“We know innovation is important, but we just don’t know how to do it!”
A C-suite executive told me this a few months ago, and it echoes a common frustration among directors and senior managers across the country. But this challenge is not just local, it is global. Boston Consulting Group’s 2024 Most Innovative Companies report highlights this disconnect: while a record 83 per cent of senior executives rank innovation as a top priority, only 3 per cent feel equipped to achieve their goals.
The urgency for innovation is further amplified by Accenture’s Global Disruption Index, which reveals that companies now operate in a constant state of accelerated disruption. Over the past five years, disruptions across economic, technological, geopolitical, and social spheres have surged by 200 per cent. Despite innovation being a higher priority than ever, organisations are increasingly unprepared to turn their aspirations into reality.
The paradox of innovation is that while radical ideas are essential for breaking new ground, they require a mindset, philosophy, and set of processes that often make executives uneasy. Striking the right balance is difficult—leaders must allow enough freedom for novel ideas to emerge and promising pilots to develop, without exposing the organisation to excessive risk.
Creating dedicated teams or empowering individuals to challenge norms, push boundaries, and explore unconventional ideas inevitably generates tension. When these innovators develop something that disrupts established ways of working, the corporate immune system kicks in—often unintentionally stifling breakthrough innovations.
Although these “antibodies” act with the best intentions, i.e. aiming to protect the organisation from perceived risks, they frequently suppress transformative progress. As a result, potential growth engines are shut down before they have a chance to take root.
Rise of an international innovation standard
This problem occurred in other countries and in attempting to remedy it, it led to the development of the new discipline of innovation management. In 2013, the leading experts in this field came together, resulting in the world’s first requirement standard for innovation in September 2024. The ISO 56001 provides a comprehensive framework for managing innovation and I am proud to announce that the T&T Bureau of Standards has taken the groundbreaking step to adopt it as our national innovation standard. Thus far, we are the only Caribbean country to do so.
Local success stories
Fortunately, leading firms such as Agostini Group and Carib Brewery Ltd have already established dedicated innovation departments, driving transformative change in their industries. As pioneers in structured innovation, they serve as local benchmarks, showcasing the tangible benefits of a formalised approach to innovation management.
Agostini Group’s Innovation Lab has spearheaded initiatives such as an agricultural project aimed at increasing import substitution and expanding exports for VEMCO. They also launched an internal challenge to generate high-impact ideas, resulting in a robust innovation pipeline. Their commitment to innovation has paid off—reporting a profit applicable to shareholders of $313 million in 2023, a 64 per cent increase over the prior year.
Similarly, Carib Brewery has embraced innovation with the introduction of augmented reality labels, new product flavours, and a cutting-edge smart manufacturing line (Line 7). This smart factory has optimised operations by freeing up two additional production lines, an advantage that will likely support Carib Beer’s highly anticipated launch in India later this year.
Meanwhile, Ramps Logistics continues to push the boundaries of innovation. Their innovation manager secured first place at the 2025 T&T Energy Conference’s Innovation and Technology Challenge with Mawi—a generative AI solution revolutionising customs brokerage. Already making waves in the US market, Mawi exemplifies the power of innovation in driving competitive advantage.
Innovation as a national imperative
Beyond corporate success, managing innovation has far-reaching socioeconomic implications. It is key to reducing T&T’s dependence on dwindling oil and gas revenues, alleviating pressure on the national pension system due to an ageing population, addressing graduate underemployment and brain drain, improving access to foreign exchange, and ultimately tackling high crime rates.
Managing innovation is not just an option—it is the foundation of our survival and growth in an increasingly competitive and turbulent global landscape.
