Innovation – Shaun Coffey

January 10, 2021January 11, 2021

INNOVATION = ideas SUCCESSFULLY applied

What is innovation? This is a question we hear often and the answer is often shrouded in myth and described as magic. It is more often than not describe in overly complicated terms, yet is by nature a simple concept.

The following definitions are a useful starting point. The first is from the OECD (1994), an organization that includes both technical and organizational aspects in its definition – this is the definition reflected in the national frameworks. Thus, innovation is defined as:

“any new products or processes and significant technological change in products and processes. An innovation has been implemented if it has been introduced to the market (product innovation) or used within a production process (process innovation). Innovations therefore involve a series of scientific, technological, organizational, financial and commercial activities.”

Richards (1985) defines innovation as the process through which new and valuable ideas are put into practice.

The Oxford Handbook of Innovation Management (Dodgson, et. al. 2014) have a range of definitions, best described collectively as “Ideas, successfully applied”.

Innovation would appear a simple concept, and we make it unnecessarily complicated.

References:

Mark Dodgson, David M. Gann, and Nelson Phillips (2014) The Oxford Handbook of Innovation Management Oxford: ISBN: 9780199694945

OECD (1994), The Measurement of Scientific and Technological Activities (‘Frascati Manual’), OECD, Paris.

Rickards, T. (1985), Stimulating Innovation, Frances Printer, London.

January 8, 2021January 9, 2021

Promoting Creativity

Creativity is recognised as a cornerstone to ongoing, successful innovation. It doesn’t just happen.

How can a manager foster creativity?

Gleeson et.al. (1999) propose five principles for promoting creativity in R&D. As they point out, these “are simple principles, indeed stunningly so, given the complexity of the creative process and of the institutional cultures within which R&D operates”. The five principles are:

Goals: Creativity is fostered by setting both creativity and productivity goals but not by prescribing R&D processes to attain them.
Bounded Freedom: Creativity is affected by the psychic balance experienced by the researcher or field participant between what she/he seeks to achieve and what the organisation or group desires her/him to achieve.
Recognition: Creativity is enhanced by reward and recognition, as long as it is experienced as an appreciative and/or informational event and not as a means to control or manipulate.
Social Interaction: Appropriate peer and social interaction is an essential prerequisite to creativity.
Leadership: The development and communication of insightful organisational visions and leadership help foster creativity.

Gleeson, T., Russell, G. and Woods, E. (1999), Creative Research Environments. Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation: Canberra, Australia Report No. 99/128

July 20, 2020July 30, 2020

Industry doesn’t need “pure” research, nor does it need “applied” research.

Industry needs research that will answer its’ questions. What industry needs is research that is appropriate to solve the problem at hand, or exploit the opportunity recognised.

Much is written about the divide between industry and academia, especially when it comes to investment of public funds. Should funding should be provided for pure research, or for applied research?

This is a common, ongoing dichotomy in many debates over research, particularly that funded from the public purse. The reality, however, is that this debate is based on the erroneous assumption that industry benefits only from applied research, and that research directed at assisting industry must be applied.

July 19, 2020July 19, 2020

The Dynamics of Discovery

From Archimedes to Edison, attempts to improve quality of life have dictated a need for advances in science and technology. These advances are now widely understood as the key enablers of increasingly prosperous societies.

Despite this long history, the process of managing the expanding frontiers of new knowledge in a way that will benefit society is a work in progress. This is largely due to the unpredictable nature of scientific discovery most famously illustrated by Archimedes, when, upon stepping into the bath, he suddenly realised that the volume of water displaced was equal to the volume of the submerged portion of his body.

His discovery provided the solution to the previously intractable problem of measuring the volume of irregular objects and led to further advances in assessing the density and purity of precious metals among other things.

In the modern world little has changed in how new knowledge is acquired. However, in an attempt to get the best value for their limited investments, governments have devised processes to manage its discovery, often with sub-optimal effect.