Making Collaborative Innovation Stick

People who practice collaborative innovation commit to transforming their communities and organizations in authentic ways. Through the practice, people realize their potential for leadership by posing the critical questions that matter and by convening peers to pursue the ideas that follow. And, let’s be honest: the practice takes a lot of work. In this article, innovation architect Doug Collins reflects on ways in which people can approach the practice to increase the odds that it persists and proliferates.

External Risks of Innovation Projects

The fact that innovation is a risky business is well-known. But what are those risks? After the identification and the assessment of the internal and hidden risks of innovation projects Altin Kadareja now delves deeper into an exploration of the external risks of innovation projects, those risks that the company can/does not fully control, mostly related to factors external to the company, meaning coming mainly from its environment.

5 key Success Factors to Enable Transformational Innovation within Businesses

Transformational innovation for many businesses is inherently complex and, in many cases, high risk. It can be a big distraction, expensive in terms of cost and resource bleed from other key activities, must be managed carefully and will frequently not be successful. This article explores some key factors to work with when looking for transformational innovation.

New Series of Articles on the Risks Faced by Innovation Projects

Every innovation project starts from an idea or a problem and mostly, all innovation teams do jump immediately to the feasibility study and scenario analysis dedicating little or no time to the assessment of the risks of innovation projects. This series of article represents an extended dashboard of internal, external and hidden risks of such projects in aiding innovation teams throughout their risk management activities. The first article looks deeper into what drives a successful innovation eco-system.

4 Steps for Top Executives to Execute on to Truly Empower Innovation

Why would a company that rose to prominence based on its innovativeness abandon its lifeblood when the founder exists the building? There are many examples of this happening out there. However if they follow in the footsteps of the world’s ‘serial innovators,’ leadership can keep a company’s innovation flame lit without having to bring back the founding CEO.

5 Key Success Principles – the Cure for Innovation Envy

Experience and research tell us five key success principles are seen across the cultures of ‘serial innovators.’ The good news: These characteristics can be adapted for any company, regardless of industry.

How To Foster Greater Collaboration Between Innovators and the IT Department

Success in innovation requires greater collaboration with the corporate IT department, yet in many cases friction between the two leaves innovation managers with tools they don't want to use or IT managers with tools they can't support. How do you get this critical relationship right?

Recalibrating the Innovation Metrics System

In last week's IM article we looked beyond national innovation metrics at how in the French system innovation is stifled by education, culture and systemic factors. Can we recalibrate innovation through national policy? This weeks concluding article looks at how the policy makers should be redirecting their efforts beyond traditional measures.

Immunize your team against the spoilers of creative thinking

Research has shown that people solve problems in a more creative way and turn out work with more creative surprises if they are able to focus their attention on their daily enjoyment and fun that comes from the challenge, and their total immersion in the work.

7 reflection tools for navigating the unknown and exploring new territory

In a world filled with accelerating, unprecedented change, the ability to navigate the unknown and explore new areas is becoming an essential skill, says Michelle James.

Improvisation is key to building a culture of innovation, says Doug Stevenson

By adopting the behaviors and principles of improvisation, organizations can achieve significant and robust cultural change in the direction of innovation, says creativity and improv expert Doug Stevenson.

Making Innovation a Systemic Capability

For innovation to become a core competence and a tangible cultural value, there has to be a substantial degree of internal consistency between processes, metrics, reward structures, rhetoric, and top management behavior. But it is precisely this synchronicity that is lacking inside most companies, says Rowan Gibson.

Getting back on the innovation road after a recession takes time and patience

Companies that really suffered have a long road back to innovating. Rebuilding trust, culture realignment and leadership are the keys.

Improvisation is an essential element of the new paradigm of work, says Jay Rhoderick

What does improvisation have to do with the needs of business today? Plenty, says improv expert Jay Rhoderick, who shares some practical strategies for using it to break out of our rutted thinking and generate new insights.