PERSPECTIVES

RELEASING THE POTENTIAL OF THE 49%

A recent study by Accenture identified that whilst 91% of people at work want to innovate, only 42% feel empowered to do so. What a waste of energy and potential! HR needs to lead the way in building an Innovation Ecosystem in which the potential of all of their employees can be released to drive innovation.
A recent study by Accenture identified that whilst 91% of people at work want to innovate, only 42% feel empowered to do so. What a waste of energy and potential! HR needs to lead the way in building an Innovation Ecosystem in which the potential of all of their employees can be released to drive innovation.

RELEASING THE POTENTIAL OF THE 49%

In this recent study by Accenture, it was found that 91% of people want to innovate at work, but only 42% feel empowered to do so. Organisations are missing out on the energy, potential, and creativity of a staggering 49% of their employees. HR Leaders are in a unique position to impact this number. Why? Because HR Leaders are best placed to drive an Innovation Ecosystem.

UK companies ponder the productivity problem, whilst over half their people feel the ideas and innovations sitting in their heads have nowhere to go in their organisations. Perhaps the solution to our productivity problem lies in this innovation empowerment chasm. What if you could build an organisation which empowered more people to innovate? What would this achieve?

  • It would delight your leaders: 95% of executives see innovation as vital to the success of their organisations.
  • It would see your customers happier and better served: an integral part of innovation is understanding customers and end users, and acting on this insight. Innovation improves customer satisfaction
  • It would see you steam ahead of your competitors: Accenture have identified that if the Innovation Empowerment gap globally were closed by just 10% globally, it would represent additional value of $8 trillion in 10 years. Imagine closing your Innovation Empowerment by 20-30%. How far ahead of your competitors could this take you! Indeed, one of our clients estimates that by closing their engagement gap, we could save them £9m per year.

Many companies have an innovation function, a Head of or Director of Innovation. This is a good step. It signals to the organisation that the company mean business when it comes to innovation. But all too often, these roles and functions cannot build the support they need internally, cross-functionally, for their new ideas and initiatives. The best organisations, which consistently deliver innovation, have intentionally transformed themselves into a more innovative organisation, by building an Innovation Ecosystem.

HR CAN LEAD INNOVATION TRANSFORMATION

HR teams are best placed to drive innovation transformation in their organisation, and release the potential of the 58%.

  • HR leaders sit across functions and business units, with influence at every level of the organisation, from front line to exec.
  • HR teams are alongside employees from their first interaction at the point of application to their final farewell at exit.
  • HR business partners and advisors support line managers in their interactions with their teams.

This is a unique position to be in. It means HR has the voice and ear of the organisation. If HR teams listen closely, they can uncover the blockers to engagement that prevent people feeling able to innovate at work. When HR uses its position of influence to enact culture change to drive innovation, it can help the business uncover value from employees who did not know they could pursue their idea.

HOW HR CAN DELIVER INNOVATION TRANSFORMATION

We at The Innovation Beehive work with HR teams to build Innovation Ecosystems in their organisation. This is an organisation where leaders are clear about the Innovation Direction and communicate it effectively through their Innovation Environment, where there is a clear structure for sharing ideas and developing them into market ready innovations, and where people are empowered and equipped to innovate effectively, to deliver on their innovation potential.

When HR steps into innovation in organisations, the energy and potential of employees can make a transformational difference to the bottom line.

X