1. INTRODUCTION
4.2 I NNOVATIVE E NVIRONMENT
4.2.2 Data from the Open-ended Audit Questions
Three open-ended questions were included in the innovation audit:
1. What is most helpful and supportive to you in order to come up with new ideas at work? 2. What in your work environment is hindering you in coming up with new ideas?
3. What specific actions can ECI take to improve the environment for idea-generation?
The answers were coded and divided into the managerial areas of the innovative environment: Innovative Organisation, Innovation Strategy, Innovation Process and Learning. The first open-ended question indicates what the respondents believe is helpful in general when generating ideas, while the two remaining questions addresses ECI particularly in terms of what is hindering and what can be improved with regard to idea generation in the company. More detailed results will be presented in the following sections, taking one question at a time.
4.2.2.1 WHAT IS MOST HELPFUL AND SUPPORTIVE IN ORDER TO COME UP WITH NEW
IDEAS AT WORK?
Out of the 168 employees who took part in the audit, 52 employees responded to this question. The answers were spread over the four managerial areas as Figure 13 displays:
Figure 13: Spread across the managerial areas
The main helpful and supportive items that were addressed in the area of Innovative Organisation: 1. Time: To have time to be innovative and come up with new ideas.
2. Management support: Supportive coaching, guidance and capability of taking decisions and listening to the ideas.
3. Colleague support: The importance of the fellow employees was addressed in terms of team working, listening to ideas and to give constructive feedback.
The main helpful and supportive items that were addressed in the area of Innovation Process: 1. Sufficient processes: Frameworks that support idea generation such as workshops, brainstorming
and other actions that support innovative ideas.
The main helpful and supportive items that were addressed in area of Learning:
1. Sharing knowledge: By evaluating and sharing knowledge, learning by trail and error. 52% 0% 26% 10% 12% 00% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Innovative
Organisation InnovationStrategy InnovationProcess Learning Other
What is most helpful and supportive in order to come up with new ideas at work?
44 The main helpful and supportive items that were addressed, which is categorized as ‘Other’:
1. External: Get inspiration from external factors such as customers or suppliers.
4.2.2.2 WHAT IN THE WORK ENVIRONMENT IS HINDERING EMPLOYEES TO COME UP
WITH NEW IDEAS?
Out of the 168 employees who took part in the audit, 74 employees responded to this question. The answers were spread over the four managerial areas as Figure 14 displays:
Figure 14: Spread across the managerial areas
The main items that hinder idea generation in the area of Innovative Organisation: 1. Time: The work load is heavy, no or little time to be innovative on
2. Management support: Managers that are not willing to listen to or support new ideas
3. Reward system: The company should have a better reward system. If you contribute, you should get a reward.
The main items that hinder idea generation in the area of Innovation Strategy:
1. Missing directives: No clear goals or designated budgets lack of knowledge where the company needs to be innovative and lack of time in good times while lack of resources in bad times.
The main items that hinder idea generation in the area of Innovation Process:
1. Lack of sufficient processes: “No one to talk to” about where to announce ideas, and the “R&D department doesn’t exist in reality”.
2. The “Project Model”: The process is unnecessary complicated and not user friendly. The main items that hinder idea generation, which is categorized as ‘Other’:
1. External factors: Clients and customer demands and their willingness to invest or take risks.
4.2.2.3 WHAT SPECIFIC ACTIONS CAN ECI TAKE TO IMPROVE THE ENVIRONMENT FOR
IDEA-GENERATION?
59% 7% 20% 0% 14% 00% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% InnovativeOrganisation InnovationStrategy InnovationProcess Learning Other
What in the work environment is hindering employees to come up with new ideas?
45 Out of the 168 employees who took part in the audit, 61 employees responded to this question. The answer were spread over the four managerial areas as Figure 15 displays:
Figure 15: Spread across the managerial areas
The main specific actions ECI could take to improve their environment for idea-generation in the area of Innovative Organisation:
1. Time: Allocate time to be innovative. Don’t load everyone up to 100%. 2. Reward system: Reward ideas, make sure the employees know about it.
3. Management support: Dedicate resources, encourage risk taking and accept failure when generating new ideas.
The main specific actions ECI could take to improve their environment for idea-generation in the area of Innovation Strategy:
1. Strategy adjustment: Adjust the strategy to the changing market and customer conditions. The main specific actions ECI could take to improve their environment for idea-generation in the area of Innovation Process:
1. Provide official processes that support idea generation: Organisational slack, workshops, brainstorming, work across department boundaries, a place to store and announce ideas, create a R&D department, multi-cultural teams, idea competitions, campaigns for creativity and innovation.
The main specific actions ECI could take to improve their environment for idea-generation in the area of Learn:
1. Sharing knowledge: sharing of ideas and knowledge across projects, evaluation of projects and training of employees.