Live Webinar · SSA Consulting Group
The Systematic
Innovation Myth
38 years. 8 books. One question: is innovation something you're born with, or something you can engineer? A conversation with Darrell Mann, former Chief Engineer, Rolls-Royce.
The 60 minutes, in one line
Date
Tue, 1 Sept 2026 · 3 PM GST
Format
Live + Q&A
Duration
60 minutes
Speakers
Darrell Mann Dr Naveen Narayanan
01 — The Myth
Innovation can't be taught
That's the belief. Breakthroughs come from rare people having rare moments — so you hire for it, hope for it, and wait. This session tests that belief against 38 years of evidence that says otherwise.
Innovation treated as a hiring problem, not a method problem.
Breakthroughs waited for, not engineered.
…and what that belief quietly costs you every year.
02 — The Lens
"Most people think innovation is a lightning strike. We'll show you the weather system behind it — live, not in theory."
The Session
60 minutes, mapped out
No filler. Every segment earns its place.
- 015 min
Welcome & Framing
The myth we're here to test: that innovation can't be taught, systematised, or repeated — only chased.
- 028 min
Why the Myth Persists
Why most organisations still treat breakthroughs as luck, and what that belief actually costs them.
- 0310 min
Rolls-Royce to Systematic Innovation
Darrell's own turning point: 15 years inside R&D at Rolls-Royce, and what convinced him innovation follows patterns, not chance.
- 0412 min
Busting the Myth, Live
A real framework from Systematic Innovation — demonstrated, not explained. Theory shown in practice.
- 058 min
What Actually Blocks Innovation
The real barriers inside organisations, and why most of them have nothing to do with creativity.
- 0612 min
Live Conversation: Dr. Naveen & Darrell
An open back-and-forth — including where Dr. Naveen pushes back.
- 075 min
Audience Q&A
Open floor. Your questions, answered live.
Who's Talking
Two people who've argued this out before
Dr. Naveen Narayanan
MD & CEO, SSA Consulting Group
Has spent 25 years inside factories and boardrooms watching improvement programmes succeed and stall. Brings the operator's scepticism to this conversation — and the questions most audiences are too polite to ask.
Darrell Mann
Founder, Systematic Innovation Ltd · Former Chief Engineer, Rolls-Royce
38 years, 8 books, and one contrarian conclusion: innovation follows patterns. Spent 15 years inside Rolls-Royce R&D before building a body of work arguing that breakthroughs can be engineered rather than waited for. Widely regarded as one of the leading authorities on systematic innovation and TRIZ.
The Real Barriers
What actually blocks innovation
Ask why an organisation isn't innovating and you'll hear about talent, culture, or budget. In practice the blockers are more mundane and more fixable: how problems get framed, who's allowed to define them, and what happens to an idea between the whiteboard and the P&L. We'll name them — including the ones that have nothing to do with creativity at all.
SSA Consulting Group
Secure Your Spot
Join innovation, R&D and operations leaders for a 60-minute conversation on whether innovation can actually be engineered.
- Tuesday, 1 September 2026
- 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM GST
- Live Online Webinar + Audience Q&A
- Hosted by SSA Consulting Group