Apple Corporation

But as we discussed the topic further, and the executive clarified his comment, I understood the real point he was trying to make, and it was this: There’s a danger in becoming too preoccupied with what others in your industry are doing. You could end up investing more time and energy following the lead of others instead of innovating and becoming a leader yourself. You become “always a follower, never a leader.”

When Apple set out to enter the cell phone market, it simply didn’t look at what Nokia and RIMM were doing and follow their lead. Apple followed its own mantra of “Think Different” and its iPhone revolutionized the cell phone industry and the user experience. The company has done the same with the iPad, creating a whole new product category and becoming the market leader, as competitors now struggle to catch up.

But Apple didn’t turn a blind eye to the competition either. The original iPhone, for example, couldn’t run multiple apps at once like Android phones, and it lacked the security features of Blackberry phones, a critical requirement for corporate users. Apple learned from its competitors and addressed these deficiencies in latter versions. And the company still has some learning to do when it comes to the iPhone’s built-in camera.

So, yes, Apple does look to its competitors for best practices, but more to fine-tune and address its deficiencies than to define its path forward.

In short, going into the workshop, it never occurred to me that there could be a potential downside to seeking out best practices in your industry. I always assumed that implementing best/leading practices is better than reinventing the wheel. And this is still true in many cases. But in the process of avoiding reinvention, you might also avoid invention. And over time, as you drift down the innovation curve, you might find yourself always the follower, never the leader.