Societies of Social Innovation by Ander Gurrutxaga Abad

Author:Ander Gurrutxaga Abad [Abad, Ander Gurrutxaga]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, Research, Sociology, General
ISBN: 9781845195137
Google: 2R_uAQAACAAJ
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Sussex Academic Press
Published: 2013-01-15T02:52:23+00:00

The Alchemy of Innovation in Business

From the perspective of business, one particular set of conclusions is the one put forward by Tom Kelley (2004, 2008), when he wrote that we need innovation in the ambits out of which and with which a company works, in the different areas of its business and among the members of its team. Creating an ambience committed to change, in his view, and a culture rich in creativity means creating a business with three hundred and sixty degrees of innovation. Companies wish to stand out in innovation, and need new perspectives, new points of view and new roles. In effect, there is ever greater awareness of the fact that fomenting a culture of innovation is a decisive factor in achieving success, and that this is as important as designing competitive strategies or maintaining good profit margins.

Kelley’s central proposition is clear and concise: companies today are valued less for what they offer for sale than for their capacity to change, adapt and dream of something new. The frequency with which they need to innovate and replace their product ranges is increasing in speed. It is not enough to have a good idea, one innovates only when this idea is followed by action, and when it is put fully into practice. Ideas, action, implementation, results, profit: all these are positive terms, but a key component is missing: people. Kelley’s definition of what innovation consists of is crystal clear: “people creating value through the implementation of new ideas”.

The positive content of these arguments is also clear: they talk of change, work, implementation, new ideas, people, management, organization. The concrete objectives required for the creation of innovative environments within organizations are formulated out of dreams and ideas but also through work, effort, a large number of committed people, and the practical implementation of ideas that create value and determine the enterprise’s direction, strategy and action. Incorporating the value of change means submitting the organization to an interplay in which three ideal types vie for supremacy. In Kelley’s 2005 definition of what is required by a sustained culture of innovation, he proposes a first grouping of what he calls “personas” dedicated to Learning. They are guided by one idea: although things are going well, no one should be allowed to fall into complacency. The world is changing at an accelerating rhythm, and the big idea of today can be tomorrow’s anachronism.

This group can be further subdivided into three roles, according to the ways in which they pursue these overall goals: the Anthropologist, dedicated to providing new knowledge and points of view by means of the observation of human behaviour and understanding the interactions between people, products, services and spaces; the Experimenter, who continually models new ideas and learns through processes of trial and error; and thirdly the Cross-pollinator, who explores other industries and cultures and then adapts their discoveries to the needs of their company.

Kelley’s classification then proposes a second grouping of “personas”, those focussed on Organizing. These roles are

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