Open Innovation Readiness: a Tool

Innovation is vital for enterprises that are fighting back after major setbacks, surviving the current economic conditions or planning sustainable growth relative to their competitors. Tools exist to help them measure their propensity to innovate, their capability for innovation or their innovation performance. But for many SMEs there is a lack of awareness and education which causes apprehension about innovation, open innovation and intellectual property. This paper introduces an “Innovation Readiness Tool”, designed specifically for use with companies where innovation is an infrequent or totally absent phenomenon. It outlines five steps through which the online tool will take these “newcomers”. Step one is to demystify open innovation. Step two is to identify their own existing barriers to innovation and understand their environment. Step three initiates a number of innovation related practices. Step four is project management and step five provides online coaching support for the enterprise’s nominated innovation champion.