Running Idea Management Events

Idea Management sometimes appears like an easy process, certainly when compared to more complex programs such as supply chain or customer relationship management. Idea management, though, has its own complexities primarily based on the complex psychology of humans working by themselves, and working with others. The success of an initiative is dependent on a variety of human factors, from the attitude of management to listen to and act upon employee ideas, to the courage of employees in sharing their ideas with the corporation.

The Event approach, developed by Imaginatik Research in 1999, clearly demonstrates a greater yield of high quality ideas than a traditional suggestion program. For example, in 2003 a well-known consumer products company used Idea Central to generate 450 ideas from their ongoing program, and around 5,500 ideas from 30 specific time-based events. Of the 200 - 250 ideas that were developed further or implemented, 90% came from the event approach, leaving just a few ideas from the 'random' idea gathering. The yield from the ongoing program was therefore significantly lower than the Event approach.

Events are typically managed by an Innovation Manager, our generic term for the business person who is knowledgeable on the Idea Management process, both in terms of systems and business practices. They work with the business sponsor, who sets the initial problem statement, and with an administrator (if required) who handles the internal marketing and other administrative tasks.

There are a number of elements that help companies optimize the success of their Event-based projects:

Management Commitment - you need to have a senior person committed to the process and to implementing the best ideas from the event, otherwise the project cannot be successful.

Right Tool for the Job - there are often several ways of addressing a problem or challenge, and it is important to select the right innovation tool to solve the problem. Idea Management is a mass participation event and is useful when there is a large group of people who can apply their insight and brainpower to a problem. In other cases, it might be more appropriate to use small group brainstorms, focus groups, or large group creativity sessions. And for Idea Management you need to make sure the technology you use to manage the process is up to the job.

Problem Framing - the problem statement is critical to the success of an event. A narrowly framed problem (e.g. "What promotional giveaways will sell more of our product?") will yield fewer quality ideas than a broad statement that addresses the underlying problem (e.g. "How can we sell more of our product, considering promotions, pricing, channels, etc?")

Set Yourself a Target - prior to launch, it is highly recommended to establish some targets, such as the rate of participation (how many invitees actually make a contribution), or number of top quality ideas (typically between 2 and 5 depending on the type of event). The targets help to guide the planning, to validate the project, and to provide a platform for learning and improvement for future events.

Motivating People - there are many different ways to motivate people, and the reward and recognition component is one of the most important aspects to an event. The emerging best practice approach is to provide small prizes for the top ideas, and allocate some form of loyalty points based on all contributions to an event.

Who has the Best Ideas - the selection of the audience is very important. Research has shown that the likelihood of receiving a high quality novel idea is increased with a diverse pool of idea contributors. At the same time, some events have a narrow, specialized focus. As a general rule, think of the 'right' people to be involved, and then add another 50% from outside this perfect group.

Tell Them About It - internal marketing is absolutely critical to the success of an event. The most effective method is e-mail, with over 80% of traffic in an idea management system generated through automatic workflow alerts and administrator sent announcements. The marketing plan will consist of the message (i.e. the problem), the audience (i.e. who are you targeting), the channels (i.e. How to get to them), and the timing (i.e. When to send the messages).

The Right Review Team - a review team needs to be established to go through the ideas. They will be nominated by the business sponsor, perhaps with some experienced reviewers from other events helping with the workload. Experts may be selected from outside the core review team to work on specialized issues, such as cost analysis or technical feasibility. The review team will agree evaluation criteria, develop their work routine, and plan their reviews.

Keep Your Eyes Open - during the event itself, the innovation manager will watch the contributions and collaboration take place. If the level of participation falls below expectations, tweak the internal marketing to encourage more contributions.

People Need Closure - when the event is complete, the innovation manager and sponsor should provide feedback to all contributors to thank them for their efforts. In a knowledge management system such as this, everyone is a volunteer, and people must be treated with respect and care. Honesty is important - if you are unable to review all the ideas, your final message must reflect this.

Path to Implementation - the role of the review team is to select the top 2 to 5 ideas for implementation. The initial business sponsor will have worked out how the best ideas would be implemented before the fact, or at least committed resources to moving ahead with the top concepts.

Plan for the Next Event - Idea Management is an organizational capability to help organizations innovate and achieve business objectives. The Event approach is not intended to be a one-off activity, rather than a deliberate method of treating business problems in a short term cyclical fashion. The approach helps companies create a sustained innovation capacity, even though to outsiders it may look like a series of isolated projects (See "24/7 Innovation" by Steve Shapiro for more information on the innovation capacity concept). The leading innovators plan out a range of events over the course of the year, and the end of one event leads seamlessly into the next.

The Event approach has proven to be the most successful method of delivering results from innovation. It helps solve specific problems, and over time develops a workforce and a culture that is curious and motivated to solve problems. In this report we have outlined the basic process necessary to make events a success. All companies have their own peculiarities, and the Event approach needs to fit into a framework for Idea Management and Innovation. Companies should also realize that successful implementation is dependent partly on the process, and partly on the systems to support the process.

If you have any ideas, feedback, or concepts you would like to share, please e-mail research@imaginatik.com.

Reference: Running Idea Management Events - RN-0403-1