Lenovo Research: Three Steps Businesses Can Take to Innovate Beyond Boundaries
July 21, 2021 | Business WireEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
Lenovo Group launches Beyond Boundaries, a new report on the state of business innovation today. The study examines how businesses are innovating their way into the post-COVID future, not just to satisfy pent-up demand and unlock growth, but also to improve their social and environmental performance.
The pandemic has acted as a catalyst for innovation - while the scientific community were producing a vaccine at unheard-of speed, commerce was quicker still in largely transforming to a work-from-anywhere model.
But how do businesses not only keep these benefits of innovation, but continue to ride the wave? To find the answers to these questions, Lenovo surveyed senior decision makers in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, and Asia Pacific. The result is the ‘Beyond Boundaries’ report, a deep-dive into changing attitudes to innovation, and the tensions that exist post-pandemic for businesses looking to re-build and grow.
Report highlights include the findings that:
- Businesses recognize that diversity is directly related to successful innovation, but there is more work to do before individuals can be their authentic selves at work.
- Disrupting a stifling, hierarchical culture – also related to effective innovation – is far from easy. The study finds some leaders are struggling to embrace a bottom-up working environment.
- Business agility has led to improved innovation. However, there are fears that these gains will be lost as firms transition back into the office, or adopt a hybrid model that balances on-site and remote working.
Tellingly, for all the positive talk about risk-taking and innovation, many businesses remain wary of leaping into the unknown. Six out of every ten companies (59%) say senior leadership often requests that an innovation is discontinued for being too risky or experimental. This rises to 70% in North America.
And what of the much-vaunted environmental impact of innovation? It seems that the bigger the company, the more likely it is to be using innovation to improve environmental sustainability. Encouragingly, almost half (49%) of larger businesses say a key driver of innovation is to improve their overall performance in environmental sustainability.
Meanwhile 60% of larger businesses say the crisis catalyzed their efforts to use innovation to improve their social and environmental performance, compared with 54% of all those surveyed.
“Over the past year, COVID challenged everyone and changed everything – so we responded to the challenge with what we know best: innovation,” said Yuanqing Yang, Lenovo Chairman and CEO. “Now, on the threshold of the next reality, innovation remains key to unlocking our full potential. As we transform from a leading device maker to a global technology powerhouse, capable of solving the most challenging problems faced by our customers and the wider world, this commitment to innovation is more crucial than ever.
“For us, innovation is by its nature unpredictable, and is applied in unexpected places – such as revolutionizing hybrid working environments and improving environmental and corporate governance practices. But none of this happens in a vacuum, which is why we talked to business leaders around the world about what comes next – and how together, a focus on innovation can help us change the world for the better.”
Other highlights include the findings that:
- Senior leaders say they want to step back and let innovation flourish, but the experience of junior executives suggests otherwise.
- Innovation relies on diversity, but the ability to “fit the mold” helps if you want to challenge the status quo.
- To unlock the next level of innovation, businesses should use technology to build on COVID-era openness and collaboration.
Suggested Items
IDC Increases its PC and Tablet Forecasts Despite Tariff Uncertainty
06/02/2025 | IDCAfter recording strong results in the first quarter of 2025, IDC is increasing its traditional PC forecast for 2025 — this comes despite the significant impact that US tariffs have had on its trading partners’ market sentiment.
IonQ Signs MoU with KISTI to Accelerate South Korea’s Role in the Global Quantum Race
06/02/2025 | IonQIonQ, a leading commercial quantum computing and networking company, today announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI), a leading national science and technology research institute and supercomputing center.
Stephen Winchell Appointed DARPA Director
06/02/2025 | DARPAStephen Winchell was sworn in today as the 24th director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Hon Hai Research Institute Partners with Taiwan Academic Research Institute and KAUST to Participate in CLEO 2025
05/30/2025 | FoxconnThe research team of the Semiconductor Division of Hon Hai Research Institute, together with the research teams of National Taiwan University and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia, has successfully made breakthroughs in multi-wavelength μ -LED technology to achieve high-speed visible light communication and optical interconnection between chips.
UNIST, SK On Strengthen Collaboration to Cultivate Battery Talent and Enhance R&D Capabilities
05/28/2025 | UNISTUNIST announced its plans to deepen collaboration with SK On to foster talent in the battery industry. This strategic partnership aims to attract outstanding researchers, broaden the foundation of research and development, and secure future competitive advantages.