Inno-employee-vate!

Reflecting on innovations in a wider context, my organisation is in the business of supporting innovations and so, it should be a champion of innovations. It is a requirement therefore for its employees to be innovative. This is not an option! Recognising this, one of the ways in which innovation was being promoted was through enhancing of what is called the Employee of the Month Award. Previously, this award was given to the most dedicated, result oriented and bravo employee that month. This year it was changed to focus on the most Innovative and hard working employee of the month. There had to be an innovation that one must have brought out in that month. That was the criteria for receiving the employee of the month award. With this development, it so happened that there was no award for given three months! Did this mean there were no innovative employees? That everything had been developed in the organisation? That there were no problems that would stir up innovations? I didnt think so.

In my assessment I realised that innovations in the workplace depend so much on the availability of a sound environment. Employees will not just innovate! They have a lot of work to do for which they are paid for! They need to be inspired; they need a drive to innovate. Every one can think outside the box and develop solutions (innovations) that can even create a competitive edge for a company. It starts with the way management views employees.

Whenever we think of human resource in any organisation we think of the large bills that need to be paid, allowances and all the costs that go with having human being work for you. Management in most companies say they view human resource as an asset. Yes they say that, but few believe that. Employees are assets simply because they can solve your many problems and the following is why I have confidence they can:

They spend 8hrs in the 5 days of the week in your environment. They know the organisation better than anyone. They even know where the take away salt sachets are found in the premises!

They have probably worked elsewhere and know what goes on out there so they can compare and tell you how best they used to do it where they were. Its called technology transfer! Alter the remedy a bit! There you have an innovation.

They are also found at church, at a pub, on facebook etc. they have a social life where their peers will probably hint how best or what is wrong with your company from outside! At the pub, they will pick up things about your product or service that customer care or complaints handling desk wont tell you!

They feed from their jobs. If it succeeds, it means they do too!

The above are drivers for an employee to innovate. That is how we even have innovations in Computer software such as those for customer management, Accounting, security etc. They were developed because someone understood the environment they were working in.

It is not an understatement that an employee is an asset! But to believe that means that the company will create an environment that will bring out the best of the employees. Amazing isnt it that companies sometimes spend millions to pay a consultant that will come and give solutions that an employee in the corner already knew about? Sometimes the solutions of the company lie in the people that do the actual work. For this reason brainstorming with employees to solve a problem whether it is the quality of the service or product, the transport system, the cleaning service, customer retention, employee relations etc. is second to none. Interestingly too, such an internal session of problem solving wont cost the company more than a few bottles of mineral water. This is what drives innovation in the work place. Interaction, a problem, availability of time and an ear from management!

Innovation is now the buzz word in Zambia and it is always thought to mean products of science and technology . In which case when you think of innovation it is synomnous

with the things that we can see or indeed touch. But then there are several innovations that have accelerated the development of efficient service delivery by many organisations in Zambia and abroad. These innovations relate to processes, systems and even management styles.

The central meaning of innovation relates to renewal or improvement, with novelty being a consequence of this improvement. Innovation in the work environment can therefore be an accounting process, a new way of handling customers, a new transport management system. In which case the most valuable innovations for an organisation are those that solve the problem that an organisation may be facing, fact!

To get the most of its employees as innovators in the work environment, an organisation must create an environment that enhances interaction amongst the various departments such as cubicles rather than large single occupation of offices, staff rooms, tea time anything that will get the employees interacting. Its at this platform that employees understand the challenges of the organisation and its strengths for a marketing person to come up with a solution for the transport or procurement department. Innovation is not synonymous with qualifications!

Management must create a rewarding system for the development of innovations within the organisation. Who wants to come up with a solution that will earn the organisation more profits and yet not be rewarded? It is in this context that Organisations must consider developing intellectual property policies to safeguard its innovations and reward the originators. This motivates staff to develop innovations that will solve the organisaionation problems

Management must have an evaluations process for innovations and suggestions that come. Without this the best ideas go to rot! Assigning a person to collect and appraise the innovations that come in assist the organisations to prototype and develop the innovations into usable processes, systems and even products!

Barriers to innovation within the work place must also be dealt with by managers. These include bureaucratic internal communication systems, lack of awareness of what innovation is and what it can do for the company, closed door policies, Sir-Bwana syndrome. There should be an opportunity for a cleaner or the guard at the gate to say to the CEO Boss, I have an idea! CEO must have time to listen! It could save his company from bankruptcy.

It is with such a realisation that innovation can not just show up from employees, they need to be ignited by management. And it was at this point I proposed an Innovation Bank to my superiors. The innovation Bank is an internal system of promoting and managing innovations in a work environment. This can be applied in any organisational setting. It rides on the fact that there is need to collect problems and solutions. To evaluate the solutions and reward to the originator. Suggestions box? Similar but better!

My Innovation Bank proposal won me the Employee of the month! Which was the first since its was changed to recognise innovation!

So ignite the passion for every employee to innovate!