How do you get value from innovation? Should Europe and the US expect to maintain a competitive edge over developing economies in terms of innovation? What role does government play in fostering a culture of innovation?

These were the broad questions discussed at BT’s private breakfast at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, where an audience of 60 delegates braved early morning snow to assemble in the Kirchner Museum in Davos.

The panel was moderated by Charles Hodgson, anchorman of CNN’s World Business Today programme. Members of the panel were:

The panellists presented their ideas on innovation and then answered questions from the floor. Discussion included how large companies can foster an innovative environment, whether innovation is about more than technology, and the role of academia in the genesis of new ideas.

By way of an example of how innovation can be encouraged even in a large company, BP’s Nick Butler related how BP tackled an issue of supplying fuel to rural poor in developing countries. The company identified a previously untapped market of people who are just emerging from poverty and spend a disproportionate amount of their income on energy.

So BP sent two teams of bright young researchers – in competition with each other – to India to investigate. They found that Indian women spend two to three hours a day collecting fuel which, when they burn for cooking, is extremely bad for their health and for the environment. The winning team’s idea was to develop a stove, which can be built locally using micro-finance projects, and for which BP supplies the fuel.

This was one of the examples shared among the high-level delegates showing that innovation can provide true commercial and societal value.

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