INNOVATION & CREATIVITY

HOW TO MOTIVATE AND INSPIRE INNOVATION

Developed for FASSET by SynNovation Solutions

Workshop Objectives

Part 1

To create awareness and understanding of the key factors that promote – or could prevent – innovation and creativity in a business.

Part 2

To equip delegates with proven practical skills and tools to foster innovation in their own firms, and in those of their clients.

INNOVATION & CREATIVITYPart 1 : Awareness and Understanding

DEFINITIONS, BENEFITS, THINKING STYLES AND CLIMATE

WHY, WHAT & HOW OF INNOVATION

Workshop overviewPart 1 : Why, what and how of innovation• Definitions and thinking styles• Benefits of innovation• How to foster innovation : Climate and behaviours• Ground rules• Overview of key creativity and innovation approaches

Part 2 : How to get and grow new ideas • Idea generation : Ground rules and tools• Selection of ideas• Idea development : Ground rules and tools

Conclusion : Taking this back to business• Systems approach to integrate innovation

Definitions of Innovation & CreativityBUZZ SESSION

• In 2s or 3s – discuss how you would define Innovation

• What is the link between innovation and creativity?

Innovation is people creating value by implementing new ideas.

Innovation: the creation of business value through the development and implementation

of new ideas.

Some definitions of Innovation

"Innovation is creativity with a job to do“. John Emmerling

“The successful exploitation of new ideas” - DTI in UK

“People doing new things, things they have not done before” – taking risks in business, community and personally….

Some more definitions of Innovation

Vincent Nolan : This leaves a great deal unsaid -

“like defining Reproduction as ‘the birth of healthy babies’ which, while accurate, leaves out a lot – the exhilaration of the conception process (including the unsuccessful attempts), the nurturing and monitoring of the incubation process, and the upheaval and pain of the delivery process.

Defining Innovation & Creativity

Creativity – • mainly in the fields of the arts? • any kind of novel ideas we get

Innovation – • selecting new ideas with potential • developing them so you can make them happen

“The trick is not the inventive idea: discoveries which will set the world alight are a dime a dozen. The trick is co-

ordinating the 101 little things that make an idea happen. Think of the percentage of boardroom decisions that

never get further than the minute book”. Clem Sunter & Chantell Illbury

Levels of Innovation

Continuous improvement • Quality Assurance, ISO 9000

Incremental, Adaptive

• Improve systems that already exist• Better, faster cheaper • "Market Pull" Innovation

Radical, Breakthrough• New technologies, new business models• Breakthrough businesses • "Technology Push" Innovation.

The 2 worlds of thinking

Buy-inOPERATIONAL CYCLE

INNOVATIONCYCLE

Thinking is

Analytical FamiliarOperationalIn the present

Thinking is

Creative DiscoveringExperimentalFuture oriented

ProceduresRules

Routine

Known solutions

Speculate

Select few ideas to develop

Various possible solutions

Refine

Decision

PilotsReview

SuccessPro

blem / Opportu

nity

Laws

Problem SolvingAnalytical vs. Creative

Analytical Problem = deviation from

the norm

Requires analysis

Fixing what went wrong

One, “right” solution often obvious once identified

Requires in-depth knowledge of the problem

Problem = gap between where you are and where you want to be

Creative

About a future state – analysis of the past does not really help

Creating a new solution

Solution not immediately feasible or obvious

Little knowledge of the problem is needed

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Part 1 Why, what & how of InnovationOutcomes of Part 1

By the end of this session participants should be able to

• Identify the benefits of innovation to their businesses• Identify what they need to do more of to succeed with innovation• Identify how to implement known strategies that support

innovation • Demonstrate awareness of the behaviours that help or

hinder innovation• Demonstrate that all have the ability to innovate and how

little time it takes

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The benefits of innovation

Research by Synectics in the USA and DTI in

the UK has shown:

– 80% of companies say that innovation is important for future success

– Only 4% of companies say they are good at making innovation happen

INNOVATIVE STARS

HIGH PERFORMING companies who have successfully INTEGRATED innovation and creativity into their way of thinking and behaving - into daily business practices

SPECTATORS

Firms SAY innovation is important but do not back that view up with action. Often avoid formal innovation programmes and are reluctant to look for outside ideas and perspectives

The benefits of innovation

BUSINESS RESULTS

• Increase in sales (%): 11 vs 5,7

• Increase in profits (%): 51 vs 14

• Increase in market share (%): 59 vs 27

• Employee retention (1-5): 3,9 vs 3,4

• Employee satisfaction (1-5): 3,5 vs 2,6

• Rating of service quality (1-5): 4,1 vs 3,4

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INNOVATION STARS• 83%

• 68%• 68 %• 55%• 48%• 66%• 79 %

• 75%

• 3,9• 3,9

SPECTATORS• 35%

• 25%• 19%• 27%• 30%• 45%• 42%

• 36%

• 2,9• 2,4

How to foster innovationWHAT THEY DO DIFFERENTLY

ACTIVITY• Use complete recognised process for

creative problem-solving • Formal idea generation programme• Formal Innovation programme • Use of designated highly skilled facilitators• Use of outside consultants• Using suggestion boxes• System to reward individual innovation and

creativity• System to reward team innovation and

creativity• Leaders work together (1-5)• Break down barriers between different

functions (1-5)

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• CEO involved in innovation and innovation reflected in policy/mission

• Place importance on managing change

• High importance on cross-functional communication

• Open to ideas from outside

• Emphasis on talking to customers

• Formal programmes for idea generation innovation and problem-solving

• Invest in R&D

• Reward individual creativity and innovation

• Spend lots of time in productive meetings with innovative results

How to foster innovationWHAT STARS DO IN COMMON

INNOVATIVE STARS

HIGH performing companies who have successfully INTEGRATED innovation and creativity into their daily business practices

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Strategies to succeed at innovation

EXERCISE 2

Research has recommended that the following strategies could assist organisations to become more successful at innovation.

– Encourage team work and open communication– Ensure meetings are more productive and creative– Create formal innovation programmes to create and develop ideas– Look for ideas from external sources

Discuss what you think can be done to implement ONE of these in your firm/s

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Strategies to succeed at innovation

Encourage team work and open communication• Encourage interaction between different divisions, reduce “turf” • Overcome communication barriers between functions• Allow everyone to be heard• Give constructive feedback• Encourage cross-functional teams, rotate jobs.

Ensure meetings are more productive and creative• Plan meetings and set goals and time lines• Use ground rules to create a positive climate• Focus on doing “new” or “undoable” things• Get different perspectives

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Strategies to succeed at innovation Create formal innovation programmes to create and develop new ideas• Have a shared process for creative problem-solving • Train staff in innovation skills at various levels • Have formal idea generation programmes • Have formal innovation programmes and plans / structures to implement• Have designated facilitators for idea generation and development• Have a system for recognising innovation

Look for ideas from external sources • Successful financial companies in other countries• Successful firms – large or small – in other industries or professions in

SA• Your clients • Customer satisfaction information

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Supportive internal environment,

characterised by management support,

rewards for CE and autonomy of employees

Supportive internal environment,

characterised by management support,

rewards for CE and autonomy of employees Degree of entrepreneurship

of an enterprise, reflected in the innovative, risk-taking

and proactive orientation of an enterprise

Degree of entrepreneurship of an enterprise, reflected in the innovative, risk-taking

and proactive orientation of an enterprise

Munificent environments, filled

with technological opportunities, demand for new products and

dynamic changes

Munificent environments, filled

with technological opportunities, demand for new products and

dynamic changes

Within control of management

Factors that promote innovation and entrepreneurship in SA companies

Study in 315 JSE listed & ITC companies – Retha Scheepers

From the King III Code, 2009

Innovation, fairness, and collaboration are key aspects of any transition to sustainability –

• innovation provides new ways of doing things, including profitable responses to sustainability;

• fairness is vital because social injustice is unsustainable; and

• collaboration is often a prerequisite for large scale change.

• Collaboration should not, however, amount to anti-competitiveness.

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Strategies to succeed at innovation

EXERCISE 2

Research has recommended that the following strategies could assist organisations to become more successful at innovation.

– Encourage team work and open communication– Ensure meetings are more productive and creative– Create formal innovation programmes to create and develop ideas– Look for ideas from external sources

Discuss what you think can be done to implement ONE of these in your firm/s

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Who can innovate

• Most people have simply unlearnt their creative thinking ability

• It requires the right environment to re-access creativity

Anyone has the creative thinking ability that can lead to innovation

Creating the climate for innovationT

ota

l En

erg

y of

In

div

idua

l/Te

am

Climate

Threatening

AdversarialNeutral

CooperativeSupportive

Energy required foremotional survival

Energy available fortask and success

Looking after selfChallenging othersProtecting own turf, defensive

Trusting, open-mindedSharing, encouraging others

Building on others’ ideas

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Positive behaviours

Increase chances of success

AcceptConnect withJoinBe openBuild on itSpeculate along withShare the riskListen

approximately

Paraphrase

Deal as an equal

Eliminate rank/status

Give up rights to punish/discipline

Take on faith

Suspend belief

Assume it can be done

Share the burden of proof

AcknowledgeGive creditProtect vulnerable beginnings

Be attentiveListenBe interestedShow approvalGive early support

Be optimisticSee value in

Focus on what is going for idea

Take responsibility for understanding

Waste no energy on evaluating earlyJump to favour-

able conclusions

Set up win/winMake it no lose

Support conclusions

Value the learning of mistakes

Use ambiguity

Negative behaviours

Reduce chances of success

Put burden of proof on othersAsk questionsCross examineGive no feedbackBe non-committal Put on a stone face

Make no connections

Assume no value

Be dominantCommand Threaten/ warnOrderDemand

Be impatient

Nitpick

Interrupt

Be bored

Play devil’s advocate

Pull rankGet angryScareBlame

Act distantDo not ListenBe inattentive Do not joinUse silence against

Be pessimisticPreach /moralise Be judgementalBe criticalDisapprove

Point out only flaws

MisunderstandDisagreeArgue or challenge

React negativelyDiscount / Put downBe cynical/scepticalCorrectInsist on early precision

Be competitive

Name call /make fun of

Set up win/lose

“No ??s” applies mainly in Creative Cycle

Be aware: Questions can * make people defensive

* hide ideas* get you in the “hole”

YOU NEED LESS INFO THAN YOU THINK… NO NEED TO BE EXPERT

How to limit, manage questions at work

Therefore* Limit why? questions* Tell people the thought behind the question, and what info you need* Paraphrase to check understanding

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Creating the climate for innovation

Ground rules to create a climate for creative meetings

• Assume positive intent • Handling of questions and information

- Avoid questions that get you in the “hole”

- Paraphrase for understanding

- Give a brief description of task • Find value in ideas – every idea has merit• Recognise and build on ideas• Suspend judgement – own & others’ ideas, anything goes • Share the airtime

Overview of leading creativity and innovation approaches

• Brainstorming – Osborne• Buffalo Approach – Creative Problem-solving• Synectics – George Prince & Bill Gordon• Edward De Bono – “Six hats”• TRIZ – Technical approach based on key factors• Michael Hicks – Comparing 3 key approaches• Many websites with new developments and examples

Links between innovation, diversity, creative behaviours and leadership

• Emotional, Social and Cultural intelligence• Diversity – far more than culture, gender and race • Ubuntu culture – Respect, Recognition, Relationships • Transformational v/s Transactional leadership• Thoughtful and responsive v/s Forceful and directive

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Ground rules for classical brainstorming

Principle 1:

Suspend judgement: Evaluate ideas later, not during brainstorming

• No criticism – verbally, nonverbally, or in your own head

• Freewheel – Anything goes: impossible, immoral, illegal, irrelevant

Principle 2: Quantity will result in quality• Go for quantity of ideas: Keep up the pace • Hitch-hike: Give credit and build on others’ ideas. • Give others air time

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Where are creative ideas born?

Buzz session

Where/when do you get your best ideas or do you feel your most creative ideas are born?

• Bed, Bar, Bathroom, Bus • Give your ideas a “home”

Ideas can flourish in an environment… …. where judgement is suspended.

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Where do we get creative ideas?

SOURCES OF IDEAS

• Identify places and people that trigger bright ideas for you• Keep an ideas book, review from time to time• Read, use, innovation websites & newsletters (see resource kit) • Keep magazines or pictures handy• Read / keep magazines on topics you know nothing of – fresh

perspectives• Include other functions, “naïve” resources in your firm in discussions

Creative Ideas come from building links between……. seemingly dissimilar objects, functions or worlds.

INNOVATION & CREATIVITY Part 2 : Practical approaches

IDEA GENERATION & DEVELOPMENT

HOW TO GET & GROW NEW IDEAS

Workshop Objectives

Part 1

To create awareness and understanding of the key factors that promote – or could prevent – innovation and creativity in a business.

Part 2

To equip delegates with proven practical skills and tools to foster innovation in their own firms, and in those of their clients.

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Part 2 – How to get & grow ideasOutcomes of Part 2

By the end of this section learners should be able to

• Identify and use sources for new ideas• Identify and use tools and rules to generate ideas• Demonstrate that even ridiculous ideas can have merit• Identify and use tools to develop ideas• Demonstrate knowledge of what tools to use for various

tasks and situations         

SynNovation Approach

IdeaGeneration

Idea generation (unfocused)

SelectionIdea selection (on intrigue)

Development

of ideaIdea development

(focused)

Basic parts of the process

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Idea generation: Ground rules

GROUND RULES FOR IDEA GENERATION

• Learn to listen for ideas

• Phrase ideas so everyone knows an idea is coming

• Don’t judge ideas – verbally, or in your head, others’ ideas, or your own

• Quantity will produce quality during idea generation sessions – So have many ideas, and record ALL

Tools to generate & develop ideas

Lateral thinking

Wish-thinking

Comparisons & differences

Linking different worlds

Constructive evaluation

There is nothing in a that tells you

it's going to be a

... Buckminster Fuller

Idea Development Rules & Tools

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Selection of Ideas

Low

HighLow

HighLow

HighNEWNESS

FEASIBILITY

PERSONAL INTRIGUE

Typical brain storming vs. Innovation

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Idea development: Ground rules

• Don’t judge ideas verbally or in your head – too early

• Select based on newness/ fascination rather than on feasibility

• First see the value in ideas

• Use concerns for direction – put concerns as “how to…”

• Combine with “linking different worlds”, tools of Comparisons and Differences, if you get stuck finding new ways of doing things, for Actions to address Concerns, or for activities like “communication”, “getting buy-in”

Summary – Taking this back to workPart 1 : Why, what and how of innovation• Innovation benefits go far beyond better business• Use positive behaviours and ground rules to build an

innovation-friendly climate• Management support, autonomy and reward are key

Part 2 : How to get and grow new ideas • Basis for creativity and innovation is seeing connections

where there seem to be none• Use ground rules and tools, open-mindedness• Select on newness rather than feasibility

Back to business• Model positive behaviours to encourage innovation• Systems approach to integrate innovation into strategies

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Summary of tools and where to use them

Idea generation• Wish-thinking – for any situation, more so with customer

or future oriented tasks• Lateral linking – to improve products or services• Linking different worlds and comparisons – to improve

the way things are done

Idea development• Constructive evaluation – to evaluate and develop any

idea (whether feasible or not) – to turn into action plan • Linking different worlds – to gain fresh perspectives on

an “action” identified in constructive evaluation, for example communication, finding funding, promotion

From Ideas to Action Plans – Example Suggested Action No.

ACTIONS – KEY WORDS WHO WITH WHOM WHEN

2. & 5. Survey client needs 

     

3. & 8. Explore possibility of branch office 

     

4., 6. & 7. Use Intranet to improve in-house communication 

     

7. Develop induction plan for new staff 

     

IntegratedInnovation

Programme

What you doEnabling strategic

innovation, through creativity

Why you do itEnergising

people and ideas, fostering climate

How you do itOptimising operations

and systems, for implementation

What you needDeveloping, enabling

individuals,through autonomy, skills

& knowledge

A systems approach to innovation

Integrating Innovation in the organisation strategy An open Innovation Programme & Change Management System

Implementation Process & Measuring ROI In Innovation (ROIII)

5. IMPLEMENT

Select quick-win sites for pilots, and

cascade the system through all levels

Phase 5

IMPLEMENT

Phase 1

TEAM

1.TEAM

Deciding who

will drive innovation

through organisation

Phase 3

DEVELOP

SKILLS

2. DEFINE & DESIGN

Measure current status.What system needs to do for the organisation.

Initial programme plan

Phase 2

CONSULT & DEFINE

Phase 4

DEVELOP SYSTEM

4. SYSTEM & ACTION

Activities & systemsfor sustainableinnovation, & tomeasure ROIII

Phase 6

REVIEW & CELEBRATE

6. CELEBRATE

Measure, review results.ROIII, Reward.

Celebrate achievements

and improvements

3. TRAININGPractical, participative

innovation skills, tools & groundrules

on various levels,

Empower individuals

INNOVATION & CREATIVITY

Thank YouFasset Call Centre

086 101 0001www.fasset.org.za

Developed for FASSET by SynNovation Solutions