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There comes a point in the development of larges companies, where their further growth and efficiency increase are no longer solely dependent on classic solutions, but also on high technology. They have a choice – either to be a pioneer and set trends for the rest, or to follow into the footsteps of others and make use of their know-how. The participants of the session “Innovation comes first. How to define innovation trends” shared how to look for and implement new ideas into businesses.

“Up until recently the value of a company was determined by its equipment. Today the role of software and integrated innovation solutions is becoming more and more prominent. This is why all the processes are reorganizing,” noted session moderator, Senior Vice-President for Innovations of the Skolkovo Foundation Kirill Kaem.

Global Managing Director of Accenture Paul Nunes believes that when a company is implementing innovations, it is facing three major challenges. Technology must be constantly developing. The business must be omnipresent, that is, it must be reshaping all processes in accordance with the new work environment. The third challenge is remembering to be responsible.

“On one hand, companies are already concerned with the matters of ethics, on the other hand, being “too ethical” is not exactly a positive attitude. The humanity is rightfully wary of everything innovation-related. The decision-making process is speeding up. Artificial Intelligence, for example, can influence what the consumer purchases, and one day we may decide that it is unfair towards the consumer. If we ignore this issue and our competitors don’t – they will be ahead of us,” says Paul Nunes.

Bouygues Group Open Innovation Corporate Director Vincent Maret believes the matters of ethics and safety should be the first priority for construction businesses: “A strong corporate culture is our compass, our North Star which shows us the way even when we are working on various projects”.

According to his words, the development of the construction sector is defined by four tendencies. “The first one is urbanization and population growth, which is of utmost importance for a construction company. The second is the necessity of a steady development, as we are responsible to our customers. The third one is digitalization, today a number of processes are becoming digital. The fourth is the most difficult and important one – the change in consumer behavior. These four factors are our basis for selecting specific tools – artificial intelligence, the internet of things, and so on,” says Vincent Maret.

In turn, Innovation Program Manager at Philips Research Richard Kemkers notes that: “Healthcare is a highly fragmented system in which innovations need to connect its various elements. Many a processes can and should be automated. 80% of the processes a radiologist is involved in can be performed by a robot, reading x-rays being an example. It would save time for the doctor. This, however, presents us with a dilemma – can we entrust making such decisions to artificial intelligence by making it responsible for the diagnosis?”.

The participants of the discussion have all agreed that there is a difference between the “finalized” solutions, which are ready to be put to use, and the cutting edge technologies of today. Companies developing deferred strategic solutions are the business of the future.