“We’re human beings. We’re constantly transforming and evolving, right?”
Speaking with Digital Journal during Innovation Week YYC, Tina Mathas, co-founder of Flow Factory, broke down the complexities of corporate innovation, offering insights on risk management, transformation, and how organizations can drive real value through innovation initiatives.
Mathas shared her perspective on the three categories of innovation: core, adjacent, and transformative.
While core innovation focuses on improving current products and processes, adjacent innovation creates new value from existing offerings. Transformative innovation, however, is where organizations create entirely new markets.
“I think transformative is something completely different and should sit outside of the bigger organization,” Mathas explained, noting that people with a pirate mentality are best suited to drive these initiatives.
How to start small and fail fast
For companies hesitant to embrace innovation, Mathas underscored the importance of quick experimentation to manage risk effectively.
“Don’t try and boil the ocean. Start with something small. Understand what the hypothesis that you’re testing, but start like, go quickly,” she advised.
By launching controlled, small-scale projects, organizations can learn from early wins (or failures) and adjust their approach without major investments.
Mathas also highlighted the value of collaborating with startups and universities.
“You can’t do it with a large machine,” she said, pointing out that smaller, nimble teams are often better equipped to bring ideas to market rapidly while existing resources focus on running the business.
Building value through transformation
When asked about measuring the return on investment (ROI) for innovation, Mathas offered a phased approach.
“You have to be generating value all along the way,” she said.
By breaking down goals into stages — problem-solution fit, product-market fit, and scale — organizations can validate ideas incrementally and mitigate risk.
“If you can get 10 people to say that the idea you have is worthwhile, then you can move on to the next phase,” Mathas explained.
Want to learn more about Tina Mathas’ approach to corporate innovation, risk management, and creating value through transformation?
Watch the full interview below for practical insights and strategies.
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