Innovation playbook for software-driven companies
January 7, 2019
RESEARCH REPORT
In brief
In brief
- Accenture’s Innovation Driven Growth Survey shares that key innovation capabilities are the pivot to becoming a successful software-driven business.
- Software increasingly defines how companies interact with their markets, partners, consumers and suppliers, exponentially growing share of value.
- Software, as-a-service and platform business models are driving differentiation and competitive advantage in an array of industries.
Overview
As software takes center stage in the way companies interact with their markets, partners, consumers and suppliers, it’s becoming a principal driver behind businesses’ differentiation and performance, regardless of the sector in which they operate. Software—and the services, platforms and experiences it supports—will continue to capture an exponentially growing share of value and market share.
Key findings
Software enables new experiences for customers and shapes new value propositions from products and services. But, there are distinct differences in how companies are making the pivot to software and the approach to innovation that it entails. Accenture’s research shows that by focusing on some distinct capabilities, leaders are supporting critical business goals that will serve to further consolidate their position at the front of the pack.
The "Early Innovators" and "Value Makers"—are nearly 4 x more likely to outperform across a range of key metrics.
67%
being faster to market
67%
identifying meaningful customer/market trends
67%
incorporating “digital” as part of the customer experience
42%
achieving more successful product introductions
The two key elements of successful, value-creating innovation are: improved customer experience and new business models.
What next?
Accenture has identified five imperatives that companies need to pursue in order to become software-driven businesses:
Make software an enterprise-level priority
Embrace a software-driven mindset for a continuous pipeline of new ideas and business models, transforming product innovation and product definition.
Adopt lean and agile ways of working
Recognize the value of lean, design led-thinking throughout the product lifecycle, thus freeing up time and resources for creative innovation.
Harness instrumentation and analytics
Use instrumentation and analytics for insights and strategies for future iterations and agile developments, creating new opportunities to monetize.
Focus on the platform economy
Open up the platform to the broader ecosystem for development of new apps, and to unlock new revenue flows and enhance customer stickiness.
Tie products seamlessly to the back office
Increased convergence between products and the back office, with the connected, software-driven products further creating new market opportunities.
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