Firm Strategy and Innovation Project Management

Innovation is presented by public authorities as the most effective means of ensuring the economic and social development of nations. Strengthening companies' capacity for innovation is at the heart of public policy.

Still too many companies are unwilling to innovate. Some of them, particularly SMEs with limited resources, may think that predicting the future is too uncertain, and that it's enough to be ready to seize opportunities when they arise. Other companies, in dominant positions in their markets, may feel that they have sufficient control over their environment.

But the context has changed. The saturation of traditional markets with increasingly sophisticated and demanding customers, the opening of borders with the arrival of new competitors and new customers, and the acceleration of technical change have profoundly altered the context of economic competition. Working today in markets that are constantly evolving and difficult to predict, companies need to reinforce their ability to anticipate possible futures and be ready to act.

At the same time, many business sectors are facing the challenge of entering the industry of the future (Factory 4.0) and converging with the digital world. Today, it's a question of:

• virtualization of production lines and material flows;

• integrating information systems throughout the supply chain;

• cyber-security tools;

• predictive maintenance deployment ;

• energy efficiency ;

• to digitalize customer relationship management.

Tomorrow's enterprise will be made up of connected objects, smart data, augmented reality, sensors and robots. The Internet will become the universal platform for designing and distributing IT applications.

Innovation has therefore become a necessity, whether for :

• expand in existing markets ;

• diversify into new markets and territories;

• increase organizational flexibility ;

• or to reduce production costs with a view to improving efficiency.

A case in point is Michelin, a company founded in the 19th century and a leader in the tire industry, which launched a three-pronged transformation plan to become a global player in mobility:

• the digital customer ;

• the digital employee;

• the digitization of the Group's internal processes....