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Organizational Innovation
About
Innovation Network
- O r g a n i z a t i o n a l _ I n n o v a t i o n -
Accepting the award for the Smithsonian were Nancy Suttenfield, Assistant Secretary, and Jack Johnson, Quality Coordinator. With a vision of "Pledging unsurpassed service," the Smithsonian Institution's Office of Finance and Administration launched an innovation initiative with the objective: "To get every employee involved in the innovation, continuous improvement, and change processes so that we, as an organization, are focused on delighting our customers and creating a 'hassle-free' work environment."
The Finance and Administration Office consists of ten units with a total of 1700 employees. The organization's innovation initiative grew out of a Total Quality Management program which was begun in 1992 with the creation of a leadership team. In late 1994, innovation was added to the mix with training in several innovation and creativity tools such as pattern- breaking thinking, metaphoric thinking, mind mapping, brain writing and various creative problem solving techniques. Training is provided for all employees in four areas:
- quality and customer awareness;
- diversity;
- creativity and innovation;
- creative problem solving.
Their definition of innovation is "creating opportunities and environments for change and learning. It's the creation and implementation of new, useful and unexpected solutions to problems and challenges. It's the application of creative techniques such as pattern-breaking thinking, to generate solutions. It's going beyond the 'nine dots,' i.e. going outside the box, to create solutions and implementing those solutions. Accordingly, the leadership team has employed a host of avantgarde techniques that have resulted in the improvement of Finance and Administration. We have created opportunities and, more importantly, the environment for change."
When asked for input on the question of defining innovation, the leadership team used a brainwriting technique to come up with the following characteristics of innovation:
- working outside the box
- encouraging new ideas and approaches
- being willing to take risk and sometimes failing
- looking beyond the expected
- seeing the unseen
- not quitting with the first good ideas
- thinking of new ways to do "stuff"
- finding completely unexpected solutions
- changing the questions
- creating new answers to existing questions
- adopting an entirely new breakthrough way of doing business, i.e., using breakthrough methods and processes
- doing things not just in new ways, but doing new things that are needed
- solving problems with new methods.
The organization's goal is "for all of us to learn to value and take advantage of our differences in problem solving and teamwork." Also to make "everyone aware that they have 'creative ability' and that each of us can make a difference in our organizations."
To spread innovation throughout the organization, they trained several in-house facilitators in the use of innovation tools and techniques. These facilitators help groups focus on real work issues. Currently, about 78% of the employees participate in innovation activities and the goal is to have 100% participation.
Adetailed description of the seven winners of the George Land World Class Innovator Award is available for $49.95.