How Do You Define INNOVATIVENESS? Getting it Wrong Could Cost You

Underlying an innovative culture driven by an innovative leader is innovativeness. Innovativeness drives business growth by increasing innovation opportunities.

Ideascale2019-09-04T07:29:54-07:00September 11th, 2019|Categories: Leadership, Strategies|Tags: business development, business growth, Communication, Competition, customer experience, cx, goal setting, Innovation Management, innovative people, innovativeness, leadership, management, team building, understanding competition, understanding innovation|

A Strategic Approach to Starting a Successful Innovation Program

I’ve recently been advising a range of leaders in how to start successful innovation programs. A couple are relaunches of efforts that were abandoned in the past, and others are starting from scratch in organizations (and sectors) that are more comfortable with the status quo.

Ideascale2019-07-02T14:24:42-07:00July 3rd, 2019|Categories: Front End of Innovation, Strategies, Support for SMEs|Tags: defining innovation, front end of innovation, goal setting, impact, innovation champion, Innovation Management, innovation metrics, innovation program, Innovation Strategy, innovative people, measuring innovation, metrics|

5 Things that Are Slowing Most SMBs Down

On your path towards success, your business will encounter numerous bumps, however, some of these problems tend to hold your business more than others. Most of the time, the entrepreneurs behind these SMBs are first-timers, which means that they lack the necessary experience to recognize the gravity of the situation in the given moment.

Ideascale2019-04-30T16:55:11-07:00October 16th, 2018|Categories: Strategies|Tags: diversify, Failure, goal setting, innovation success, online presence, short-term goals, small business, SMB, smbs|

5 Tips to Build a Strong and Successful Team

You may be the mastermind behind the business idea that has led to establishing your company, but your employees are the backbone of its success. No brand, no matter how necessary it may be, is immune to failure caused by poor internal structure and leadership.

Ideascale2019-04-30T12:51:03-07:00August 15th, 2018|Categories: Strategies|Tags: Communication, diversity, Employee Engagement, employee training, goal setting, hiring, hiring practices, hiring process, HR, knowledge sharing, learning options, learning programs, mentor, strategy, talent management, team assets, team building, transparency, Transparent communication|

The Key Challenges of Government Innovation

Last month, leaders in public sector innovation gathered to discuss ways of crowdsourcing new solutions to longstanding problems at IdeaScale’s Open Nation DC. Speakers from a range of agencies as diverse as the FDA and the US Coast Guard presented best practices on creating actionable change in government.

Rob Hoehn2019-04-30T12:33:35-07:00May 21st, 2018|Categories: Strategies|Tags: Collaboration, collaborative innovation, Communication, communications, goal setting, government, government innovation, idea management, IdeaScale, Ideation, incentives, innovators, milestones, open nation, outreach, public sector, public sector innovation, regulation, resource allocation, results|

The Constant Tension Between Managing Innovation vs. Managing Risk

Managing innovation is a big role that puts a lot of weight on the shoulders of management teams. Depending on how much a company cultivates an innovative culture and environment, innovative ideas either go through chains of command, or are workshopped in specific departments.

Ideascale2019-04-23T12:20:58-07:00March 29th, 2018|Categories: Strategies|Tags: company culture, cyberscurity, evaluating ideas, goal setting, Ideation, Innovation Culture, Innovation Management, Innovation Strategy, management, recognition, risk assessment, risk management, risk-taking, small business, smbs, Technology, vision, workplace|

Why Outsiders ‘Think Different’ & How to Spot Them

Conformity may be overrated. Most innovators really do "think different." Learn to spot them, and what they can teach us!

Ideascale2019-04-23T12:22:44-07:00March 28th, 2018|Categories: Strategies|Tags: conformity, Creativity, extrovert, goal setting, innovation horizons, innovation talent, innovation training, innovative people, inspiration, intrapreneur, introvert, leadership, outsiders, personality types, status quo|

7 Innovative Approaches to Educating Your Team

Innovation can’t happen without education and inspiration. Stagnation is the absence of creativity, and far too many teams aren’t using education as a way to keep the fresh and creative ideas flowing.

Ideascale2019-04-23T13:03:48-07:00March 14th, 2018|Categories: Strategies|Tags: case study, Communication, education, expertise, goal setting, knowledge sharing, knowledge transfer, learning, Teamwork, training, training program|

Improving Communication for a More United Workforce

Many companies around America struggle with communication between the management, the employees, and every level for that matter. Unfortunately, bad communication can lead to lower production and even conflict within the company, squandering sales and hurting reputation.

Ideascale2019-04-23T13:09:06-07:00March 10th, 2018|Categories: Strategies|Tags: Collaboration, Communication, company culture, employee engagment, goal setting, growth strategy, motivation|

How Great Managers Can Drive Employee Engagement

Are your employees underperforming? This happens even to star employees when they don’t feel motivated to do their job anymore. Luckily, great managers can drive employee engagement by reconnecting with their workers. To boost engagement, you must find out what drives the people to do their best job every day.

Ideascale2019-04-23T13:15:23-07:00March 7th, 2018|Categories: Organization & Culture|Tags: Communication, decision making, Employee Engagement, employee recognition, expectations, goal setting, knowledge sharing, leadership, learning program, management, recognition, strengths, training|

Can Everyone Be Innovative?

Innovation is an integral part of many organizations today, and for good reason: it helps companies stay agile, relevant, and evolving. However, innovation is often difficult to achieve—or is even met with resistance.

Ideascale2019-04-24T07:37:33-07:00September 12th, 2017|Categories: Enabling Factors, Organization & Culture|Tags: Collaboration, Communication, company culture, Creativity, Employee Engagement, goal setting, idea implementation, idea management, Innovation Culture, innovation lab, innovation psychology, innovation skills, innovation team, innovation training, innovative people, Open Innovation, Stakeholders, vision|

A Commitment to Diversity is a Commitment to Innovation

The more you allow disparate ideas to mingle and collide, the more you maximize your chances for true innovative thought to emerge. Learn all of this and more in a complimentary white paper about why innovators want to nurture workforce diversity.

Rob Hoehn2019-04-24T07:38:52-07:00September 11th, 2017|Categories: Organization & Culture|Tags: Communication, culture, deadlines, diversity, Employee Engagement, employee retention, equality, goal setting, idea management, ideas, Ideation, innovation, innovation team, retention, team building, Teamwork|

Are Legacy Approaches to Talent Inhibiting Your Innovation Efforts?

The legacy approach to talent selection involves matching education, length of experience and functional skills to the role. All of this makes sense as a baseline, and for well-established professions. But, we argue, selecting talent for innovation requires a whole new approach. Companies must recognize specific innovation skills that drive business outcomes. Yet today, most lack the tools to do so.

Ideascale2019-04-24T07:54:40-07:00August 8th, 2017|Categories: Innovation Psychology, Organization & Culture|Tags: Collaboration, Communication, connection, creation, creativitiy, disruption, disruptive innovation, drive, Employee Engagement, employee recognition, employee satisfaction, goal setting, hiring, HR, human resources, in-depth article, innovation metrics, innovation psychology, innovation skills, leadership, measuring innovation, return on innovation, ROI, talent, talent management, team building, Teamwork, thinking, value|

Where to Start with Innovation? Begin by removing the Barriers

Surveys show that the large majority of senior executives see innovation as critical for their businesses but what if you want to make your organization more agile and innovative where should you start? You could launch a big initiative with grand statements, training classes and an ideas scheme but you tried all those last year and they fizzled out. It is better to begin with a brutally honest assessment of what is preventing innovation from happening today.

Ideascale2019-04-24T08:44:17-07:00May 24th, 2017|Categories: Enabling Factors, Strategies|Tags: Agile, brainstorming, budget, company culture, corporate strategy, Failure, goal setting, Ideation, innovation, innovation blockers, Innovation Culture, innovation process, Innovation Strategy, innovation training, learning program, processes, risk aversion, risk management, siloing, strategy, time management, vision|

Considering International Expansion? Get Ready To Think Outside Your Comfort Zone

Globalization is great for business: it opens up new markets and allows businesses to bring in revenue and talent from all over the world. However, the first steps into international expansion can be fraught with growing pains, forcing companies to waste time and money on efforts that don’t gain any traction in foreign markets. To avoid this, company leaders have to get ready to embrace change and innovation outside their normal comfort zone. Here’s why it’s important to get comfortable with discomfort when you’re considering international expansion.

Ideascale2019-04-24T08:54:09-07:00May 16th, 2017|Categories: Innovation Psychology, Strategies|Tags: business development, comfort zone, decision making, Failure, flexibility, globalization, goal setting, goals, international expansion, lessons learned, market research, scaling, strategic planning|