If you work for a big, established company, you’ve probably been noticing the sudden rise of a new trend: the innovation lab. Companies as diverse as Delta Air Lines, Target, Google, Pfizer, Marriott, Autodesk, Fidelity Investments, Ford, Verizon, and Stanley Black & Decker are jumping on the bandwagon.
I’m a bit of a skeptic about these labs. It turns out so is Scott Kirsner, editor and co-founder of Innovation Leader, the Boston-based information provider that assists large companies in innovating faster, smarter, and cheaper. Innovation Leader regularly tours executives inside these labs, as part of their Field Study series. In fact, the next Field Study happens in Los Angeles next month. Along the way, Scott has been researching the traits of highly successful labs – and the pitfalls to avoid when building them. I recently sat down with him to check in on what he’s finding.
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