Innovativeness

Innovativeness is a broad concept connecting innovation and creativity of people in organization (innovators). Creativity is used for synthesize and linking knowledge from different fields to create new, interesting ideas, innovation helps using these ideas in practice.

So, in consequence, innovativeness is a characteristic of person or an organization which introduce some new, better idea in some fields. This individual is characterize by a great creativity and cleverness in realization of many tasks and original approach in solving problems.

Innovativeness of creative people

There are much more feature of creative people. Here they are:

• intellectual and artistic abilities - people who in their work are usually creative, on a daily basis are interested in issues of exact sciences. They often improve their interests by undertaking serious problems connected with politics or social issues. They also like reading books and have got a great knowledge in many fields of art. Communing with art stimulate a potential hidden inside the individual,
• interest in their work and aiming for the objective - they are organized and motivated to pursue their targets. They really like their work and feel fulfilled,
• independence of reviews and ratings - creative people never follow blindly behind the group, they have got their own beliefs and they are always faithful to them,
• willing to complex phenomenons - people like them are likely to investigate and hollow the problem till the time they find every useful information or solve the problem,
• perseverance - the majority of creative people are strongly determinate to achieving the target and solving problems. This feature is usually connected with the believing in personal possibilities and faith that ongoing activities bring positive effects,
• need for autonomy - creative people need a plenty of rope and possibility of independent decide. They are not able to subordinate to any superior,
• orientation to a risk - creative individuals are more likely to take a risk and use new, sometimes unconventional methods of work, even if they don't receive the approval of the environment,
• belief in yourself - they are convinced about their value and abilities, they try to care about their image as a person creative and competent,
• tolerance for ambiguous situations - for these group of people there isn't a problem to change their environment suddenly, to exist in new conditions and cooperate whit new staff. Then they feel a big satisfaction that they have got a chance to approve oneself.

Innovativeness of innovators

Introducing some news into an organization isn't such an easy task for innovator. It is possible to highlighted several conditions which contribute to simplify innovator work and let him conducting innovative processes in an efficient way. Here are special conditions which help innovator continue his innovative operations:

• rational planning of innovative activity,
• information and decision making system,
• competence of executive responsible for a problem and his role in concrete phases of innovative process,
• structure of roles in innovative process,
• adjusting the organization structure to content and activities connected with concrete phases of innovative process.

How to be innovative?- techniques of promotion creativity at work

Below, there are presented some techniques which are used for promotion of creativity at workplaces. There aren't a magic means which change anybody who use them into innovator, but help notice a fresh view for a problem and offer some unconventional ideas how to cope with any challenge.

Technique "Tell me, stranger…"

This technique is really useful at the level of detailed analyzing of the problem, at the moment before making a decision. It rely on involving somebody from outside and introducing him a nature of the problem. This person is going to ask many question and the other side should to answer as precisely as it is possible. After asking by "counselor" all the questions and receiving all the answers, in is necessary to ask for precise one, concrete solution. After some time it may prove that this solution is extremely accurate. Even if "counselor" ideas won't be revealing, the time spent on a talk could be really productive.

Technique "Transfer of creative energy to work"

It enable taking challenges with an intensified energy which is taken from analyze of yourself motivation. The exercise should be done in pairs where first person will be a counselor who ask some questions and second person will be a customer answering these questions. Counselor direct the customer asking questions in 4 types:

• What kind of activities do you really like? What makes you happy?
• Why do you like it so much? What is the purpose of this activity?
• How could you change any of your activities at work to make the similar to these which you are interested in ?
• If you ever try to change something, what could you tell about shaping your creativity and efficiency at work?

The exercise helps to define what is the most important for an individual. It also helps to break the routine of daily work and make the human more creative.

Technique "Accidental contribution"

It is the next method using for breaking the routine. It is performed with using a dictionary. It is necessary to define the field of the problem and write it possibly clearly. Then it is needed to open the dictionary randomly, choose a word and wonder if it could help us to find a solution of the problem. The word and ideas connected with it should be written at the sheet of paper. This exercise is also made for stimulate the creativity and let find the fresh view for the situation.

See also:

• Management by innovation

Examples of Innovativeness

• Establishing new systems and processes: For example, introducing a new customer relationship management system that streamlines customer service processes.
• Developing new products and services: For example, creating a new mobile app that helps users save time and money when shopping.
• Enhancing existing products and services: For example, improving an existing mobile app by adding features that make it easier to use.
• Finding new markets and customers: For example, launching a product in a new geographical area that has not been explored before.
• Exploring new business models: For example, creating a subscription-based business model that provides customers with access to a library of products and services.
• Leveraging technology: For example, using artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate processes and increase efficiency.

Advantages of Innovativeness

Innovativeness can bring a number of advantages to organizations. These include:

• Increased productivity due to the implementation of new ideas and technology. This can help reduce costs and increase efficiency.
• Improved customer satisfaction and loyalty. Innovative ideas and products can help customers feel more connected to the brand, creating a stronger relationship.
• Improved employee morale. People are more likely to be happy when they are excited to work on new and innovative ideas.
• Access to new markets. Innovation can help organizations better understand customer needs and develop products and services that appeal to them.
• Increased competitiveness. Companies that are more innovative can stay ahead of the competition and better serve their customers.

Limitations of Innovativeness

Innovativeness has several limitations:

• Limited resources: Innovation requires resources such as time, money, and personnel to develop and execute ideas. When resources are lacking, innovation is limited.
• Lack of collaboration: Innovative ideas are more likely to succeed if multiple stakeholders are involved in their development. When collaboration is lacking, progress is hindered.
• Fear of failure: People may be hesitant to embrace change and try new ideas due to the fear of failure. This can limit the potential of innovation.
• Short-term focus: Organizations may be more focused on short-term results rather than long-term gains, making it difficult to invest in innovation.
• Unsupportive culture: Without a supportive culture, innovation is unlikely to thrive. If a culture does not embrace change and experimentation, innovation is unlikely to occur.

Other approaches related to Innovativeness

Innovativeness is not only about creativity and innovation, but also about other approaches. These include:

• Design Thinking: This is an approach used to frame problems and find creative solutions to them. It involves understanding the customer’s needs, brainstorming ideas, prototyping solutions, and testing the results.
• Lean Thinking: This is an approach used to reduce waste and streamline processes. It focuses on eliminating activities that do not create value and optimizing the ones that do.
• Agile Thinking: This is an approach used to quickly respond to changing customer needs. It involves breaking down tasks into smaller chunks and iteratively developing solutions based on feedback.
• Disruptive Innovation: This is an approach used to create products or services that can disrupt existing markets. It involves understanding customer needs and creating solutions that are simpler and cheaper than the existing ones.

Innovativeness is a broad concept that involves creativity and innovation, as well as other approaches such as design thinking, lean thinking, agile thinking, and disruptive innovation. By employing these approaches, organizations can create better products, services, and processes that can bring value to their customers.

Innovativeness — recommended articles

Change management model — Smart organization — Organizational innovation — Innovation and change — Creativity and innovation — Advantages of simulation — Transformational change — Organizational change — Learning organization

References

• Hult, G. T. M., Hurley, R. F., & Knight, G. A. (2004). Innovativeness: Its antecedents and impact on business performance. Industrial marketing management, 33(5), 429-438.
• Midgley, D. F., & Dowling, G. R. (1978). Innovativeness: The concept and its measurement. Journal of consumer research, 229-242.
• Polley, D. E., Garud, R., & Venkataraman, S. (1999). The innovation journey.

Author: Katarzyna Okólska