6. WHAT IS JUGAAD?
“Jugaad” is a Hindi word that describes an
improvised or makeshift solution using scarce
resources. It's a way of life in India, where
washing machines are used for whipping up
yogurt drinks, but it's also an innovation theory
that's proving to be increasingly influential in the
marketing departments of Western corporations.
In a business context, jugaad is a frugal, flexible,
and inclusive approach to problem solving and
innovation.
Jugaad thinking helps us focus on the essence,
the real requirements, and often leads to taking
the mental leap that is required for a disruptive
new design or product
7. WHAT IS JUGAAD?
Jugaad innovators don’t view
customers as merely passive users of
t h e i r p ro d u c t s a n d s e r v i c e s .
Recognizing the diversity of customer
needs, they invent new solutions from
the ground up by working closely with
marginal groups to identify their
unique needs. They then engage local
communities and partners to set up a
grassroots value chain to locally build,
deliver, and support their solutions—
making these solutions in turn
affordable, accessible, and sustainable.
9. 6 Jugaad principles
1. Seek opportunity in adversity:
Learn to transform adversity into an opportunity to
innovate and bring value to your organization and your
communities. Hande, for instance, faced extreme adversity
in the early stages of SELCO as many Indian rural
customers, who earn $1 to $2 a day, couldn’t afford the up-
front costs of buying and installing solar lighting systems.
Undeterred, Hande improvised a new pay-per-use business
model that proved to be highly successful.
10. 6 Jugaad principles2. Do more with less
Optimize the use of scarce resources while delivering high
value to more of customers. Avoid reinventing the wheel
and reuse existing technologies and networks.
Reuse and recombine thats the key.
Its not necessary to add more technology features just
because we can. We must design for the real world by
practising “radical which is doing more with less
incrementalism”.
The sucess here would be doing almost nathing and having
create a huge difference.
Besides, Jugaad isnt about designing affordable products, it
is also about succesfully selling these products in the
marketplace.
11. 6 Jugaad principles
3.Think and act flexibly
Constantly question conventional wisdom and keep all
options open so you can respond quickly to unexpected
changes. Chinese appliance maker Haier found out that
many farmers across China routinely use its washing
machines to clean their vegetables. Sensing a big market
opportunity, Haier developed a washing machine with
larger pipes that could also handle vegetables. The product
was a hit among farmers.
Its about improvising, experimenting and adapting to the
circunstances. This process is always fast, this way we fail
cheap, fast and often in order to perform better. In the
mindset of uncertainty long-term plans become dangerous,
to thrive this volatile world, the ability to think and act
flexibly is crucial.
12. 6 Jugaad principles
4.Keep it simple
Rather than over-engineering your products,
provide customers with “good enough” solutions
that are easy to use. Recognizing that physicians
in emerging markets had no use for bulky, hard-
to-use ultrasound machines, GE’s engineers
developed Vscan, a portable ultrasound machine
that is as compact and simple to use as a
cellphone. Vscan has been a big success in both
emerging markets and developed countries.
Practical benefits of simplicity:
-They are more affordable
- Easier to install and maintain.
- It satisfy a wider audience
Take into account that the 2% of the
adults in India are illiterate so they
cant read the basic instructions
manuals is crucial to be simple.
Basically, the simplicity makes their
solutions affordable and accessible
not only to mainstream customers
but also to those who live on the
managings society
13. 6 Jugaad principles
5.Include the margin
Scarcity, diversity and interconnectivity are some
of the characteristics of emerging markets.
Jugaad innovators dont view customers as
marely passive users of their products or
services. They recognize the diversity of
customer needs and they invent new solutions
from the ground up by working closely with
marginal groups to identify their unique needs.
So create an inclusive work culture to include the
margin. And never forget that the marginal
minds are not marginal minds.
14. 6 Jugaad principles
6. Follow your heart
Logical thinking can only take you so far. Rely on
your gut intelligence and innate empathy for
customer needs to innovate breakthroughs that
disrupt entire industries. For instance, Kishore
Biyani, founder of Big Bazaar, one of India’s
largest and most successful retail chains, did not
use management consultants to validate his idea
of launching retail stores that look, feel, and even
smell like chaotic street bazaars. He trusted his
intuition more than any analysis to conjure up an
innovative retail model that is hard for rivals to
replicate.
Gut intelligence: A creative
intuition hored by years of
experience.
15. 6 Jugaad principles
By practicing these six principles of jugaad
innovation you will be able to generate
breakthrough growth in today’s complex
environment.
16. Integrating Jugaad into
your organization
Jugaad innovation delivers the most impressive
results when it is practised in complex and
volatile environments with the following
characteristics:
- Rapid changes
- Widespread resource scarcity
-Frugal and diverse customers
-Industry immaturity
-Exploding interconnectivity
17. Integrating Jugaad into
your organization
Getting started with Jugaad:
Jugaad can disrupt business as usual-for the better. As with any
disruptive change, however, companies can adopt jugaad in one of
two ways: in one fell swoop or in small chunks.
For this reason is important to prioritize the jugaad principles you
need to adopt. At the corporate level, you need to let industry
dynamics and your company´s strategic requirements determine
which pf the six jugaad principles is most critical for you business
success.
In addition, once you have decided which principles are of strategic
importance to you, you can adopt each of them in small, manageable
stages.
For example, if “keep it simple” appeals to you, you can begin by
simplifying the design of your products and makeng them easier to
use and mantain (as Siemens did by launching their SMART initiative).
18. Integrating Jugaad into
your organization
Training future Jugaad Innovators:
The Jugaad concept is becoming more popular in American and
European universities for this reason through programmes that
imbue the next generation of engineers and managers with a Jugaad
mindset and its associated principles. Interiorizing the principles the
future leaders will be able to design and deliver affordable and
sustainable solutions that are relevant not only for developing nations
but also for developed economies in the west.
19. If you have the gutsy ability to improvise, you might
recognize yourself as Jugaad-minded. Jugaad
Innovation is about not being afraid to fail;
experiments are allowed. As trivial as it may seem,
Jugaad Innovation is out-of-the-box thinking.
Are you inspired by the idea of Jugaad Innovation?
Then have a look at the Jugaad movement website :
http://jugaadinnovation.com/ for more information.
The challenge:
