How inspiring is your innovation strategy? Take the test
An innovation strategy has different purposes: It’s like a master plan for business innovation. It provides your idea management and your innovation management with a clear direction. It promotes digitalization and the development of digital business models. At the same time, however, an innovation strategy supports the development of an innovation culture. It inspires employees and thus increases your company’s ability to innovate. How convincing is your innovation strategy? You’ll find out in this article. You can evaluate your innovation strategy with a test.
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Have you formulated your innovation strategy positively? Does it show a clear road to the future? A positively expressed innovation strategy takes away the fear of change from employees. It encourages the generation of new ideas and the pursuit of both incremental innovation and disruptive innovation. A motivating innovation strategy triggers proactive actions in your various business areas.
How motivating is your innovation strategy? Of course, there is no doubt that all employees have goals, work hard and do everything they can to achieve them. But what happens when they leave the company? Friday at 4:00 p.m.? Is your heart still beating for the company and your innovation projects? Is your company’s innovation strategy so convincing that everyone’s passionate about it?
Most innovation strategies are complex, numerical and often boring. “We want to increase our company’s return on equity by 25% through innovation.” Or: “Our goal is to bring all operational areas up to benchmark level through process innovation“. Honestly, is your heart attached to this? Is this what drives you forward? Or is it a strategy that is more suitable for business as usual?
- Inspiring innovation strategies appeal to the imagination. They create a mental image in your head that is worthwhile to be achieved. They trigger curiosity and open the way for the future of a company. Everything you’ve considered progressive so far suddenly seems old compared to the fantasy it triggers in your strategy.
- Inspiring innovation strategies spur us on to think the unthinkable. The mental horizon of employees at all levels of the company begins to open; they begin to look for solutions in other areas; they consider, for example, how artificial intelligence can support existing business processes. Inspiring innovation strategies show that looking beyond the end of one’s nose is what is wanted, and really is.
- Inspiring innovation strategies encourage people to overcome mental barriers. Of course, in the end it’s all about turnover and profit. But the dream of the future is in the foreground. For example, the innovation strategy of Daimler states: “Our goal as one of the leading vehicle manufacturers is to become a leading provider of mobility services.” An innovation strategy like that one inspires us to think about solutions and ideas outside the box.
Take the test: How inspiring is your innovation strategy?
How convincing is the innovation strategy you communicate in your company? Answer yes or no to each.
| Yes | No | |
|---|---|---|
| Our innovation strategy is written vividly, easy to understand and attractive. | ||
| It awakens employees’ curiosity for change and transformation. | ||
| It encourages to think the unthinkable and to dare the impossible. | ||
| It appeals to dreams and stimulates the imagination. | ||
| Our innovation strategy is unique and authentic, it is not simply written off somewhere. |
Five times “no”
Your company pursues operational goals, but does not have an inspiring innovation strategy. Employees drive the operational goals of your company or department forward in a structured manner and with the necessary commitment. But assume it is: Your company’s innovation strategy does not ensure that your employees are committed to their work even after work.
Once or twice “yes”
You’ re already on your way. And you have probably already achieved your first minor successes. But still your innovation strategy does not really ignite. Think bigger and more striking! Imagine you were responsible for the front page of a major tabloid. What headline would you formulate about your strategy? Think about how you can describe your innovation strategy more clearly and vividly.
Three to four times “yes“.
Your innovation strategy seems to have a certain persuasive power, but it is not yet perfect. What exactly could you improve? Ask your employees! Talk about how they perceive the innovation strategy. Ask: ” How do you define our strategy? What do you think about it? What does that do to you? What does this strategy mean for your daily work?”
Five times “yes”
Congratulations! Your innovation strategy is convincing! Please make sure that you do not fall into any self-deception. It is often believed that a strategy is convincing. But don’t forget, the bait must taste great to the fish, not the fisherman.
Develop innovation strategies together with employees
Digital solutions such as Innolytics Innovation Software enable a new form of participation: the development of an innovation strategy jointly with employees. For example the German company Gerolsteiner developed ideas for digital processes and procedures using the swarm intelligence of employees. In our article about ideation challenges you will learn how to activate and use the creative potential of your company. Innolytics supports you in inspiring your employees and activate them using state of the art idea management software and innovation management software.
