In the high-stakes arena of modern business, “Innovation” is the word most often whispered in the halls of power like a sacred mantra. We are taught to lionize the pioneer, the disruptor, and the inventor. However, as a recent Harvard Business Review analysis titled “When to Innovate and When to Imitate” (August 2025) argues, this obsession with being “first” can be a dangerous and expensive distraction. For many of the world’s most successful firms—and specifically for the titans of the Philippine economy, the path to market dominance is not built on being the pioneer, but on being the “Smart Follower.”
The article posits that while innovation creates value, imitation is often what captures it. By observing the pioneers’ mistakes, avoiding the “first-mover” tax of R&D, and refining existing models for local execution, firms can achieve a “Fast Second” advantage that innovation alone rarely provides.
The Framework: Adopt, Adapt, Advance
The HBR study suggests that leadership must view the market through a three-tiered lens: Adopt (Pure Imitation), Adapt (Modified Imitation), and Advance (True Innovation). In the Philippines, where the market is characterized by unique logistical hurdles and a deeply communal consumer base, we see this framework in action across every major sector.
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The Power of “Adapt”: Jollibee vs. the Global Giants
The most legendary example of strategic imitation in Philippine history is Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC). When McDonald’s entered the Philippine market in the early 1980s, Tony Tan Caktiong did not try to “invent” the concept of fast food. He utilized the Adapt lever.
He took the successful operational blueprint of the American fast-food model—speed, consistency, and branding—but “adapted” the flavor profile to the Filipino palate. While McDonald’s innovated the global burger standard, Jollibee imitated the system but localized the soul (sweet-style spaghetti and Chickenjoy). By being a “smart follower” of the fast-food format but a pioneer in local taste, Jollibee captured the value that the global pioneer could not. In this case, imitation of the business model was the foundation, while localized adaptation was the “defensible edge.”
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The “Fast Follower” Race: GCash and Maya
The Philippine fintech landscape is currently a masterclass in the Adopt and Advance cycle. For years, GCash and Maya (formerly PayMaya) have traded leads in the digital wallet space.
When one introduces a feature—such as crypto trading, high-interest savings (digital banking), or “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) schemes—the other is rarely more than a few months behind. This is strategic imitation at its finest. By letting a competitor “test” the regulatory waters and consumer appetite for a new feature, the follower avoids the pioneer’s cost of trial and error. As the HBR article points out, the goal isn’t to be the first to invent a feature; it’s to be the one who executes it most seamlessly within the existing ecosystem. Today, GCash’s dominance isn’t just about innovation; it’s about their ability to imitate global financial tools and integrate them into the daily lives of 80 million Filipinos faster than anyone else.
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Strategic Innovation: Converge ICT and the Fiber Revolution
While imitation is powerful, there are moments where a firm must Advance—and this is where Converge ICT Solutions changed the game. For decades, the Philippine telco duopoly relied on legacy DSL and copper wire infrastructure.
Converge made the “Advance” move by being the first to commit solely to an all-fiber network at scale. This wasn’t just imitating a global trend; it was a high-risk, high-reward innovation move in the local context that forced the legacy giants to scramble. In this instance, the “Innovation Tax” was worth paying because it created a technological gap that competitors could not bridge through simple imitation. It proved the article’s core thesis: Innovate only where you can truly separate from the pack; imitate everywhere else to maintain efficiency.
The Decision Matrix: When to Copy?
Before launching a “new” project, ask:
Is the market mature? If yes, Adopt. Don’t reinvent the wheel; just make it turn faster and cheaper.
Is there a “Local Gap”? If yes, Adapt. Take a global best practice (like the REIT model) and tweak it for Philippine tax and property laws.
Do we have a defensible edge? If yes, Advance. If you have data or infrastructure that no one else can touch, that is where you spend your innovation budget.
The “Appropriability” Trap
A chilling warning in the HBR study is the concept of Appropriability—the ability to keep the value you create. If you innovate a new service in the Philippines (like a new type of delivery app) but it can be copied by a well-funded conglomerate in 48 hours, you haven’t innovated; you’ve just provided free R&D for your competition.
In the Philippine context, “Cold-Blooded Imitation” in non-core areas allows a firm to preserve its “war chest” for the one or two areas where true innovation will yield a 10-year advantage.
The Leader’s Choice
Leaders are learners, and the most important lesson from the 2026 business landscape is that there is no shame in being second if you are better. Ayala, SM, and Jollibee are not just icons of innovation; they are masters of strategic imitation. They watch, they learn, they adapt, and then they dominate.
The mandate for today’s executive is simple: Stop trying to be the next Steve Jobs in every department. Be a genius innovator in your core, and be a brilliant, efficient imitator everywhere else.
