Mark Walport Quotes

An adaptable company is one that captures more than its fair share of new opportunities. It's always redefining its 'core business' in ways that open up new avenues for growth.

Business has only two functions - marketing and innovation.

Ultimately, innovation depends on the people with advanced skills who have the ideas, and on the business risk-takers willing to back them.

Innovation requires resources to invest, and you can see many companies pulling back and going into an intense protective mode in a major extended period of financial distress.

As an entrepreneur, one of my biggest struggles is that you have to focus, but you also have to expand.

I think we need ideas for the future.

Sometimes, when you're building a company, out of necessity there's just a gazillion things you have to learn and figure out.

I see business as an ecosystem.

The marketplace is absolutely mercurial. But what I love about our company is that we create a vision, and then we go all in.

Adaptability and constant innovation is key to the survival of any company operating in a competitive market.

As CEO of Cold Stone Creamery, we used a concept called 'search and reapply,' which meant that if we found better ways of doing something, then we would do it.

You need to run the company on an even keel, and you need to be thinking about the company long-term and how to drive your next innovation.

I do believe it is important to be future-ready with a portfolio to be able to deal with however the market evolves. This is better than just forecasting accurately but in having the weapons ready to deal with the uncertainties.

It is such an uncertain universe out there that you have to create what I call 'real' options and develop capabilities that will enable you to deal with an environment that will change anyway.

I think we operate in a very dynamic marketplace, and as such, we need to constantly innovate.

Disruption starts with committing to excellence and taking a stand for your customer.

There is a common and persistent belief out there that entrepreneurship is about creativity - that it's about having a great idea. But it's not, really. Entrepreneurship isn't about creativity. It's about organization-building - which, in turn, is about people.

You change your business plan to anticipate and adapt to changes in the marketplace.

Plenty of entrepreneurs can start a company. What is more rare is to evolve it and to scale with it over time.

Even though we live in a fast-changing world with short term-ism all around, it requires years of determination to transform a company and structurally reap the rewards. Innovation companies need to set their sights on solving unmet needs - but this approach requires focus and long-term tenacity.

Creativity should be balanced with commercial interests.

The people who succeed are those who are aware of the rules; they respect the rules. But they make up their own rules. They create for creative sake.

Innovation means taking risks, and that is where the private sector can play a role.

The biggest problem I see with early-stage entrepreneurs is they get the idea in their head, and they leave it in their head. And they begin embellishing it in their head, making it more ornate. They add on the second story to their dream house - then add the tennis court and the turrets and the gargoyles.

Carry a big basket. In other words, be open to new ideas, different partners, and new practices, and have a willingness to dump out the old and irrelevant to make room for new approaches.