Member Article

Creating a hotbed of innovation and ideas

The value of innovation and good ideas is increasing all the time. Tough economic conditions means businesses must work harder to differentiate themselves and remain competitive, whilst NESTA (the UK’s innovation agency) stated last year that investment in new products and ideas has fallen by £24bn since the recession hit in 2008.

Anyone within an organisation can have an idea that has true impact. When this occurs, not only does the business benefit but the employee feels like they are making a significant contribution and is engaged and motivated to contribute more ideas. But how do you go about establishing innovation in your company? Here are my top five tips:

1) Start at the top. Establishing innovation within a company, regardless of sector, must begin with the leadership team. As innovation is a top down process, leaders must be willing to work with new ideas and take huge risks in order to demonstrate to their employees the benefits of doing the same. While we also agree that innovation involves taking a collaborative approach toward interaction within and outside of the company, in order to create an open culture of debate for new ideas, a few considerations from leaders must be taken into account.

2) Create an idea launch-pad. Good ideas need a solid launch-pad from which to spring from. There are several key considerations to take into account when creating your launch-pad, including: employees and their abilities, the structure of your company, leadership and organisation, the risks you’ll be undertaking, the technology you’ll need, how you’ll measure performance with KPIs, and the costs your process may incur. Once you’ve established your organisation limits, expectations, and realities in each of these considerations, you’ll be ready to tackle your company’s philosophy of innovation.

3) Identify your innovation objectives. It’s not necessarily all about brand new technologies or brand new products. New products will bring a lot of attention and fanfare, yes, but they also bring with them a lot of work and commitment. Pondering ideas and innovation in terms of brand new products and services may not actually be sustainable for your company’s future. Competitors will always be on the lookout to replicate new products and services and undercut them with their own connections to offer cheaper alternatives.

4) Ensure a collective focus. Instead, you should focus on these goals collectively, without emphasising one over the other: ensuring there is measurable gain, interacting with your consumers, avoiding burnout, and ensuring your business has the flexibility to adapt to changes in your original launchpad or in customer wants and needs. Focusing only on one area of these goals may result in leading your new ideas straight into a tailspin.

5) Retain an agile approach to innovation. As mentioned earlier, organisational leaders must be willing to take risks and as such, should never be afraid to adapt methods they have never before utilised. As competitors are always looking for ways to adapt other approaches into their own, being having an agile approach towards innovation will ensure that you stay ahead of changes within your sector. Ensuring your leadership makes decisions on the same platform is one way of maintaining the flexibility toward adopting unconventional approaches.

Innovation is critical for most organisations, yet it isn’t a quick fix. Most companies set their goals with only the present in mind, avoiding thinking about the long haul. Establishing an innovation structure and culture within your company is one way of adopting approaches for the long term and ensures the sustainability of a company.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Hill .