We are reaching the end of a period of great uncertainty, where several worlds have had to coexist. One Western world, which had experienced the greatest period of stability and prosperity for that part of the globe, but which has now ended, and another Eastern world that has achieved enormous levels of growth, though one that we don’t particularly enjoy. One world of old structures and leaders, maintained through inertia and manipulation, alongside another disruptive, fresh world, but one too fragile to solve everything at once, or rather, all of them at once. One world based on optimizing any resource versus another based on considering how a resource should be used. Even a world of women accompanying men versus another of men and women.
Take a look back (just a little, it’s dizzying) at the last 15 years. Companies that dared to do something different from the traditional paradigm of growth and productivity as the sole criterion for success are better prepared to compete in an era that (now, finally) is about to take a decisive turn. This period has been turbulent, uncertain, and exciting in equal measure. The common thread uniting all these companies has been innovation, whether incremental or disruptive. It has been about differentiating themselves conceptually as well as competing on economies of scale (costs). You’ll see that all sectors are consolidating, whether through strategic alliances, acquisitions of niche companies, or simply adding raw muscle to gain size. Behind all the corporate transactions you see lies innovation in their products, in the delivery of their services, or in their internal processes—or rather, in the sum of all of them. The good news for those of us comfortable with this almost constant dissatisfaction is that this way of working doesn’t stop here; we must continue. Excellent small businesses and medium-sized businesses striving for improvement—which are becoming less and less of an exception—have tremendous opportunities if we rigorously combine a focus (the true business objectives that their leaders must always be aware of), a cross-cutting tool (project management methodology), enabling technologies (digitalization of the production process, AI for mature processes), and the true differentiating factor: the people who work in these companies and who will always be more committed than the employees of large corporations. All of this, and more—the X Factor, to make it more complex—determines what is called the degree of maturity for embracing innovation. This is similar to NASA’s famous TRL (Technological Readiness Level) scale, which helps us understand where we stand on the path to innovation.
BUT AFTER TELLING YOU, WHERE ARE YOU AT?
To my students at the University of Valladolid (UVa), and to the attendees of the talks we give at Scwuimac!, I explain innovation as a coin where one side represents need and the other shows opportunity. Every innovation begins with a search for how to solve a problem, and then progresses by walking, jogging, or sprinting—and I’m sure you’ve already experienced that. What many don’t realize is that this effort to innovate, once undertaken, grants a competitive advantage that not even a hundred economies of scale can match. That’s the opportunity. A technological ecosystem helps us with all of this; if used well, it will allow us to compete, but if left unused, or worse, used inefficiently, it will leave us in a precarious position for the future. That’s where you need to position yourself and do everything possible to move if you don’t like where you are. We have a new challenge (and “new” is a relative term), and in this case, it’s shared by companies and users: it’s about how we approach sustainability and its practical application. Innovation is the third pillar of R&D&I. Research is what we call basic science, which was funded through European framework programs in the 1980s and 90s. Development is applied science, which was extensively funded in the 2000s and 2010s. And innovation is what we’re focused on now. Well, in the field of sustainability as a science, we’re approaching it through Development, and that’s why, for many small and medium-sized enterprises (especially the pioneering ones, which are already at a very high level), it sounds like gimmicks and red lights or legal restrictions. Sustainability innovation will arrive very soon, and that’s what we’re working on and will continue to work on.
Scwuimac! created and developed its own patented methodology, called Business by Projects (BBP), which it has been applying for 12 years to companies with a vision for growth and continuous improvement.
It is a Portfolio Management Office (PMO) where its fantastic team has developed a background of skills and methodology to successfully tackle all types of transformative business projects, primarily focused on process improvement, digitalization, innovation, and sustainability.
They have invested 100,000 hours managing and executing projects for companies, 25,000 hours developing the methodology, managed 40 clients, and led 125 projects.
In 2019, Scwuimac! BBP added innovation and sustainable development projects to its portfolio, which will shape the fundamental strategy for the next 20 years for all companies that want to excel in their sectors.
In 2023, it moved its headquarters to Tudela de Duero in a project that, of course, it designed, planned, and executed using its own methodology.
