Do you ever wonder why so many innovative ideas fail? There are several reasons for this, one of which is the fear of failing itself, another is not having the proper idea management software in place. In fact, the latter is one of the greatest reasons of all for innovation failing. Without proper software in place, you will not have a formal framework that people can rely on, and things will start to go wrong.
What Is a Framework of Innovation?
The first thing you have to do is set a framework of innovation. This framework shows people within your organization what they have to do in order to submit ideas, and in order to follow them through the decision making process. An example framework, from start to finish, that is commonly used includes:
- Ideas are generated. Your employees have been encouraged to submit ideas, either on a specific subject or in general.
- Ideas are reviewed. You must have a clear policy in place in terms of how you review your ideas and decide which ones you think can be implemented or not. Think about things such as finances, your strategic goals, and so on. A good software tool can do this for you, as you can teach it the benchmarks for selection.
- Implement the idea. This is where people get to see whether their idea worked or not.
- Recognize that submissions have been made. Once an idea starts to move, you have to make sure that people know what is happening to it. Improvements can be made on it, and you could even ask your staff to come forward with further ideas on how the process can be improved.
An innovation framework is not difficult to set up, and it is even easier to do this with an automated program, as it will ensure that the same process is used time and time again.
Innovation Software
Idea management, or innovation, software is a program that enables people to share their ideas, usually online or through the intranet. All people across the organization, from the janitor to the CEO, need to be able to access it and use it. Because the process is automated, it is very easy to put a formal framework in place as well. In addition, using this type of software will enable you to better organize the ideas that have been submitted, and to implement the ideas that you like. While different developers have different features in their packages, you will usually find at least:
- An ability to section the different topics that you want to gather ideas for.
- A website that you can customize so that ideas can be submitted.
- A form of collaborative area, such as a forum, where ideas can be discussed.
- Clear processes for workflow, evaluating and reviewing the various ideas.
Why all the Formality?
When you have a formal framework for innovation, it encourages more people to take part in it. It is also a lot more efficient, as well as more transparent and inclusive. To get the most out of innovation management ideas, having a framework in place is simply best practice.
