All entrepreneurs want to bring their innovations successfully to the market. But why do 90% of the initiatives not succeed? Why is it still so difficult to get an innovative idea to maturity? And what are common elements for techno startups, SMEs, and corporates? Could experience as a volunteer worker be of any help?
Ivo Aarninkhof has managed to use his experience in all those branches of entrepreneurship to create a roadmap that has value for any kind of entrepreneur with innovative ambitions. To bring startups, SMEs, and corporates together as a “Trias Entrepreneurias“, as he calls it, Aarninkhof builds his theory upon elements such as understanding user needs, critical parameters, teamwork, and compassion to drive innovations forward.
Aarninkhof has brought his ideas together in a book, that was published in Dutch last year and will soon be available in English as well. The unique value of this work – especially for the user who really wants to get started with its lessons – lies in the way the hard management aspects are combined with a set of soft skills. Aarninkhof uses his abundant experience as a volunteer worker to substantiate his ideas, which is a unique addition to a management book. In fact, by bringing these seemingly separate worlds together, the author creates a very welcome innovation in the theories of innovation and change management. Step by step, he explains how the methodology can be used “to take crucial steps towards bringing innovations to the market in a better and more reliable way, full of passion”. The book makes the reader think about their own motives and offers new insights to innovate differently. But it also shows how important the “culture of voluntariness” is for successful innovations.
Heart-warming
Aarninkhof calls the responses he received after his book was first published in Dutch “heart-warming”. “What I hoped for really happened: readers confirmed to me that, next to their work as an innovator, a project leader, a civil servant, or an entrepreneur, my tips gave them more time to volunteer for society and their loved ones. At the end of the day, it is precisely the combination of all these factors that will help us move forward as a society and create a bright and innovative future for our children and grandchildren.”
Ivo Aarninkhof (1974) is a father, and husband, and was educated as an engineer and business administrator. For many years he worked for Philips both in the Netherlands and abroad. Since 2011 Aarninkhof has been an entrepreneur and involved in innovation and product development management in medtech and high-tech industries. He is also passionately committed as a volunteer. At the moment he is co-owner of Holland Innovative.
The Dutch version of the book, ‘Ondernemend Innoveren’, is available at www.boekengilde.nl/boekenshop or via www.bol.com. For more information, contact [email protected] or www.holland-innovative.nl/.
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