Michael D. Moberly – October 13, 2023
The vulnerability, probability, and criticality of innovation being at risk to misappropriation, et al, is an obligatory concern for entrepreneurs, inventors, R&D administrators, and prospective investors. Specifically, can innovation materialize faster than it may be at risk to misappropriation,
The legitimacy of this question emerges, in no small part, because I am a business intangible asset strategist and risk mitigator, from this economic fact – operation realty…
80+/-% of most business’s valuation, competitiveness, revenue generation capability, and sustainability, irrespective of sector, size, or stage, lie in – emerge directly from intangible (non-physical) assets, specifically from various forms, contexts, and applications of…
- intellectual capital (knowledge, knowhow).
- structural capital (unique processes, procedures), and
- relationship capital (associations, connections, and/or alliances)
Intangible assets are clearly the developmental underpinnings to innovation and entrepreneurism. Intangible assets have outpaced tangible (physical, fixed) assets as the dominant differentiators – sources of innovation’s valuation, marketability, revenue generation capability, sustainability, competitiveness, and wealth creation potential.
The intensity, dependency, and reliance on arrays of the right intangible assets (intellectual, structural, and relationship capital) converging at the right time, in the right way, at the right cost is irreversible. Safeguarding and mitigating risk to those ‘mission essential’ intangible assets in play is a fiduciary obligation.
There remains an elusive notion that one can still innovate, develop, attract investment, produce, and bring to market (monetize – commercialize) a new or unique version of a process, procedure, product, or service, faster than the foundational-underlying intellectual and/or structural capital (mission – objective essential intangible assets) will be at risk.
Risk to innovation can materialize as a challenge, dispute, misinformation, misappropriation, purposeful – inadvertent leak, and/or infringement. Risk can be targeted, ideologically driven, costly, and reputationally irreversible.
It’s prudent for business leaders, management teams, boards, and investor to recognize each type-form of risk to innovation is ‘asymmetrically ever present’ and can materialize – cascade (virally) at keystroke speed, at the will, timing, and motivation of others who merely seek ‘hits, clicks, and shares’ for self-promotion.
Absent specific-effective strategies and measures (proactive – pre-emptive) to alert, avoid, counter, alleviate-mitigate, recover, and affirmatively respond to such adversity, far too often reflects one being uninformed, unfamiliar, inexperienced, dismissive, or naïve wishful thinking.
Dismissiveness of/to these circumstances, i.e., innovations’ vulnerability to, the probability of, and the criticality of particular – risks to innovation, warrants consideration.
The ‘Business Intangible Asset Blog’ is experientially researched, written, and produced by Michael D. Moberly to provide readers with reliable perspectives and nuanced insights to distinguish, value, and safeguard particular – business things intangible designated as mission essential. This blog’s 1,100+ posts are searchable to accommodate reader questions and interests.
