IDEA MANAGEMENT FOR ORGANISATIONAL INNOVATION

Abstract

Modern organisations are under ever increasing competitive pressure to maintain market share, enhance product range, improve efficiency and reduce cost. The process by which organisations attain these improvements is through innovation. Over recent years, significant research has focused on the issue of managing the process of developing ideas towards eventual organisational innovations. However, the process by which these ideas are generated and effectively managed is one which currently operates in an "ad hoc" fashion. This paper strives to present a structured and holistic approach to managing idea generation. A literary survey of both innovation and creativity is undertaken to determine their inter-relationships and core traits. Following this, a methodology is presented to facilitate the organisational management of the "Idea Generation" process. An integrated software tool to support the process is also introduced. The purpose of this tool is to provide an infrastructure for the effective management of ideas and their transfer to the larger innovation process.