Taipei, April 11 (CNA) Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of modern companies will find themselves at the forefront of the innovation war, which will be a big challenge, two Taiwanese CEOs said Tuesday.
"This is an age of competition, no matter what sector you're in. The product life cycle is as short as months. Innovation is not only inevitable but also the only way to move forward. And the CEOs are standing on the front line, " said Vincent Lin, President of Fuhwa Venture Capital and the Senior Vice President of Fuhwa Financial Holding Company.
"The CEO can't hide in his little hole. He has to embrace as many new technologies, keep making as many friends and visit as many places as possible in order to be innovative, " said Lin.
But "an innovation is more than just a crazy idea, it has to be feasible," said Charles Kao, General Manager of Innotera Memories.
To be innovative, a company has to sort out its core competence in the very beginning. "The key is know yourself. Go with what you have and what you're good at," Kao said.
"And don't be afraid of changes. Any innovation, personnel-wise or operation-wise, means you have to move in a different direction, which is against human nature of wanting to be stable, " according to Lin.
Both Lin and Kao agreed that business innovation is a "top-down" process in most companies.
"A good leader has to be someone who is optimistic, encouraging, curious, honest, always progressing, and profit-motivated," Kao said.