Innovation Challenges in the Workplace
1. Define your innovation goals
Before you start your challenge, you need to set out your goals--establish what problem you are hoping to solve and what sort of results you want to see. The key to running an innovation challenge is flexibility and open-minded thinking, but you need to know what you are trying to acheive before you set out!
2. Select the participants
Innovation challenges at work can be internal (calling on employees to submit ideas) or external (calling on the general public or a specific adjacent audience, such as your company's social media followers, to submit ideas). Are you trying to solve an internal problem at your office, such as improving office design? Are you trying to come with new ideas for products? Is there a barrier to entry in your field or industry? Are your employees looking for improved benefits? All of these and more can be solved with open innovation, as long as you select the right crowd to tap into!
3. Choose a platform.
There are lots of open innovation platforms available online, such as Wazoku. But what platform is best for your challenge will depend on your goals, audience, and needs of your crowd. Online software can help streamline the process, helping you to manage submissions across many locations and track the progress of ideas. But basic concepts--such as an "idea wall" in the office where employees can put up post-it notes with ideas to try--can also be effective!
4. Write the challenge.
Here we finally get to the important stuff! For any challenge, you need to at least have a title, a description, and visual aids. Crisp, short titles and a concise description will help your solvers and inspire their creativity. Visual aids, such as images and videos, will help different types of thinkers come up with ideas. Challenge solvers also love events, webinars, and other opportunities to bounce their ideas off judges or other participants!
5. Set rewards & foster a community spirit.
In the workplace, rewards can be a key motivator for success. Challenge rewards can be simple--such as a giftcard or a meal out on the company--or more complex. Setting motivational rewards will encourage larger participation. Encourage a sense of community with a team-based challenge or fostering some healthy competition between teams or departments!
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Innovation Challenges in the Workplace
