True data intelligence can be yours – you just need the right ingredients

When it comes to data, we are constantly under pressure to think bigger – more variety, more volume and more velocity. In the digital era, there appears to be a never-ending supply of alternative data sources. We are drowning in data.

 

Leveraging this data for decision-making can be overwhelming, adding to decision fatigue that can be felt, not just by individuals, but organisations as well. When data and intelligence are combined however, that is when organiations can unlock their innovative potential.

When intuition becomes blind innovation

Nine out of ten (91 per cent) decision makers understand the importance of data in decision-making, but only half actually use data to inform those decisions. When we have too much or not enough data, there is a tendency to rely on human values such as intuition and experience to make decisions. These are invaluable tools. However, it can be problematic when, sometimes unknowingly, gut instinct becomes the litmus test for organisational needs. Making decisions without data can be tempting, especially if it has led to success in the past.

 

But the habit of innovating without data-led validation is, overall, unsustainable. When multiple data sets are combined with intelligent analytics, the result can be a powerful, trustworthy tool for informed decision making. The right data intelligence can:

• Increase decision-making confidence and augment expertise
• Persuade using data-led storytelling
• Empower stakeholders
• Fortify R&D pipelines and increase speed-to-market
• Minimise legal and commercial risks
• Answer business questions, ask new ones and challenge the status quo to identify new opportunities

Together these aspirations point towards one aim: the idea of true innovation intelligence. It draws on a wider spectrum of data including patents, trademarks, scientific publications and litigation, to create a holistic picture of company or market-related activity which can be used in decision-making practices.

Where to find the right data for true innovation intelligence

When making investment decisions on new products or services, business leaders often rely on readily available market, sales or research data to validate market acceptance or competitive advantage.

 

Yet much of this data is captured after product launch. By then it is too late. The ability to act on this information will be limited compared with the type of response an organisation could prepare if it could anticipate a competitor’s move prior to launch.

 

So, what is missing? In short, all the technology signals that precede market launch. R&D leaders can uncover valuable insights at the start of the innovation cycle, where scientific research flows into applied development before being diffused. The fundamental and applied research detailed in scientific publications is an invaluable data source for innovations to come.

 

Intellectual property (IP) plays an important role too. If intangible assets comprise nearly 90 per cent of a company’s value, why are they ignored when it comes to substantiating R&D investment?

 

IP provides a means to protect creative and innovative products. Securing these rights are often prerequisites to product launches and could have financial or tax-related benefits. Novel solutions to technical problems can be protected by a patent. Yet patents are more than legal documents. They are technical documents as well. Patents indicate R&D investment and directionality to commerce in a way market data cannot. Likewise, trademarks can tell more than who owns the rights to a brand name or logo. They can act as a close-to-real-time indicator of the actual markets they are, or will soon be, active in.

 

Together with substantive expertise, the combined intelligence derived from scientific and IP-related information can reveal insights to inform a range of business-critical decisions. These insights include conventional use cases like predicting legal outcomes or validating investment opportunities. More importantly, it also allows organizations to extract next generation use cases, including using big data to uncover where innovation is emerging or when technologies may be moving from maturity to obsolescence.

What makes data “intelligent”?

Figuring out how to extract actionable insights from IP data introduces challenges that can easily overwhelm organisations. Partnering with a vendor that applies established data science principles is key to unlocking the power of true innovation intelligence. Specifically, organisations can seek vendors that deliver on five areas of expertise:

1. Unity – fusing disparate data sets together and overcoming fragmentation from providers and sources, and curating data to make it easier to retrieve and understand
2. Quality – properly structuring and normalising data and removing any noise
3. Quantifiability – turning derived data into observable metrics which can be used to predict trends and directionality
4. Analytical power – the right models, tools and people
5. Interpretation – expertise in handling specialised content sets

Intelligence comes not inherently from the data itself, but from the cross-cutting way it is used. Exploiting the full potential of innovation data is both an art and a science – infusing the rigour of the scientific method with the craftmanship of synthesising data sources, analytics and fact-based storytelling. And this does not need to be a resource-intensive and lengthily exercise. Intelligent IP data can help accelerate analysis and decision making and empower R&D teams to make decisions at the right pace.

Being an architect of the innovation ecosystem

For R&D leaders looking to leverage innovation intelligence to make faster, more informed decisions, there are two important takeaways. First, not all data is created equal. Market data and intuition are useful signposts but ultimately lack the necessary context, objectivity, timing, context and detail for informed decision-making. Second, more data is not always better but considered use of the right data can create clarity and confidence.

 

How do organisations set the course for managing and directing R&D? On this occasion, moving forwards means taking a step back to appreciate the technological panorama, including the full spectrum of scientific and IP data. Incorporating the right innovation intelligence not only unleashes valuable insights but paves the way for smart decision-making.

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Explore how Clarivate™ applies true innovation intelligence to identify leading innovators and new trends in Top 100 Global Innovators

 

By Arun Hill, Analytics Consultant, Clarivate