Book Review: Jugaad Innovation by Navi Radjou, Jaideep Prabhu & Simone Ahuja

Paul Polak, author of Out of Poverty, wrote: "90 percent of the world’s products and services are designed for 10 percent of the world’s population-to meet the desires, rather than actual needs, of the richest people on earth." How true! On the contrary, Jugaad is what brings in simple and creative solutions to real problems faced by the masses.

Here's an interesting book, Jugaad Innovation" born out of Indian ingenuity, with international examples, on how to unleash our innovative spirits while designing products and services. As the sub-title goes, it's a Frugal and Flexible Approach to Innovation for the 21st Century".

Creative Spirits Unleashed:

The company you keep, keeps you motivated. I fondly recall my discussions on this book in my hand with our young and intelligent HR Professional friend, Pradeep Unnikrishnan, a few years back. It has taken some time to read. But it’s worth it. Again, another book by an author-trio after the Toyota Lean Production System. Yet again, a well written and packaged counter-intuitive book that strongly puts forth a new idea. 

For the South Indian and particularly Tamil folks, what is Jugaad? It’s a Hindi slang mostly attached with a negative connotation for a creative solution for the problem faced. But the authors define it clearly and gives it a cult status, originating from India and for the world to follow. It’s a new model proposed by the youth-brigade.

In the words of Sam Pitroda who has written Introduction to this book: “A new model requires a new mindset: and here, this book makes a particularly vital contribution. Jugaad reflects a rich Indian tradition of ingenuity in the face of challenge. It demonstrates the day-to-day ability of ordinary Indians to solve problems under conditions of constraint and scarcity, and to seize opportunities in the most challenging circumstances. What this book offers its readers is a way of institutionalizing this approach in their organizations, and of being systematic about innovating frugally.”

And this is how the authors expand the word further: “Jugaad is a colloquial Hindi word that roughly translates as ‘an innovative fix; an improvised solution born from ingenuity and cleverness’. Jugaad is, quite simply, a unique way of thinking and acting in response to challenges; it is a gutsy art of spotting opportunities in the most adverse circumstances and resourcefully improvising solutions using simple means. Jugaad is about doing more with less.”

While the word Innovation is well-known, over-used and sometimes mixed up with Creativity, Jugaad is something ‘outside’ the swanky R&D Labs. The authors strongly advocate ‘good enough’ solutions to our current-day resource-starved society rather than ‘overengineered products’ with incremental improvements.

Currently it appears, manufacturing race has thrown out of the window the basic principle of simplicity for meeting actual requirements. The techno fad is creating more complex but mostly useless features in every gadget produced due to pumping of tons of money invested in R&D. It has driven the compulsive creators to put different ways of doing the same thing.

The 'bigger is better' or 'complex is high tech' is a myth, exploded in this innovative book. In fact, as the authors argue, "increasingly customers are put off by the complexity of technology, especially in products like consumer electronics and automobiles". As a customer, I don't want to pay for features I don't want. Why should anyone pick up a huge R&D bill of the company for products designed with an array of dazzling features and functionality, in the guise of modern technology?

And the authors observe clearly that "many consumers around the world are 'downshifting'-opting for a simpler, more meaningful life. Companies that respond now to these consumer and societal changes are likely to benefit in the long run".

Logan's (cheaper French car) reduced cost manufacturing success story is shared with passion in this book. Also, the one on the adventure banker Rana Kapoor, yes you are right, of YES Bank. Again, the audacious attempt of producing Nano, the one lakh car by the Tatas. All in the context of including the marginalized society or focusing on the Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP). However, as time has progressed, over a decade, we find the pathetic state of these examples miserably failing due to different reasons. Time is a crucial judge for even positive efforts.

Then, how do we bring about Jugaad in our corporate-midst? The authors recommend:” You don’t roll out jugaad across your organization the same way you roll out a Six Sigma process or an enterprise software tool. Jugaad is neither a process nor a tool nor a scientific method that can be deployed in a top-down way. In spirit and practice, jugaad is closer to a fluid art and culture than a rigorous science. More important, an organization doesn’t practice jugaad; rather the individuals in that organization do so. CEOs need to exercise restraint, enabling the ingenuity that lies dormant in each one of his or her employees to emerge on its own and flourish in a bottom-up fashion.”

What is the parting advice by the authors for the youth: “Whether you are job makers or takers, however, one thing is certain: you will need to have your wits about you. In other words: you will all need to use the jugaad mindset-one built upon the inherently Indian traits of resourcefulness, improvisation and ingenuity, and one that provides the foundation for jugaad innovation; a frugal, flexible and inclusive approach to solving even highly complex problems. Embrace these traits and use them for good – the world is standing by to learn from you….The power of jugaad in the Indian context lies in its ability to do good and change things for the better (rather than undermine the good or reinforce a bad status quo).”

An interesting and well-written book recommended for churning minds and thought-leaders. After all, seeing new ways is the way we humans have intelligently organized this modern world. Let the creative juices flow!