Upcoming Radio Show Event - Disruptive Solutions Mindset 101 on Coffee Break with Game-Changers Radio LIVE Wednesday, August 16, 2017 at 8 am PT / 11 am ET. Disruptive Solutions Mindset. Listen live. Please join us as Denise Fletcher, our Chief Innovation Officer, will be a guest speaker on the Coffee Break with Game-Changers radio show, hosted by Bonnie D. Graham. ...
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We often find that our prospects and clients are amazed that our innovation software platform is a powerful ideation collaboration software, killing 3 or more birds with one software....
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People are territorial by nature, protective of their homes, job duties, and relationships. We don’t like others infringing on areas we have claimed as our own. Companies are organizations of people working toward a common goal. As a human endeavor, the corporation’s culture embodies human traits including a suspicion of outsiders and fierce protectionism of its entrenched systems. Unfortunately, these typical business characteristics inhibit the organization achieving true open innovation. The Open Innovation/Traditional Corporate Culture Clash Traditional business culture is founded on specific beliefs: No one can do it better than we can. Everyone has a job and job title and need to stay within their roles. Data silos organize information and protect sensitive information. With few exceptions, how we’ve always done it is just fine so why change it. Our processes are secrets to be protected from outsiders. Innovation and market response is important, but it’s more important that we control...
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Innovation Through Competition: Effective Innovation Systems Encourage Ideation Whether the focus is on product development, service delivery, customer satisfaction, or market share capture, competition drives a company to improve its performance. Taking this to the next level, effective competitive systems encourage outstanding innovation, by allowing the best and brightest to tackle an organization’s biggest challenges. Internal Competitions Creating an internal competition is an excellent way to motivate your workforce to develop innovative solutions and new business opportunities. The most common structure is to form teams which compete to develop concepts, often working with mentors who provide guidance as needed. The teams present their projects to a panel of judges who select the best innovations for implementation. This process has the advantages of: Encouraging teamwork; Demonstrating trust in internal expertise; and Developing pathways for employees to participate in innovation regardless of job title or department. The significant downside of this process is that it keeps...
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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Enterprise level innovation is the practice of looking beyond the organization’s R&D systems and past its discrete departments, to connect with global collaborators and improve business agility. This practice harnesses the benefits of open innovation to achieve specific enterprise-level goals. Why Enterprise Level Innovation (ELI) Matters The lifespan of large, successful companies is shrinking, and this trend is expected to continue. In 1965, the corporate lifespan of those listed on the S&P 500 was 33 years. By 1990, it shrank to 20 years, and it’s expected to drop to 14 years by 2026. Some of this change is due to mergers and bankruptcies, but a leading cause is market disrupters and innovators. This is a stark reminder of a simple truth: A company will not enjoy longevity in the marketplace without reinventing itself. The reason most businesses fail at this process is that they are not built for delivery or business agility,...
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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Open innovation allows organizations to harness the creative efforts of others, both across the globe and in the office down the hall. The OI process is one that inspires and engages creative thinkers and transforms them into collaborators. While many corporations are establishing OI programs, not all find success. We offer these dos and don’ts as guideposts, avoiding common pitfalls and finding the path to effective OI. DO: Set Goals. Know why you are establishing an OI program and what you want to achieve. Define the problems you want to solve or advancements you want to realize and develop an OI program that supports these goals. Invest in Creativity. Break down internal organizational silos, including job descriptions and departments, and allow meaningful contribution to your projects, regardless of their source. Follow those same principles and engage outside collaborators by looking at the value of the information received rather than who contributed...
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The FEI 2017 Conference will be held in Boston May 8th through 11th, and Ezassi's CIO, Denise Fletcher is participating as a panelist. We are thrilled to have Denise representing us at this exciting and informative event. Denise is one of several internationally renowned innovators who will be speaking at the conference on a wide range of topics that address issues of: Startups and Innovation Consumer-driven Innovation Disruptive Trends and Technology Innovation and Culture Change Experts and Innovation While Denise will have speaking duties at FEI, she would love to meet with people who are excited about innovation as she is, so don’t be shy. If you see her in the hallway, at the receptions, or waiting for a session to begin, come up and introduce yourself for some informal one on one time with this accomplished innovation expert. Registration is open, and the agenda is filled with great opportunities to learn, share experiences, and create...
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The goal of open innovation is to allow organizations to collaborate with external resources to advance their technologies. Through OI, companies can efficiently address product or system needs and increase responsiveness to marketplace demands. Successful utilization of OI includes four essential steps and the right tool to manage them. Crowdsourcing The first step is connecting with external resources to gather and evaluate ideas. You need a strong cyber scouting tool that challenges and engage your target collaborators as well as filters ideas to assure the best concepts are captured. This system should also provide intellectual property protection for both the organizations and the external collaborators. Innovation Integration Organizations must have a system to take select ideas and integrate them into their system. This step is critical to achieving the full benefit of OI, and is one that is the most likely stumbling block. While some companies embrace the concept of OI, they are hesitant...
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Open innovation injects new ideas into an organization by providing the ability for non-employees to submit concepts for consideration. The process relies on a pool of involved and enthusiastic contributors who want to participate in the process. The challenge is how to attract and engage these innovators in a way that sustains their interest and increases the quality of their submissions. Gamification is an excellent tool to achieve this goal. Gamification is the process of transforming tasks or processes into a competitive process to engage users, solve problems, increase productivity, and drive innovation. It encourages ongoing participation, which keeps the open innovation ideas flowing. Gamification Systems The concept of gamification is part of our everyday lives, in that certain systems encourage our active participation. Examples include: Airline Frequent Flyer Programs Real-time Fuel Usage Tracker Apps One Day Sales Crosswalk Countdowns Credit Card Rewards Store Savings Apps Each of these systems gives rewards for participation,...
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Ezassi Provides Practical Workflow Capabilities Have you ever shifted files or cleaned out your inbox files only to discover a great project that has languished, forgotten in the sea of other information? This situation is both common and avoidable. When it occurs on an organizational level, it hinders both innovation and market responsiveness. There is a better way. Open Innovation and Workflow Ezassi is globally recognized for delivering the best OI management tools on the market. We have combined this innovative software with an intuitive, customizable workflow system that: Integrates all project functions on one dashboard; Allows you to track projects from concept submission to product marketing; Establishes and assigns tasks for every phase of concept to product efforts; Includes graphics that lets you see the workflow status with a simple click of a mouse; Gives you the power to customize the workflow to match your systems, and modify them further to address the needs...
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