
"Doing it once is nice. Doing it again is better. Doing something completely differently, again and again ... well that's what makes you one of the world's most innovative companies."Sounds about right to me. While there are plenty of companies built on a great idea, such as Hulu, there are but a handful of concerns over the last 100 years that have shown a demonstrated ability to continually slough off old skin and grow in new directions. My list includes GE, P&G, Apple, IBM, WalMart. Anthony would add Disney, Cisco, 3M, and others.
What's your opinion on the most innovative company in the world? Where would you place Microsoft, Dell, Southwest Airlines, Zappos, Facebook, Toyota?