As we all know, innovations come in all sizes and shapes and types.
At the large end of the scale, Boeing or Airbus create a new jetliner, SpaceX creates a new rocket, or Toyota creates a new car, and they all engage in the meticulously detailed design of thousands of new parts, subsystems, and systems, and then bring in hundreds of supplier organizations to actually make the parts and pieces that they then assemble into the finished products. And sell, perhaps to you.
The end results of all of this must compete in the marketplace with offerings from the other firms, and of course one of the most important distinguishing characteristics of the marketplace contest is innovativeness itself – a customer, such as an airline, will choose between Boeing and Airbus based on a very specific set of value criteria, on which list innovativeness will rank highly. Because it is through innovation that aircraft become more efficient and thus consume less fuel, and more comfortable for passengers, and more durable and safe, and easier to fly.
So at the large end of the industrial market, innovation is a critical defining characteristic, and all big and medium-sized firms invest heavily in their perpetual quest to win the innovation competition. To succeed, they need not only scale and resources, but training.
That’s why InnovationLabs has been delivering award-winning innovation trainings globally for two decades, and we continue to add more depth and detail to our various programs. Click here to see an overview of our offers for large, medium, and small firms innovators.
And we’re very happy to announce that a new program is now available:
Now Available: Online Innovation Training
To support innovators, innovation leaders, and innovation managers in large firms, InnovationLabs is very pleased to announce that our comprehensive online innovation training program is now available. Developed in partnership with the International Association of Innovation Professionals (IAOIP) and the Florida Institute of Technology, this comprehensive 6-1/2 hour video program covers dozens of important topics for innovation leaders and managers, including:
- How to stimulate broad and deep creative thinking throughout your organization.
- Design thinking and other innovation techniques.
- How to promote and manage a dynamic innovation culture.
- The differences between incremental and breakthrough innovations, and the right techniques for managing both.
- The important role for business model innovation and how advancing technology makes business model innovation so important.
- How to combine all the types of innovation into a powerful innovation portfolio.
- The best techniques for managing the innovation pipeline.
- How to set up a stage gate process for different types of innovation.
- The essential linkage between strategy and innovation, and how to manage them.
- The essential tools and infrastructure.
- Metrics, and how not to abuse them.
- How to plan an overall innovation framework for your organization.
- And quite a lot more …
In addition to gaining access to all this incredible learning content, the course prepares you to take (and we expect, to pass) the prestigious IAOIP Management of Innovation Certification Exam, which will document your accomplishment, enhance your professional standing, and bring you into a great global community of innovation leaders. IAOIP is indeed the world’s leading association of innovation professionals, with members in 50+ countries, a dynamic annual program of activities and events, and a robust set of online and print resources to serve every innovation need.
The program also comes with a detailed Study Guide as well as a free download of The Agile Innovation Master Plan, key resources that will also contribute to your learning and your ongoing success.
To learn more about this program, please click here.
INNOVATIONLABS ONLINE TRAINING
And feel free to contact us with questions.
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Small Business Innovation Training
At the other extreme, small business leaders and entrepreneurs are also constantly engaged in the innovation process, but of course for them it looks and feels entirely different. Small businesses live and work differently than big ones, because whereas a big firm may have a huge R&D group that’s responsible for coming up with a full range of new ideas and concepts, a small firm probably only has one person, often the owner, who puts time into innovation now and then, looking for new products or services to sell, or ways to cut costs. But while it’s different, over time innovation is just as important to the small firm as to the large one, because a small business’ competitors are working on innovations too, and any size of firm can get left behind.
Since they practice innovation differently and generally have different types of goals, the knowledge and skills that small business innovators need are quite different from those working in large firms. Which means that the content of their learning and training experiences need to be different.
We’ll be in Singapore in September to lead a small business innovation session in partnership with the Singapore government’s Productivity Centre, and in Malaysia as well. If you’re in the area and interested in joining the program, please contact us.
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