Innovation, Vision, and Leadership: Essence Drinks' Report

This report delves into the innovation strategies of Essence Drinks, a company launching a mango-flavored Lassi drink. It defines innovation and its importance to employees, comparing it with invention. The report explores how vision, leadership, culture, and teamwork shape innovation within the company. It analyzes the 4Ps of innovation (product, process, position, and paradigm) and the use of an innovation funnel for shaping ideas. Furthermore, the report explains the process of developing frugal innovation, emphasizing the reduction of complexity and cost. The report also provides a detailed analysis of the company's innovation process, including how they plan to introduce and commercialize their new product, highlighting the importance of adapting to market trends and customer needs. The report also covers the importance of protecting ideas. The report provides valuable insights into Essence Drinks' approach to innovation and its impact on the company's growth and success.

INNOVATION

INTRODUCTION
Innovation can be defined as a process which is used by companies for transforming their
business activities in a better manner. Through this process, company gets the opportunity to get
competitive advantage in the market. Also, it will help them in generating more no. of profits and
developing the customer base as well. Innovation can be done in both product and services which
are produced by companies and then supplied to their customers (Chesbrough, 2010). It can be in
the form of an idea, thought or a method. This report will discuss about innovation in detail and
its comparison with invention, its different types, its process to commercialise innovation and
along with this the range of methods for protecting the ideas will also be discussed. The
company referred here is Essence Drinks which is a mango drink. This company was started by
Akshay kumar and now they will launching another drink called as “Lassi” in mango flavour.
TASK 1
P1 Define innovation and its importance to employees of Essence Drinks
Innovation can be defined as a process in which a product is developed and modified
with new features and attributes so that they can perform in a better manner. It is considered as a
very important process for every company as through this they are able to present their products
and services in a more better manner which will bring growth and development in the company.
Through this, companies are able to gain effectiveness and efficiency in their procedures which
they are using for fulfilling needs and demands of customers. The activities which are used in
innovation are modification , alteration, imagination of old products in new form.
Essence drinks is also making use of innovative techniques so as to develop their
products and services in the market. There are so many ways through which management can
innovate their drinks so that more customers can get attached with them and their profitability is
increased as well (Dahlander and Gann, 2010). But for bringing out innovation, it is very
important for the company to know about the needs and demands of customers so that they can
do transformation accordingly. If their flavours are liked by the customers then they will be able
to attain do any changes so as to bring then towards the company. There are some importance of
innovation are as under:
 The management of Essence drinks are developing their existing strategy for attracting
the attention of buyer in market.
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 Through this, income and revenue will be developed in a proper manner.
 Through innovation, companies will be able to differentiate their products with that of
others present in the market (Drucker, 2014).
 It helps in conducting the activities of organisation in an effective manner so that the
goals and objectives can be attained effectively.
 It helps in developing the productivity of company and increasing their goodwill as well.
Importance of innovation for employees are as follows:-
 If the company will try to introduce new kind of product and services in the company
then for this they will need to train the their employees also for the same. Therefore,
skills and capabilities of the employees must be developed.
 Through innovation, the working environment of the company will also be developed so
this will be beneficial for employees as they will get the opportunity to work in more
effective environment.
 With the innovative practices being implemented in the company, knowledge of
employees will also get enhanced.
Difference between Innovation and Inventions are as follows :-
Innovation Invention
 It is a process of adding value to
something which is already having a
presence in the market.
 If It is implemented then it will have an
impact on whole organisation and not
on just one department.
 It is done in a practical manner as here
product modifications are done
practically
 It can be defined as a process in which
a new idea is developed or something
new is invented which has never been
created before.
 It is done by researchers in research
and development department of the
company.
 It has carried out by an original idea
which is developed in a person's mind.
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P2 Vision, leadership, culture and teamwork can shaping innovation
Innovation is required to be conducted in every business so as to achieve better outcome
in the market and implementing growth and development as well. It is very important for every
company to make sure that their product is shaped according to the trends going on in the market
so that it can be chosen by the customers. It is considered as the duty of managers to motivate
their employees for taking measures for performing their work in the company. So, the
management has to adopt various measures for developing the skills and abilities of employees
so that their efficiency can get increased (Edquist, 2010). They will also need to develop a
vision, mission, leadership and culture of company so as to implement innovation in a proper
manner. So, Essence drink has also set the same for achieving their goals and objectives in a
more fast manner. These factors are described as follows:-
 VISION – It is defined as the long term goal of the company which is set by the
management at the time when company is originated. It is the main because f which the
company has been created (Gassmann, Enkel and Chesbrough, 2010). Vision of Essence
Drinks is to become best soft drink company in the world. If they will follow their vision
in a roper manner then they will be abe to gain large market share which will help them
in selling their products to so many customers at one time itself.
 MISSION - The mission is short term goal which assist in achieving target objectives.
The firm need to achieve goals as to reach its vision statement. Essence drinks will also
have to make sure that they complete all their aims and objectives with the help of their
staff.
 LEADERSHIP – For implementing innovation and commercialisation in companies it is
very important for organisation to appoint good leaders so that they can provide
motivation to employees for performing in an appropriate manner inside the company.
Also, they will try to develop skills of employees so that they can perform more
efficiently. These leaders can also give new ideas and techniques to the company so that
innovative activities can be conducted in an effective manner. Only knowledgable and
skilled employees will be hired by the company and leaders will help them in this
activity.
 CULTURE – This factor plays a very important role at the time of introducing
something new in the company. So, Essence Drinks will also analyse the culture
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prevailing inside the company so that they can introduce changes accordingly. There are
so many activities and programmes which will be conducted by the managers of
company for developing their products so all these should be done as per the culture so
that it does not create any kind of issue.
 TEAMWORK – If any company wants to introduce any kinds of changes in the
company then they will have to make teams (Goldberg, 2013). These teams will help in
performing the work in more effective manner so that the goals and objectives can be
achieved in an effective manner. If team will get good leadership then they will be able to
perform their party of activities in an effective manner and achieve the goals in a faster
manner.
TASK 2
P3 Innovation 4Ps and the use of innovation funnel for shaping ideas in employees
Basically the concept of 4P's of innovation was invented by John Bessant and Joe Tidd. The
main aim behind developing this concept was to determine that in which part of the company
what changes are required to be done. Here, changes can be done as per the trends going on in
the market so that it can be adopted by customers easily (Huizingh, 2011). This will help them in
understanding that whether the innovation which is done by the company will be successful or
not. Essence Drinks company will also make use of the 4P's so as to make sure that the
innovation which they are doing with Mango Lassi will be successful or not. The 4P's are
discusses as under:
 PRODUCT INNOVATION – In this element, it is discussed that modifications and
changes will be introduced in the products which are being sold by the company
currently. Essence drinks is also bringing changes in their existing products and will be
launching it in the new for after modifications. This will make their products different
from their competitors and will help in making a separate image in the market as well.
 PROCESS INNOVATION – In this element the process through which the product will
be created is being discussed. Here, it is considered that the method of producing goods
and services should be innovative because then only company will be able to produce
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innovative products in the market. Essence drinks is also required to use innovative
method for producing Lassi in the market so that it can be prepared in a short period of
time and will be tasty as well. Their process of delivering is easy and definite which
make their users more satisfied.
 POSITION INNOVATION – Through this element, it is required that the position of
company in market should be appropriate so that their innovation can be noticed by the
customers (Kline and Rosenberg 2010). Also, the managers of company will have to use
promotional tools so as to increase their position in the market.
 PARADIGN INNOVATION – This element helps in dealing with matters related to the
aspects of executing innovative ideas in the company. Here, mental models which are
being prepared by the company so as to achieve their goals will also be impacted from
this innovation.
Innovation Funnel can be defined as a type of funnel which is being used by companies
for scrutinising the ideas which are present in the company and choosing out the best from them.
Basically, the purpose of all kinds of innovation is to make those kinds of products which meets
the needs of the market in a cost effective manner. So, at the initial stage, various ideas are
collected and then are put in a refinery system and after being refined, a few ideas are selected
which the company implements. Therefore, all the ideas which have come out after refining will
be combined into one and a new concept is developed out of it. This is a very important process
which is being implemented in every company so that only best idea in being chosen by the
company and achieve competitive advantage as well. Since there are lots of ideas that are
rotating in the business environment but all cannot be implemented so this funnel is being
implemented (Leonard and Rayport, 2011).
The process of innovation funnel can be described as :-
 Firstly, all the ideas are being entered in the refinery system tool
 Only those ideas which will be matched with the goals and objectives of the organisation
will be selected.
 The ideas that are being refined will finally be implemented
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(Source: Innovation Funnel, 2018)
P4 Explaining the process of developing frugal innovation in Essence Drinks
Frugal innovation can be defined as a method of innovations products and services where
the complexity of goods and services is reduced along with their prices. These type of
innovation are implemented by the companies for making a special place in the minds of the
customers. These innovations are generally environment friendly and are produced by using low
cost products only and that is why they are being sold at low cost as well. The Innovation which
is being done by Essence drinks will also be considered as Frugal if they will make it by using
least resources and will sell it at low prices only (Lundvall, 2010). There are so many products
which are being produced by the companies as a frugal product like Haier Washing Machine “
the Mini Magical Child” in China, Toyota Charcoal Stove in Ghana, TATA Nano car in India,
Wonder bag in South Africa and many more.
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Illustration 1: Innovation Funnel

There are certain factors which relates to growth and development in frugal innovation
which are like : Low Cost Production – In frugal innovation, goods and services are being produced by
using very less amount of resources so that it can be sold at low rates as well. Like, a
refrigerator was invented which runs without electricity and is being kept at any place. Developing Reasonable and Long-lasting goods – These products are considered as long
lasting because these are prepares in a manner that it can be used for longer period of
time. These can help in gaining profits from the competitors (Sawyer, 2011). Different features of current produced products – Essence Drink is will have to include
some extra features in their innovative products so that it can satisfy the needs and
demands of the customers. They can make use of various techniques for bringing this
kind of change.
 Developing innovative products – For developing the quality and standards of products,
Essence drink will have to introduce many innovative methods so that appropriate actions
can be carried out.
Some of the low cost and affordable drinks which Essence drinks can introduce are Black current
Ribena , Lucozade sport elite orange etc.
TASK 3
P5 Importance of commercial funnel and the application of New Product Development
Commercial funnel is a type of funnel which can be used by the companies for making
their innovation successful in the market. It is a process which starts from identification of the
idea and then finishes after that idea has been implemented by them. Through commercialisation,
companies will get the opportunity to introduce themselves at a larger level and this will help in
generating their business at a bigger level as well. But to do this management will have to focus
on their quality of goods they are serving so that business gets successful. Therefore, it can be
said that commercial funnel is being used by organisations to get more market share so that
profitability can be ascertained. Here the main aim is to increase the customer value and sell the
goods and services in an effective manner (Stokes, 2011). Under commercial funnel, two kinds
of funnels are included which are as follows:
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 Marketing Funnel – It is a kind of model in which the journey of a customer is seen from
the point they become aware of the product in the market and till the point they purchase
it. It is normally being prepared on the AIDA model which means; Awareness, Interest,
desire and Action.
 Sales Funnel – This funnel explains the journey of a person who become the customers of
the company. When the company will market their products in the market, they will come
in contact with people who will become leads for the company and will bring business to
the company.
Importance of commercial funnel in Essence Drink is stated as follows:-
 Through this the quality of products will get enhanced because of which the management
can frame effective strategies for implementing innovation.
 They help in increasing profit margin as well therefore in essence drinks company it can
be used for developing their profits .
But since they are introducing a new product in the market so they will have to make use of new
product development process as well. It is described as follows:- Generating Idea – Essence Drink is having an idea in which they will prepare a flavour
lassi and will serve it with hot potato balls. This hot and cold combination will be loved
by people which will help them in sustaining in market for long run. Screening the idea – Here, various ideas that are present in company will be determined
and the most appropriate one will be shortlisted (Tebbe, 2011).
 Testing the concept:- Since lassi is cold and potato crunchy balls are being loved by
people so the chances of getting positive response is more. Business Analysis – In this step the food managers of essence drinks will analyse the
results received from sample testing. Product development: - This process start from finding the need of new product and end
with processing it as per the demands of market. Test marketing: - This combination will be served to the sample population before
launching so that its success rate can be ascertained. Commercialise – This step is being conducted when the results of test marketing is
positive.
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 Launch of product:-here, Essence drinks will finally launch its innovative product in the
market and will be open for selling.
P6 Innovation building case for Essence Drinks including way of access fund
Its business case is as follows:-
Executive summary – Essence drinks is a soft drink company which is serving drinks to
its customers in various flavours. It has been founded by Akshay Kumar in 2015. They are now
planning to innovate their drinks and thus are introducing Indian Drink known as “Lassi” in
Mango flavour.
Objectives – Their main aim is to satisfy their customers by providing them drinks
according to their taste and also develop their business into global level as well (Teece, 2010).
Research of Customers - It is very essential process which help in providing similar
products to their consumers.
Development and design of plans – In this step, Essence Drink will prepare various plans
and policies for making their products innovative so that they can attract various buyers as well.
Requirement of Capital – Since new product is being launched so company will require
funds so that all the activities can be conducted in an effective manner (Chesbrough, 2010).
Expected Benefit – These innovative changes which are launched by company in the
products should have some benefit in them through which they can attract the customers.
The sources of funding which the company can make use of are as follows:
 The company can sell their products at more than the cost they are incurring to product it.
It is a most common source of fund which bus being used by most of the companies.
 They can borrow money from the market as well. It can also be done in a private manner
through bank loans.
 They can issue shares of their company in the market. This method is called as equity
funding.
TASK 4
P7 Different tools for developing, retaining and protecting intellectual property
If a company has done various kinds of inventions and innovations then it is very
important for them to make use of these intellectual property rights so as to protect themselves
from any kind of fraud or fraud from any person. These rights are being prepared by government
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so as to protect the rights of people who are bringing any kind of change in the society. In
Essence Drink as well, if they will introduce any ant food item which has never been created
before then they can make use of these rights for protecting their food item. The tools which can
be used by them is as follows:
 TRADEMARK – It is a kind of mark which is given to a particular company which will
help them in differentiating from other products or companies in the market. It can be in
the form of word, design, symbol or come as phrase and word. It is basically done for 10
years and after that it can be renewed.
 COPYRIGHTS – It is a right which is given to a person who has created something
original and extraordinary. It can be anything related to music, art, literature etc. by
paying some money, Essence drink will get the copyrights of their food recipes and they
can not be copied by anyone else at-least for 10 years.
 PATENTS – It is right which is given when a new technology or a product is being
invented by someone. This right is for maximum 20 years and after that it has to be
renewed (Dahlander and Gann, 2010).
 TRADE SECRETS – It is design, activity, process, pattern and methods which can
accomplish benefits of competitive market over its challengers. It refers to confidential
information or data.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that Innovation is a very important activity
which is required to be conducted in each and every organisation so as to bring growth and
development in them. There are so many activities which are conducted by the managers for
implementing innovation in a successful manner. It is being applied only in those products which
are already being produced by the company. This report has discussed about various important
factors related to innovation like vision, leadership, culture and teamwork which is contributing
to bring innovation and commercialisation in company in an effective manner. Here, 4P's of
innovation are discussed and the usage of innovation funnel as well. Along with this, importance
of frugal innovation was also discussed and its implementation in the company was also
considered.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
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