Introduction
Applying Innovation
By David O’Sullivan and Lawrence Dooley
© Sage Publications 2008
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Applying Innovation
 Innovation is an important force in creating and
sustaining organizational growth.
 Effective innovation can mean the difference between
leading with a particular product, process, or service
and simply following the pack, with the resulting risk
of stagnation and decline.
 Innovation transforms mediocre companies into world
leaders and ordinary organizations into stimulating
environments for employees.
 Innovation is the process of making changes to
something established by introducing something new;
these changes can be either radical or incremental.
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Applying Innovation
 All organizations need to innovate, whether they are
profit or nonprofit.
 Innovation is as relevant to services in a public
hospital as it is for products and processes in a
manufacturing company.
 Innovation takes place throughout an organization,
from management boards and individual departments
to project teams and individuals.
 In today’s global economy innovation is often a
collaborative activity that takes place across extended
organizations and includes suppliers, distributors, and
other strategic alliances.
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Aims
 Understanding key concepts in the theory and process
of innovation
 Understanding how to manage and apply innovation
 Using explicit skills for defining goals, generating
ideas, empowering teams, and monitoring the results
of innovation
 Developing a simple knowledge management system
for managing innovation
 Working effectively as an individual and as a member
of a team
 Presenting, communicating, and promoting innovation
plans
 Applying what you have learned to managing
innovation in any organization
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Symbiosis
 Applying Innovation is about describing
how to systematically deliver innovations
that add value to customers.
 The approach adopted is a symbiosis of
management techniques that include:
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innovation management
strategic planning
performance measurement
creativity
project portfolio management
performance appraisal
knowledge management
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Operate vs. Innovate
How
Organizations
OPERATE ?
versus
How
Organizations
INNOVATE ?
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Name some innovations!
 Products
 Processes
 Services
 Radical
 Incremental
 Long Life
 Short Life
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Macintosh
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PostIt
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Ryanair
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Pencil
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Space Shuttle
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iPhone
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Wave bob
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Toyota Prius
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Charity Gift Cards
A&E Processes
African Water Pump
Sensors
Disruptive Innovation
 Name any innovations that
dramatically disrupted or overturned
an existing technology, product or
service?
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Background
 Innovation creates growth


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Growth
Growth
Growth
Growth
of
of
of
of
turnover and profits
quality and productivity
knowledge
people
 Innovation also destroys
 Organisations that don’t innovate become
obsolete
 Ideas that don’t satisfy customers are
abandoned
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Industry Trends
“A new corporate
model is taking
shape focusing on
creativity and
innovation”
“It isn’t just about
math and science.
It’s about creativity,
imagination i.e.
innovation.”
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Structure
Part
Part
Part
Part
Part
I: Understanding Innovation
II: Defining Innovation Goals
III: Managing Innovation Actions
IV: Empowering Innovation Teams
V: Sharing Innovation Results
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Part I: Understanding Innovation
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Develop an understanding for organizational
innovation
Explain the difference between product, process, and
service innovation
Understand radical and incremental innovation
Understand the reasons why organizations invest in
innovation
Explain the main causes of failure in innovation
Understand a process for managing innovation
Describe the importance of the innovation funnel
metaphor
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Part II: Defining Innovation Goals
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Outline a process for defining innovation goals
Use techniques for conducting environmental analysis
Understand the importance of benchmarking in
innovation
Explain how to develop statements such as mission
and vision statements
Identify stakeholders and their requirements
Describe the process of strategic planning
Outline the process of creating performance
indicators
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Part III: Managing Innovation Actions

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Describe the creativity process
Understand the various sources of ideas used in
innovation
Apply a number of idea generation tools
Identify core aspects of project management
Explain the product development process
Understand how to capture critical data for
innovation projects
Explain the process of project portfolio
management
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Part IV: Empowering Innovation Teams
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Explain the importance of leadership in innovation
Define the structure of innovation teams
Understand how to build a team culture within the
organization
Describe some of the important attributes of virtual
teams
Understand communities of practice
Explore various ways of increasing motivation
Describe a simple performance appraisal system
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Part V: Sharing Innovation Results

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Describe knowledge and how innovation knowledge
can be managed
Understand specific aspects of collaborative portals,
portlets, and workspaces
Discuss how to design and implement a simple
knowledge management system
Explain the relationships between different sets of
innovation information
Describe how organizations can contain a number of
innovation communities
Describe a hierarchy of innovation management
processes or funnels
Describe an approach to presenting and reporting a
dynamic innovation plan
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Innovation Funnel
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Chapters
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Programme
Understanding Innovation
1. Defining Innovation
2. Managing Innovation
3. Processing Innovation
Empowering Innovation Teams
11. Leading Innovation
12. Building Teams
13. Motivating Performance
Defining Innovation Goals
4. Analyzing Environments
5. Defining Objectives
6. Measuring Indicators
Sharing Innovation Results
14. Managing Knowledge
15. Building Communities
16. Extending Innovation
Managing Innovation Actions
7. Creating Ideas
8. Managing Projects
9. Developing Products
10. Balancing Portfolios
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Activities
 Activities in each chapter help you
apply some of the ideas presented to
your own organization
 Your organization can be real or
fictitious and created from your
imagination and experience
 Activities combine into one dynamic
innovation plan for your organization
 Sample Innovation Plans available
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SwitchIt Case
 SwitchIt Manufacturing in Ireland
 Subsidiary of SwitchIt U.S.A.
 Complete the case in Appendix!
Individuals
Name
Andrew Kelly
Breda Mooney
Danny Mulryan
David Noone
Gary O'Halloran
James Fogarty
John Sheehan
Mary Roche
Michael Clark
Stewart O'Neill
David O'Sullivan
Lawrence Dooley
Job Title
IT Analysist
HR Manager
General Manager
Engineering Manager
Training Manager
Purchasing Manager
Quality Coordinator
Finance Controller
Manufacturing Supervisor
Materials Manager
Design Manager
Design Engineer
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Reading
 ‘Applying Innovation’
 O’Sullivan and Dooley
 Sage Publishing, 2009
 Book Resources
 www.owl.ie
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