BQF Innovation BlogBQF Innovation BlogWe review business innovation issues. We discuss creativity, leaderhsip and innovation as part of a special interest group for the British Quality Foundation. 
Articles
Put your Senior People on Innovation Projects
2007-05-30 16:10:00 Many businesses make the mistake of giving innovation projects to junior executives. It seems natural to hand innovation opportunities to enthusiastic and promising upstarts. But generally it is the experienced heavyweights who can overcome all the process and political obstacles that will occur. In September 1999 Lou Gerstner, CEO of IBM, read a line buried deep ... More About: Projects , Senior , People , Innovation , Nova
The World?s Most Innovative Companies - 2007 list
2007-05-22 12:35:00 Businessweek has published its list of the 50 most innovative companies. It is headed by Apple, Google, Toyota, GE and Microsoft. The top European entry is Nokia at 13. There are only two British entries - Virgin (18) and BP (33). The list is voted by Businessweek readers so it is tends to be dominated by ... More About: Companies , World , Innovation , List , The World
Creativity and Innovation Master Class - June 26
2007-05-18 08:15:00 I am running a Master Class on Creativity and Innovation on June 26 in central London. It will improve your innovation leadership skills and give you a range of practical techniques to help generate, evaluate and implement great ideas. Details here. More About: Events
The Innovative Leader
2007-05-07 13:00:00 My new book, The Innovative Lead er, published by Kogan Page is now available from Amazon and all good bookstores. It is written as a series of short, bite-sized pieces with specific advice and techniques for leading innovation, analysing problems, generating ideas, implementing innovation processes, building a creative culture and developing personal creativity. Paul Sloane More About: Innovation , Nova , Leader
Open Innovation - BQF Innovation Unit Meeting
2007-04-26 17:20:00 We had a fascinating meeting on April 20th on the subject of Open Innovation . To paraphrase Henry Chesbrough, Open Innovation is a systematic business model for combining internal and external ideas to make innovation happen. Andrew Gaule explained how the model works and quoted case studies including Tate and Lyle and Proctor and Gamble. Kevin McFarthing, ... More About: Events , Nova , Meeting
Team Roles in Innovation Projects
2007-04-12 11:51:00 Innovation is a team activity, a contact sport. One person may have a great idea but normally the implementation of the idea requires a team. That team needs a mix of skills and attributes in order overcome all the obstacles that get in the way. In a corporate environment the people who are best at ... More About: Projects , Project , Innovation , Team , Role
Springwise - spotting innovation in action
2007-03-31 17:49:00 If you get chance take a look at Spring wise. It has a network of 8000 ’spotters’ who are on the look out for innovative business initiatives. Here are some recent ones on the site. Take a look and see if it gives you some great ideas. Online exchange for parking spaces Peasy.com is an online marketplace for ... More About: Action , Innovation , Spot , Ring
Adopt, Adapt Improve
2007-03-25 14:30:00 Adapting ideas that have worked in one environment and using them in another is one of the most successful of innovation techniques. Let?s look at some examples. In 1916 a young American scientist and inventor called Clarence Birdseye went to Canada as a fur trader. He noticed that people in Labrador kept their food frozen ... More About: Improve , Rove , Adopt , Improv , Prove
Are we receptive to ideas or do we just think we are?
2007-03-16 14:28:00 We carried out a survey over the internet in 2006 and early 2007 to assess attitudes towards receptiveness to new ideas within organizations. There were 203 respondents of whom 82% were from private sector companies and 18% from the public sector. The results indicate that most people consider themselves to be much more receptive to new ... More About: Ideas , Just , Idea , Think
Check your Innovation Index
2007-03-10 06:40:07 If you would like a quick assessment of the creativity and innovation capability of your organisation then please try this quick questionnaire. The average score from past respondents is 22. Please let me know how you score and any comments. It is designed for organisations that employ more than a just a few people. So if you are in a very small company or you work alone, ask yourself this one searching question: What truly innovative thing have you done in the past three months? If the answer is ‘not much’ then you know that you need to sharpen up your act. After all the main advantage of being small is that you can be agile and innovative. Paul Sloane More About: Innovation , Your , Check , Nova , Index
What is the Government?s role in innovation?
2007-03-09 06:40:04 I was at a business breakfast today organised by Editorial Intelligence, NESTA, Friends Provident and Reuters. The topic was ‘Where is Britain’s innovative edge?’ There were some lively contributors and one of the questions that arose was - what role does the government have to play in encouraging innovation and how well is it doing? Can government really help? Or should it just get out of the way? Some people spoke positively in terms of increased government spending on science and Universities and there was praise for the work of Lord Sainsbury. However there was a litany of complaints. These included: Engineering and science undergraduates need remedial Maths on entering University because of dropping standards at schools. Chinese students arriving at our Universities have no such deficiencies. Physics teaching is in crisis and some Physics and Chemistry departments have closed. These are now seen as ‘difficult’ subjects by students. The go... More About: Government , Men , What , Innovation , Hat
April 20th Meeting - Open Innovation
2007-02-20 06:29:02 The next meeting of the BQF Innovation Unit will be on the morning of Friday 20th April . It will focus on the topic of Open Innovation. We will review how you can harness external resources to help drive your innovation. We are fortunate to have an eminent speaker, Andrew Gaule. Andrew Gaule is the founder of the H-I Network (formerly the Henley Incubator), a thought leadership forum comprised of senior executives from some of the world?s leading organisations. He is the creator of several management concepts now in use at organisations such as Unilever, DHL, BOC and the Health Protection Agency: Andrew is the author of ?Open Innovation in Action ? How to be strategic in the search for new sources of value? which includes case studies from H-I Network clients P&G, QinetiQ, Shell, DSM and Tate & Lyle. Andrew has also been a co-author on many H-I Network reports, including: Corporate Venturing; Rewarding Entrepreneurial Talent; Innovation Performance Measurement: Striki... More About: Nova , Meeting
Pay as you go for road use - we need the debate.
2007-02-13 00:23:05 People are being exhorted to object to the government’s proposals on road use pricing. Surely what we need is a sensible discussion not a kneejerk reaction. We need lots of good ideas on transport - it is an area crying out for innovation. But whenever anyone comes up with a proposal, people pour cold water on it. It is easy to find fault with suggestions. But congestion is a pressing problem and we have to do something (or several things) about it before our economy grinds to a halt. I will not be signing the petition. It seems to me that pay as you go has some merit and needs to be explored. We ration most scarce things by price - so why not road use at busy times? At the same time we need to put safeguards in place to protect ourselves against intrusive use of the data that is gathered. My ideas for improving transport and reducing congestion include the following: 1. More roads - yes - more roads with better layouts and more flyovers would help. 2. Better, cheaper, faster ... More About: Debate , Need , Road , The D
Innovation Metrics Survey
2007-02-08 18:19:03 If you work in an organisation with more than 20 employees please complete this Innovation Metric s Survey . It is just 10 questions. The results will be available Feb 13 and I will post the link for them. Thanks Paul Sloane More About: Nova
How receptive are you to new ideas?
2007-02-01 00:13:03 Please take a moment to complete this idea receptiveness survey. It assesses how you receive new ideas and also asks how you think your boss does. Then read the results to date. They make interesting reading. Apparantly we are all much more receptive to outside ideas than our bosses are. Is this accurate or is it a perception that flatters us and criticises our manager? Let me know your thoughts. Paul Sloane More About: Ideas , Idea , New Ideas
Look for the Solution within the Problem
2007-01-25 00:07:03 Two prisoners dug a tunnel from their cell 80 feet to escape from prison. Where did they hide the dirt? This is one of the examples used by Roni Horowitz of the consultancy group SIT to show the advantages of a method called Systematic Inventive Thinking (SIT). The answer is that they hid the dirt in the tunnel. The prisoners stole nylon sacks from the prison bakery and each day they dug the tunnel and put the dirt into the sacks. At cell inspection times they pushed all the dirt bags back into the tunnel and tidied the cell. When the prisoners escaped the guards found a cell full of bags of dirt and an empty tunnel. It is a good example of one of the principles of SIT ? look for the solution within the problem or its environment. The prisoners had very limited resources ? but one of them was the tunnel itself. If we are given unlimited resources to solve a problem then we can always come up with something ? and often it is expensive and over-engineered. When we have to... More About: With , Problem , Look , Solution
Innovation Lessons from 2006
2006-12-31 11:50:01 Innovation Tools has published its annual list of lessons learned. It has contributions from innovative thinkers from all round the world. It contains a wealth of useful advice and comments. You can find it here: Less ons from 2006 Here are a couple of examples: Process and attitude are critical to the success of innovation It definitely needs more than just creativity to make innovation work. You need to have a stage-gate process which guides the idea on a concept level and than into a solution. Without honest top-level commitment you may forget about any innovation initiative right from the start. In the end it is all about mindset and attitude. You may have the right process and great ideas - but without an idea-rewarding mindset and attitude no chance will be made. On an individual level you need to have courage to challenge the existing and your assumptions and the willingness to change for the different. – David Jeggle, Avenue Innovation Development Clear the path for ... More About: Innovation , Sons , Nova , Lesson
Get Outsiders to help you see things
2006-12-12 05:35:01 Philips is moving from a high-volume electronics manufacturere to a design-led, lifestyle technology company. It needs help to get there so it set up a ’simplicity board’. Philips reckoned it needed a fresh perspective from creative types with no ties to the company. So it formed the simplicity board, a group of specialists in health care, fashion, design, and architecture. “Philips was too inward-looking,” says Andrea Ragnetti, Chief Marketing Offier. “To really embed simplicity into the company’s DNA, we needed an element of vision.” You can read the details in this Businessweek article. Often we are so close to our own products that it is difficult for us to see clearly. An outsider can bring a simpler, fresher view. How can you harness the creative input of outisders to improve your innovation? For Philips, the promise of simplicity isn’t just about making products that are easier to use. The bigger challenge is rewiring the e... More About: Help , Outside , Things , Side , Get Out
Co-create to innovate
2006-12-11 17:34:01 Customers are a great source of innovation. Asking your customers gives you incremental ideas. Observing your customers can give you radical ideas. An increasingly powerful third route is co-creating with your customers. Threadless is a fashion company that’s had great success asking people to upload T-shirt designs that site visitors then rate each week. Winning submissions get printed in limited editions, and the creators are rewarded with $750 in cash and $250 in site credit. Those prizes aren’t going to make anyone rich, except maybe Threadless, which can freely reprint successful designs. But it does create opportunities. When the company’s founders needed to hire a graphic artist, they didn’t have to look far. Ross Zietz, a 24-year-old from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, had won eight weekly contests. “They saw what I was capable of through my work for the competitions,” says Zietz, who had also been approached to design T-shirts by others who h... More About: Nova , Create , Inno
Some tips from Google
2006-12-11 17:34:01 We often talk about Googl e being one of the most innovative companies. They are famous for allowing their people to spend up to 20% of their time on any project that interests them. Here is an interview from Time magazine with Google CEO Eric Schmidt in which he reveals some fascinating insights. First the emphasis that Google places on collaboration and secondly the use of questioning. ‘We run the company by questions, not by answers.’ Time Article He talks about some of Google’s big questions and strategic challenges, ‘You ask it as a question, rather than a pithy answer, and that stimulates conversation. Out of the conversation comes innovation. Innovation is not something that I just wake up one day and say ‘I want to innovate.’ I think you get a better innovative culture if you ask it as a question.’ More About: Tips , Some , Irritating
September meeting of the Innovation Unit
2006-12-11 17:34:01 Implementing Ideas Quickly There were 22 delegates at this meeting of the BQF innovation unit. We had an excellent talk from Ian Clarke of Siemens Medical on how they drive innovation. Over 70% of their product portfolio is under 3 years old. One of the metrics they monitor closely is the time to market for new products ? for example a new design of mobile phone went from initial concept to market in just 6 months. There was then a workshop session in which several key topics were discussed and ideas were shared. The main topics reviewed were: ? What is impeding speedy implementation of innovations? ? What is our typical innovation cycle time and how could we improve it? ? What is our approval process for innovation initiatives and is it fit for purpose? On the first topic, the main impediments to speedy implementation included: ? Leadership and top level commitment to the innovation process ? Strategy ? a lack of innovation objectives ? Lack of vision, mission and values for innova... More About: Innovation , Nova , September , Sept , Meeting
Collaborate to Innovate
2006-12-11 17:34:01 Many CEOs now see collaboration as key to their success with innovation. They know they cannot do it all using internal resources. So they look outside for other organisations to partner with. A good example was previously quoted as a weird combination ? Mercedes and Swatch who collaborated to produce the Smart car. Each brought dissimilar skills and experiences to the team. Costa Coffee is a chain of coffee shops which is in fierce competition with Starbucks and Cafe Nero in the UK coffee bar market. It has had considerable success by collaborating. Costa develops concessions with key partners. Current concession partners include coffee stores in Abbey National banks, WHSmiths and Ottakars book stores and Homebase DIY stores. The concession stores are managed by the Costa team who provide high quality coffee and service experience to businesses who want to provide their customers with that little something extra. Customers in Concession stores can relax with a cup of coffee and foo... More About: Borat , Collaborate , Labor , Nova , Rate
Innovation in the Public Sector
2006-12-11 17:34:01 I have just read an interesting report by the National Audit Office entitled, Achieving Inno vation in Central Government Organisations. It was prepared by the public policy group at the London School of Ecomonics for the NAO. It draws on evidence from 125 specific innovation cases in the public sector to asses government poductivity and effectiveness at innovation. Among the findings are ‘There is scope for government to take a more systematic approach to developing innovations by communicating more simply to staff what kinds of innovations are helpful, encouraging counter-cultural thinking and methods for finding innovative solutions, and ensuring that approval and piloting processes are not over-protracted. Departments can learn lessons from the private sector in developing more regular and serial innovations.’ One problem is that the innovation process in central government is top-down with few contributions from lower-level staff. There is also a reluctance to embrac... More About: Public , Nova
Implementing Ideas Quickly
2006-12-11 17:34:01 Are you coming to our event on September 12th? The half day seminar is entitled - How to Implement Idea s Quick ly. You can find details here: Seminar There is good interest in the topic and I expect a healthy audience. Many organisations find that they can generate plenty of ideas but that very few make it out of the other end of the funnel as meaningful innovations. Why is that? What is stopping you from getting more good ideas turned into action? It is time, money, approvals, bureaucracy, fear of failure or something else? Let me know your initial thoughts either by replying to this blog or by emailing me. Your input will help shape what we cover on Sep 12. So thanks in advance. Paul Sloane More About: Men
How good are your brainstorming skills?
2006-12-11 17:34:01 We all think we know how to brainstorm. But there are big differences between a well-facilitated session and a poor one. And the outcomes will show it. One will produce energy, motivation and ideas and the other will leave people feeling frustrated and let down. Try taking the brainstorm quiz here and then let me know if you agree about what makes a good brainstorm and a bad one. The brainstorm quiz regards Paul Sloane More About: Storm , Rain , Your , Stor , Skill
Ideas Schemes Meeting - Jan 17th
2006-12-11 17:34:01 We are holding a meeting of the BQF Innovation Unit on January 17th 2007 in London. It will address the issues surrounding employee suggestions schemes. It is a joint meeting with Idea s UK. Agenda and booking. I will chair the meeting and we have guest speakers from British Gas and Lloyds TSB so it should be a great opportunity to learn how to get the most from employee ideas. If there are some special questions that you want adressed then please let me know. Paul Sloane More About: Meeting , Chem , Jan 1
Setting Metrics for Innovation
More articles from this author:2006-12-11 17:34:01 Most organisations recognise that innovation is critical for survival and success but very few know how to set goals or metrics for innovation. The most common target used is the percentage of revenues derived from new products. This is useful but it is a backward looking measure. It calibrates the success or failure of previous efforts to launch new products. We also need forward-looking metrics that show how well we are doing in filling the pipeline for future revenues. A recent report by the Boston Consulting Group explores these issues and surveys what leading companies are doing in the area of innovation metrics. The report is here: BCG Report They recommend that you need to align your innovation metrics with your strategic goals - but what would you expect consultants to say? More usefully they advise that you set metrics in three separate areas: 1. Inno vation Inputs - measures can include financial resources, people, the number of ideas generated and expected revenues. 2. In... More About: Metrics , Nova , Metric 1, 2, 3, 4 |
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