INNOVATION READINESS ASSESSMENT SM (IRA)

Three common critical barriers that block innovation in 2010

  • Most organizations agree that having a goal for innovation is important for its future success, however many organizations do not align these goals with business strategies. This will cause the level of drive, consistency, and focus of innovation activities to vary from person to person and over time.
  • There are plenty of ideas being generated in organizations. If an organization lacks a holistic approach and process to idea generation (ideation, piloting, and selection) which efficiently aligns ideas to business objectives; innovation will suffer and resources will be wasted.
  • Under promotion of risk taking by organizational governance and a slump in employee engagement, will contribute to the lack of fresh and abundant stream of ideas.


Harnessing and Building Innovation Capability: A Guide by The DeSai Group

Using data from the IRA SM, organizations have uncovered key innovation barriers and strengths that are unique to their business.  This innovation assessment provides a focal point for both short and long term innovation work, allowing your organization to streamline its resources and prepare for unforeseen challenges.

This diagnostic assessment is critical as we cross the threshold into the first quarter of 2010. Many business leaders are faced with a vastly changed business landscape. As the recession continues its "stranglehold" on the economy, leaders are dealing with unexpected business challenges that have not been encountered in decades. Many of these have hampered growth and funding from innovation initiatives that have often begun years in advance.

The important lessons from the past decade have been taught and for many organizations they have been hard learned. As the dust settles, many organizations are still faced with one question: "How can I successfully navigate my business through these uncharted waters and effectively prepare for unforeseen challenges?" Today organizations need to take effective short term actions, while preparing for long term challenges. Here are some questions that all organizations should be asking themselves to stay ahead of the pack:

  • What does your business look like 5 years from now?
  • How will the environment we operate in be different?
  • How can we help our business partners see the changes coming and engage their expertise?
  • What are other organizations doing to adjust to the changing environment?
  • Are our processes and procedures agile enough to adjust to the changes we anticipate?
  • Is our organization really engaged in this thinking, if not, how can we engage more minds?

For many organizations, resources are stretched and it is difficult to invest in both the short and long term. In order to maintain this balance and allow resources to efficiently be allocated to innovation initiatives, an organization needs to narrow their focus.

The DeSai Groups Innovation Readiness Assessment SM (IRA) is comprised of three "swim lanes", which will help your organization prepare for its journey through the uncharted waters ahead. Our research has found that these "swim lanes", Alignment, Insights, & Mobilization must exist for a successful culture of innovation.

Alignment provide insights into how each business unit, department, team and individual sees and understands their role and how it contributes to the overall innovation mandate of the organization.

Insights reflect the importance of idea generation as a systematic process rather than a matter of luck. It begins with the recognition that information from many sources is essential to developing insights that will allow a business to reach the goal of organizational alignment.  In order to gather accurate insights, a business must involve people from all levels of the organization, partners, suppliers, customers, regulators, etc. 

Mobilization reflects the reality that even with strong alignment and a good flow of insights, innovation is only valuable when it is translated into tangible results.  Effective mobilization involves the deployment of sufficient resources, quick and effective decision making, and continuous learning about how to translate innovative ideas into practical application more quickly and successfully over time.

To gain insights into your organizations innovation capabilities, take the consolidated

Innovation Readiness Assessment.