In order for the Philippines to see a transformative scenario听in听corporate innovation, there must be a mandate for innovation championed by top-level executives, whether nationwide or within a company, according to a study released in September by global innovation consulting agency听.听听
鈥淭he Future of Corporate Innovation in the Philippines,鈥澨齱hich听looked at signals of the future and drivers of change in the current听business ecosystem,听presented听three听different scenarios of how corporate innovation may look听like听in the country in the next听10听years.听
鈥淪ignals are not听trends听yet. Some of these are more advanced than others, but these are just nuggets or seeds of how we can imagine different scenarios using the generic foresight process,鈥 said听Rolan Marco听U.听Garcia,听chief executive officer听and听managing听partner at Embiggen as well as an author of the study.听
He also explained that, for all the scenarios, uncertainties such as regulations, political landscape, and corporations鈥 appetite for risk must be taken into account.听
INNOVATE TO SURVIVE
Republic Act No. 11337, or the听,听was signed into law in 2019 to strengthen, promote, and develop an innovative and entrepreneurial ecosystem and culture in the Philippines.听
鈥淭he government has established policies like this Innovative Startup Act, which includes removing certain constraints so that startups can innovate more freely,鈥 said Carlo Q. Lopa, research and development associate at Embiggen Consulting and another author of the study.听听听
However, without improvement and with relying simply on continuing the status quo, the state of corporate innovation in the country will only stay the same, he added.听听
On the weaknesses of the current ecosystem,听Embiggen CEO听Mr. Garcia听suggested that policies, including the aforementioned act,听have听to be implemented better. He also said that the labor market had to be more prepared to听further the Philippines beyond innovating just to survive.听听
STRIVE FOR CREATIVE DESTRUCTION
The second scenario听is the transformative one听that the study听portrays听as 鈥渁 thriving Philippine economy through the improvement of innovation practices in the country,鈥 competitive enough to go head-to-head with Silicon Valley.听Here, the authors posit that the Philippines鈥櫶current听place听at 51st听out of 132 economies听in the 2021 Global Innovation Index听could improve to 36th听by 2030.听
To do this, Mr. Garcia explained: 鈥淸There鈥檚 a] need to invest in the labor market, a need to give importance to innovation, to also highlight how essential private-public partnerships are.鈥听
He听highlights that听the private sector, the government, and the academe are听the听three听main actors in the Philippine innovation ecosystem听that need to work together.听听
R&D associate Mr. Lopa听described the seed that must continue as a trend: 鈥淚n the past years, start-ups in听the Philippines听have been getting increasing support through听government policies, investments, incubators, and venture capitalists.听This听will听improve听the startup ecosystem as a whole.鈥澨听
STICK TO TRADITIONS
Finally, Embiggen鈥檚 study warned against the bleakest scenario, which is a collapse 鈥 if government and corporations听鈥渟tick to traditions.鈥澨听
This is characterized by听a lack of a skilled workforce and lengthy bureaucratic processes, both of听which stifle innovation, according to Mr. Garcia.听听
鈥淲e鈥檝e observed a decreasing lifespan of corporations in the听S&P听(Standard & Poor) 500,鈥 he said, citing the听听published by听S. Patrick Viguerie, Ned Calder, and Brian听Hindo. 鈥淚n 1965, corporations stayed in the S&P 500 index for about 30 years. However, in the next听four听years corporations will only have a lifespan of 10-15 years in the听index.鈥澨听
Attributing this to lack of innovation and wariness of start-ups, Mr. Garcia stressed: 鈥淚nnovation doesn鈥檛 come from a specific department. Innovation lives with a CEO. A CEO must be committed to innovation.鈥 鈥斕Bront毛听H. Lacsamana
