Born to Innovate

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Latest findings from Intuit and Emergent Research on Defining Small Business Innovation indicate, among many things, that key characteristics play a role in truly innovative companies:

• Small business owners are born (natural) innovators and their inspiration or motivation is driven by three needs: necessity, opportunity and ingenuity.

• Six innovation enablers that allow small businesses to more readily identify opportunities, quickly react to changing conditions and remain competitive. They include personal passion, customer connection, agility and adaptation, experimentation and improvisation, resource limitations, information sharing and collaboration.

• A small business’ ability to innovate is also amplified by use of technology, access to capital, fostering a culture that values experimentation and building market knowledge. Government regulation can also spur or rein in innovation.

What happens when small businesses innovate? It not only improves the business and lifestyles of small business workers, it can also alter the overall marketplace through two types of outcomes:

1. Market-sustaining -- improvements to existing products or business processes
2. Market-changing -- shift in competitive landscape

Our friends and colleagues over at Emergent Research write these reports with support from Intuit and the research is filled with insightful ideas.

Read the latest Intuit Future of Small Business Report (part of an ongoing series) here. And we can't help but mention in our Global Small Business Trends 2009 report that "disruptive innovation" will be both the coolest and hottest new growth strategy in 2009 because it will transcend all boundaries and transform businesses.

Best New Business Startup in 2009: Going Global Firms

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In case you missed this (I was in France the day of posting), Matthew Bandyk over at US News and World Report wrote an interesting piece called "Best Small Business to Start: Going-Global Firms."

He mentions two very good reports that you might want to back track on:

1. UPS Business Monitor Report (Global, Americas, Europe and Asia -- I am sure they will update soon to reflect our current global economic environment).

2. Intuit Future of Small Business Report (all three report segments are featured and offer a beacon to the future).

And we are always delighted when our blog is mentioned (hat tip to Matthew even if we are a little late!).

Next-Gen Artisans Fuel New Entrepreneurial Economy

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Another one of my favorite reports has just been released: The third installment of the Intuit Future of Small Business Report™, which looks ahead 10 years and examines the prospects, influences and profiles of small business. The report is sponsored by Intuit Inc. and authored by the Institute for the Future.

Check this out:

The Next Wave of Globalization Will be Driven by Small Business

The number of U.S. small businesses trading globally will substantially increase, fueled by cross-border business opportunities, technological advances leading to broader social networks, and reductions in export costs. More specifically:

• Almost half of U.S. small businesses will be involved in global trade by 2018. As the costs associated with doing business globally continue to decrease, small businesses will make no distinction between domestic and international commerce.

• Social networks will fuel borderless commerce. Online and offline social networks will help remove soft trade barriers, such as language and cultural differences. These networks will introduce small businesses to new markets and facilitate cross-border trade.

• Globalization will increase small business diversity and amplify its economic value. Small business diversity will help increase market growth in the U.S. and abroad and will unlock new opportunities for all small business owners.

Clearly, borderless business is going to become BIG.

Special kudos to the main authors of the report: Steve King, Anthony Townsend, and Carolyn Ockels who also, in addition to writing the Intuit report, publish a nifty blog at Small Business Labs.

For a shortcut to the report, visit here and look for Phase Three: The New Entrepreneurial Economy.

Note: We contributed a tad to the report.