An innovation tsunami is swelling

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There’s a big change coming thanks to abundant data, fast growth of AI, and virtually infinite computing power. But this isn’t the first time we’ve seen innovation waves. So how can understanding them and the commonalities of the innovators behind them help your business in this latest wave?

According to Daniel Slater, culture of innovation lead at Amazon Web Services (AWS), innovators need to, “move fast, experiment often, fail fast, and scale what works.” Amazon pioneered cloud computing with the invention of AWS, which powers 94% of enterprises today and is renowned for their approach to innovation.

Create a customer-centric culture

“Knowing what your customers want – I think that’s the hardest job in innovation,” says Slater. Amazon takes a holistic approach that integrates data, metrics and dedicated time engaging with customers so they can deeply understand their core challenges. In fact, at AWS, around 90% of the features they develop come directly from hearing about what customers need. The other 10% comes from being close enough to customers to anticipate their needs. Amazon calls this systematic way of vetting ideas and creating new products “Working Backwards.” It starts by defining the customer experience, then iteratively working backwards from that point until the team achieves clarity around what to build.

Establish a trusted technology foundation

A strong technology foundation frees up innovators to spend more time thinking about what their customers really need. With the AWS Cloud, “You’re able to go from an idea to a fully scaled solution globally in minutes. Innovators can scale up and down with the demands of their business automatically,” says Slater. This enables teams to accelerate innovation and avoid common pitfalls that hinder productivity like managing complex IT infrastructure or technical debt.

Harness the power of your people

While utilizing technology is important to innovation, utilizing people is crucial. As Slater says, “It’s about empowering your team with a bold vision and getting out of their way.” Democratizing access to emerging technology while nurturing a culture of innovation is key. This encourages teams to rapidly experiment and scale – a formula that accelerates innovation at AWS.

Watch the video above to see how AWS cloud infrastructure and modern application practices can help your business accelerate innovation.