The Value of Jugaad

In India we all know the value of jugaaddoing something on the spur of the moment with minimal or whatever resources are available to achieve an immediate objective.

So it is a pleasant surprise to come across a book that, in the words of The Economist, is the most comprehensive book yet to appear on the subject. The book is especially relevant at a time when the economic crunch continues to squeeze the R&D budgets out of companies expenditures and when time-to-market is more important than ever.

The basic premise of the book is that western countries can learn from the frugal and flexible approach to innovation adopted in developing economies such as India, China and Brazil.

The authors outline the key principles of jugaad neatly into six areas: seeking opportunity in adversity, doing more with less, thinking and acting flexibly, keeping it simple (remember KISS?), including the margin, and (this one should take the cake) following your heart.

To make it more real-worldly, there are case studies showing jugaad innovation in practice: Google, Facebook, P&G, Apple and Tata Group, to name a few.

In short, the book packs a lot of insightful punch on jugaad innovation and should be useful to anyone looking at novel approaches to solving business problems.

Title: Jugaad Innovation: A Frugal and Flexible Approach to Innovation for the 21st Century
Authors: Navi Radjou, Jaideep Prabhu, Simone Ahuja
Publisher: Random Business
Pages: 336
Price: Rs. 499

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