I've been studying innovation, and particularly innovative companies and products, for quite a while. My goal is to figure out what general approach could describe how to successfully innovate.
I think I've got something that you can use. It's pretty simple: "Question your constraints, but know your boundaries".
A fine example is Stuffed Crust Pizza from Pizza Hut. (You'll have to click on the "Stuffed Crust" link -- they use frames on their site :-( )
The constraint that the pizza industry had was that they always put the topping in the middle.
Why is that? Why not put the "topping" inside the crust? That's questioning your constraints.
Given that this is Pizza Hut, they could not have introduced a Stuffed Rotisserie Chicken or a Stuffed Meatloaf. It had to be pizza-related. That's knowing your boundaries. Your customers will only allow you to innovate so much before you lose credibility.
Give this kind of thinking a try and let me know what you think. Happy Innovating!
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