(Newswire.net — March 19, 2018) — No matter the city, country, or continent where you work, there’s one thing that every business pushes for—innovation. Innovative ideas keep businesses relevant, help them appeal to customers, and can even rocket an unknown company to instant success, if it’s a major, game-changing idea. But the problem is, too many businesses keep throwing around this buzzword without making much progress.
Recent trends in business have shown higher rates of innovation among American businesses than companies in most other countries. Look at companies like Apple and Google; they’re both leaders in innovation, and both American-based businesses. So what innovation trends are keeping the United States ahead in the innovation game, and how can UK businesses learn from their business habits? Here are 3 trends you should consider following.
Consider Innovation Partnerships
While UK businesses tend to keep all innovation efforts within their own business, American businesses have begun to look into what they often call “innovation partnerships.” In this sort of arrangement, companies partner with other businesses in different fields to help drive the creation of new technology and implementation of fresh ideas.
Frequently, these partnerships are between more established businesses who have the means to fund an innovative product, and a fresh startup who has a unique idea but no means of pursuing it. This model has been so successful for so many businesses that there are entire companies dedicated to forming these partnerships—almost like a Match.com for the business world.
If you’re struggling to generate innovative ideas within your company, consider looking outside, and search for innovation partnerships to help foster your business’s growth.
Try a Hackathon
Hackathon is a new word that has risen to the surface in the American business world, and it’s one that is catching on fast. If you haven’t yet heard of a hackathon, these are essentially organized brainstorming sessions, but on a much larger scale than your average meeting.
For most hackathons, entire departments will shut down for days at a time, and the business will run with a skeleton crew for day-to-day operations while any excess employees dedicate themselves to generating ideas and fleshing them out into workable business plans.
So what makes a hackathon more successful than your average brainstorming session? For one thing, your employees are given permission to set aside their other duties and focus solely on ideas for improving the company. This allows them to give their full attention to creating innovative ideas and projects. Additionally, it brings together members from every team throughout the business, allowing people with different perspectives to bounce ideas off one another until something rises to the surface.
Google holds hackathons on a regular basis, and they have had several products and process improvements arise from these sessions. Consider giving it a try in your business, and start organizing your first hackathon.
Have a Formal Innovation Program
More and more American businesses are creating formal innovation programs to gather input and test ideas from every member of their teams. From Walmart to Starbucks, these companies are implementing organized (and often incentivized) programs that encourage every employee to contribute to the business’s growth.
Of course, building an innovation program from scratch can take a lot of time and effort, which is why there are tools out there to simplify the process. You can use idea management software to create an innovation program for your company that is simple and effective, and doesn’t take a lot of time or investment to create. Over time, you can build upon this program to make it more robust, or to customize it to your business’s needs.
However you go about it, implementing these 3 trends in your business can help you to see higher rates of innovation throughout the company.