"If we had enough ideas we'd spend $100million+ annually on innovation ideas, but we don't. We have more money than good ideas to invest in."

For people who can just spout ideas all day long, it can come as a surprise that there is a limit on ideas. There is a limit on good ideas that is. In some nebulous fashion I suppose I might agree with that concept. But put to the test, I've never found the end of the list of ideas.

I've run out of time or, more commonly, determined that the ideas I have solve the problem sufficiently, but run out of ideas - just plain not have enough ideas? I'm struggling to wrap my head around that. More ideas than money, more ideas than time, more idea than people to implement - yes. More money than ideas? No.

Watching a great video interview of P&G's CEO & Board Chair A. G. Lafley here: http://www.annualreport.pg.com/letter/index.shtml (click the link to "game-changing innovation" - no there isn't a direct link: clearly they have a problem here), when talking about "Innovation Systems and Structures" - specifically about P&G's "futureworks" initiative, he said:

Futureworks: we fund it to the tune of $50 million to $100 million a year depending on the innovation opportunities that we have.

If I may turn this statement upside down: "If we had enough ideas we'd spend $100million+ annually on innovation ideas."

I blogged recently about Microsoft's $41 billion dividend as a signal that they didn't have enough ideas to invest in.

I'm beginning to wonder if this problem is endemic to most businesses.

Links & notes

1. I selected this picture of blurry aisles in a grocery store since that is what comes to my mind when I think of Proctor & Gamble. That they title their 2008 annual report: "Designed to Innovate" was surprising to me - though I think Lafley is 100% credible in his discussion and I'm re-evaluating my perception of P&G.
2. There is a transcript of the interview here: http://www.annualreport.pg.com/bin/transcripts/Innosight_Clip5.htm ( Hopefully this helps Google)
3. As I mentioned, the entire video interview is good, but I also quite enjoyed his point in the following segment "The Role of the Innovation Leader":
   "At least in our company in most of our businesses-which are in the end, innovation-driven-it drives 80 to 90 to 100 percent or more of our organic growth every year. You are going to have to be a good operator but that is going to be 'jacks or better.' You are also going to have to learn to be a good innovation leader. Not necessarily an innovator, an individual innovator, but a good innovation leader."