27 Mar BUS 7112 ASSIGNMENT 3 & 4

Module 2: Building for Innovation

Module Introduction

Successful organizations become successful through the application of specified strategies and deliberate effort. In the ever-expanding and competitive global marketplace, business decision-makers must develop calculated approaches to innovation management. Ander (2006) spoke to the need to create an innovative ecosystem for strategy. This includes accepting that risk is important and essential for successful business ventures. Innovative companies become so not because they are risk-averse. They are innovative because they control and manage the ecosystem related to risk. While some of the topics Anders addressed, technologically speaking, are outdated, the questions posited continue to have value in the current marketplace where the need to innovate, be agile, and adapt to properly address customer and stakeholder needs is greater than ever.

Strategic planning focused on building innovation into an enterprise must include a clear vision of the domain (area or industry) and market in which your organization wishes to compete. This is followed by having a clear goal and understanding of when to enter a market for the greatest competitive advantage and must be followed by a realistic and measurable understanding of how your organization intends to compete. Under these conditions, innovation is not just for innovation’s sake but is directional, determined, and goal-focused. 

Many innovative products and services are developed that never reach the market because the ecosystem for supporting continued innovation is not in place. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to innovation. Instead, the key is to use tools like the SWOT, PESTEL, and market analysis in conjunction with careful, well-planned, and controlled production and operations management as a well-choreographed enterprise. 

Ultimately, some innovative companies do not make the most state-of-the-art products but support their customers with highly managed customer-centric efficiencies, which define their innovation. Companies that innovate to meet consumers’ needs and wants and are agile in responding to need changes have longevity and sustainability in the marketplace. 

Reference

Adner, R. (2006). Match your innovation strategy to your innovation ecosystem. Harvard Business Review, 84, 98-107.

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Course Resources

This course uses a Course Library Guide (LibGuide) to provide centralized access to all your readings, videos, and other course learning materials. The centralization of any e-books, library articles, and outside resources will hopefully be more convenient for you and allow us to ensure a high level of availability for course learning materials throughout your program of study. You can access the LibGuide via the Course Resources link in the top menu alongside other quick links (i.e., Dropbox, Grades, Bookshelf, etc.). 

Task List

These are your Module 2 tasks to complete.

Lesson #

1. Read all Required Resources posted in the Course Resources.

2. Review the “Lecture title”

3. Complete the “Learning Activity #”

4. Complete the “Assignment #: [Name of Assignment with Bloom’s Verb]”

Lesson #

1. Read all Required Resources posted in the Course Resources.

2. Review the “Lecture title”

3. Complete the “Learning Activity #”

4. Complete the “Assignment #: [Name of Assignment with Bloom’s Verb]”

Lesson #

1. Read all Required Resources posted in the Course Resources.

2. Review the “Lecture title”

3. Complete the “Learning Activity #”

4. Complete the “Assignment #: [Name of Assignment with Bloom’s Verb]

Lesson 3: Strategic Planning

Lesson Introduction

Businesses, though not alive, must constantly evolve and adapt to grow. As a business leader, recognizing the consequences of neglect or poor planning helps drive successful strategic management, encompassing a clear corporate vision, mission, and measurable goals for effective decision-making and performance evaluation.

Strategic Planning

Businesses are living entities that must evolve and adapt to grow. This may be an excessively creative way to examine something that is not alive. However, maintaining this perspective about your organization as a business leader will help you imagine the consequences of neglect, failure to act, or poor planning will cause. Successful business strategic management comes not by passively responding but by the purposeful direction before, during, and after changes occur.

The strategic planning process for a business is usually founded on three elements. These elements are the corporate vision, corporate mission, and corporate goals. The first is that an organization must have a specific direction that they intend to go. A corporate vision specifies the path upon which the organization plans to move. A corporate mission determines who a company wants to serve and what it intends to do to serve its client base. Corporate goals are the tools used to measure success incrementally toward achieving the standards set in the corporate vision and mission.

Corporate Vision Statement. A corporate vision statement presents the organization’s long-term aspirations and desired future state as an entity. It serves as a guiding principle outlining the company’s ultimate goals, values, and organizational impact. That impact can be within the organization’s specific industry or society with good corporate citizenship. The vision statement generally provides an inspirational perspective for employees, customers, and other stakeholders. The vision statement is a benchmark shared proclamation and understanding of an overarching organizational purpose.

Corporate Mission Statement. A corporate mission statement focuses on the organization’s present-day purpose, describing its core activities, target audience, and how it aims to create value. The mission statement presents the organizational raison d’être (reason for being). The mission statement should reflect the organization’s unique selling proposition and competitive advantage in a meaningful and clear way. The corporate mission statement should help align executive, leadership, and employee efforts toward a common goal. It should provide clarity on what the organization aims to achieve.

Corporate Goals. Corporate goals are specific, timely, measurable, and achievable objectives an organization sets. The goals result from objectives delineated in the vision and mission statements. Goals should be aligned with organizational strategic priorities and objectives. These goals should be specific and may be segregated into different functional areas of business operations but should ideally be focused on adherence to and aligning with vision and mission. These goals may include financial performance, market share, innovation, customer satisfaction, or social responsibility attainment targets. Setting goals requires measurement of data, tracking of information, and then benchmarks set against measures. Setting corporate goals allows organizations to establish clear targets and track progress, providing a roadmap for decision-making, resource allocation, and performance evaluation.

Be sure to review this Lesson’s resources carefully. You are expected to apply the information from these resources when you prepare your assignments.

Resources:  

David, F. R., David, F. R., & David, M. E. (2016). Benefits, characteristics, components, and examples of customer-oriented mission statements. International Journal of Business, Marketing, and Decision Sciences, 9(1), 19-33.

Desmidt, S. (2016). The relevance of mission statements: Analysing the antecedents of perceived message quality and its relationship to employee mission engagement. Public Management Review, 18(6), 894-917.

Engel, M. L. (2018). Crafting the ideal mission statement for your organization. Leader to Leader, 2018(87), 7–12.

Kirkpatrick, S. A. (2017). Toward a grounded theory: A qualitative study of vision statement development. Journal of Management Policy & Practice, 18(1), 87–101.

Kirkpatrick, S. A. (2017). Understanding the role of vision, mission, and values in the HPT Model. Performance Improvement, 56(3), 6–14.

Required Resources

• Benefits, Characteristics, Components, and Examples of Customer-Oriented Mission Statements.

David, F. R., David, F. R., & David, M. E. (2016). Benefits, characteristics, components, and examples of customer-oriented mission statements. International Journal of Business, Marketing, and Decision Sciences (IJBMDS), 9(1), 19.

This study explores the benefits, characteristics, and components of mission statements and their role in enhancing customer service. Mission statements are integral to organizational effectiveness and are present in various internal reports and external communication materials. The study emphasizes the importance of customer-oriented mission statements and offers guidance for crafting these documents, along with presenting ten exemplary statements.

• The Relevance of Mission Statements: Analysing The Antecedents Of Perceived Message Quality and Its Relationship to Employee Mission Engagement.

Desmidt, S. (2016). The Relevance of Mission Statements: Analysing the antecedents of perceived message quality and its relationship to employee mission engagement. PUBLIC MANAGEMENT REVIEW, 18(6), 894–917. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2015.1051573

This study examines the effects of goal ambiguity in public organizations and explores the role of mission statements as a communication tool to counterbalance this ambiguity. By analyzing employee perceptions within a Belgian public welfare organization, the study investigates the relationship between perceived message quality, employee motivation, and factors such as source credibility, content clarity, and receiver characteristics. Structural equation modeling is employed for data analysis.

• CRAFTING THE IDEAL MISSION STATEMENT FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION

Engel, M. L. (2018). Crafting the Ideal Mission Statement for Your Organization. Leader to Leader, 2018(87), 7. https://doi.org/10.1002/ltl.20336

Mary Legakis Engel is the founder and CEO of The Management Coach, a consultancy specializing in advising leaders and managers on effective management and business growth. With over 15 years of experience, she has been dedicated to empowering leaders, advancing women through the Global Women’s Leadership Summit, and optimizing team performance through The Emerson SuiteAccents platform. Based in Oakville, Canada, Mary and her team serve clients worldwide.

• Toward A Grounded Theory: A Qualitative Study Of Vision Statement Development.

Kirkpatrick, S. A. (2017). Toward a Grounded Theory: A Qualitative Study of Vision Statement Development. Journal of Management Policy & Practice, 18(1), 87–101.

Considerable research demonstrates the significant, positive impact of vision statements on organizational, team and individual performance. However, little research exists on developing effective vision statements. Moving toward a grounded theory of vision statement development, 30 interviews were conducted with organizational leaders to identify and describe the approaches they used to develop their vision statements. Five categories of approaches were identified as a typology: 1) Uncommunicated, 2) Unstated yet Implemented, 3) Formally Stated, 4) Refined and 5) Re-examined. Representative quotes from the leaders are presented to support and describe each category. Suggestions for future research, along with study limitations, are discussed.

• Understanding The Role of Vision, Mission, And Values in The HPT Model.

Kirkpatrick, S. A. (2017). Understanding the Role of Vision, Mission, and Values in the HPT Model. Performance Improvement, 56(3), 6. https://doi.org/10.1002/pfi.21689

Shelley A. Kirkpatrick, founder of Visiontelligence LLC and Principal at The MITRE Corporation, explores the often overlooked or misunderstood aspect of vision, mission, and values within the Human Performance Technology (HPT) model. This article summarizes research on the positive impact of vision statements on organizational performance, reviews characteristics of effective vision statements, and presents findings from a descriptive study on vision statement development, communication, and implementation, providing implications for Performance Improvement practitioners in conducting organizational analyses and recommending effective vision statements.

Assignment 3: Examine Mission, Vision, and Strategic Planning for an Organization

Instructions

Background

For this assignment, you are asked to research and collect three samples of a mission statement and vision statement and provide a summary of how you feel these can become elements of a strategy for companies to gain competitive advantage.

Instructions

Your paper should be in three sections noting the identified company in each part. You will provide an example of each company’s mission and vision statements. Then you will examine the mission and vision statement related to strategic planning for the organization and how it results in a competitive advantage.

Length: 4-6 pages, not including a cover page and reference page

References: Include at least five scholarly resources. 

Your paper should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas and concepts presented in the course and provide new thoughts and insights relating directly to this topic. Your response should reflect scholarly writing and current APA standards.

Lesson 4: Identifying and Increasing Innovation Opportunities

Lesson Introduction

The key to a successful and sustainable business lies in identifying and increasing opportunities for innovation, which extends beyond technology companies. Organizations can stay competitive, adapt, and drive meaningful progress by fostering a culture of innovation, encouraging cross-functional collaboration, listening to customers and market trends, building strategic partnerships, and allocating dedicated resources for creation.

Identifying and Increasing Innovation Opportunities 

One of the keys to a successful and sustainable business is the need to identify and increase the opportunities for innovation. Identifying opportunities for innovation is often viewed with a perception that it is only within the domain of technology companies to be innovative. Although innovation and technology are not synonyms, they are often used interchangeably. Technology is common in your jargon and communication. You use computers, smartphones, and other appliances that are connected to the Internet. The type of research and development needed in this market space is all about innovation. However, innovation can come in seemingly non-technology related packages as well.

Almost anything that an organization can do to be more efficient, competitive, and better focused on customer service, all while reducing costs, can be classified as innovative. Identifying and increasing innovation opportunities is crucial for companies to stay competitive and adapt. By actively seeking and nurturing innovation, organizations can improve existing processes thus reducing operational costs. Additionally, fostering a spirit and environment can lead to the development of breakthrough products or services. While there are lots of ways organizations can seek and nurture innovation the following lists includes some of the most common approaches.

Foster a Culture of Innovation. A company must create a work environment that encourages and rewards innovation. This includes fostering a culture where employees are empowered to share their ideas, experiment with new approaches, and embrace calculated risks. This includes allowing discovery and exploration time or ‘play time’ to experiment. A company in allowing this must allow for and accept mistakes and failures on the road to successful ideas. Establishing open channels of communication and implementing suggestion programs that are acted upon are ways to develop this kind of culture. Additionally, a company seeking to foster innovative culture must also provide resources for experimentation efforts at all levels of the organization.

Encourage Cross-Functional Collaboration. Innovation thrives best when people from different backgrounds and disciplines come together. This is a result of hiring, training, and promoting with ethical and fair diversity and inclusivity efforts where all voices and ideas are needed. Within an organization encouraging cross-functional collaboration can also lead to fresh perspectives and the development of new and diverse ideas. Companies can facilitate collaboration by organizing interdisciplinary teams, cross functional project teams, encouraging networking, and knowledge sharing across departments. Cross-functional collaboration is strengthen when organizations create common spaces for brainstorming, ideation, and thought experimentation sessions.

Listen to Customers and Market Trends. To be innovative, companies should actively listen to their customers and monitor market trends. This will help them to identify unmet or under met needs and emerging opportunities. Listening to customers and conducting market research comes through analyzing customer feedback and staying up-to-date on industry trends and technological advancements. While technological advancements may not always provide better solutions they can help create value or ensure strong consumer engagement opportunites. Engaging with customers through surveys, focus groups, and social media platforms can provide valuable insights and inspiration for innovation initiatives.

Build Strategic Partnerships. Collaborating with external partners for strategic initiatives can have a strong organizational benefit. This can include established companies working with startups, universities, research institutions, or other industry experts or associations. These relationships can often result in improvement of existing processes, new innovations, or other expansion opportunities. Partnerships can act as a catalyst for bringing in fresh ideas, specialized knowledge, and access to new technologies or markets. When companies focus on forging strategic alliances they are able to engage with and utilize external expertise and resources that can accelerate internal innovation of processes and provide a competitive advantage.

Allocate Resources for Innovation. While this functionally is mentioned above, for an organization to increase innovation opportunities they must allocate dedicated resources toward innovation. These resources can include financial, human, or time resources to support innovation initiatives. To affect this in an organization may consider creating an innovation budget, creating innovation-focused teams or departments, and providing training and development opportunities. These created programs and efforts must then be marketed to all company personnel. By doing this companies can demonstrate by action and effort that there is commitment to fostering innovation. By dedicating resources specifically for innovation, companies can provide the necessary support and infrastructure to drive and sustain the innovation process.

Be sure to review this Lesson’s resources carefully. You are expected to apply the information from these resources when you prepare your assignment.

Resources:

Adner, R. (2006, 04). Match your innovation strategy to your innovation ecosystem. Harvard Business Review, 84, 98-107.

Harper, G. D. J. (2017). Innovation. Salem Press Encyclopedia.

Sinha, N., & Srivastava, K. B. L. (2016). Perceived innovation championing strategies and intrapreneurial orientation. Journal of Management Research, 16(2), 77–86.

Wheatley, M. J. (2013). Innovation means relying on everyone’s creativity In Frances Hesselbein (Ed.), Innovation: Essentials from leader to leader (pp. 93-105). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Required Resources

• Match Your Innovation Strategy To Your Innovation Ecosystem.

Adner, R. (2006). Match your innovation strategy to your innovation ecosystem. Harvard Business Review, 84(4), 98.

An innovation ecosystem enables companies to develop value that individual companies would not be able to produce on their own. Steps for creating and implementing an ecosystem include assessing interdependence and integration risks, and setting and modifying performance expectations.

• Innovation

Harper, G. D. J. . Ms. (2022). Innovation. Salem Press Encyclopedia.

Innovation is the process of developing and bringing to market new products, services, ideas, or solutions to problems. This is in contrast to invention, which is the development of new devices, methods, or techniques. Inventions are not necessarily innovations. For an invention to be an innovation, it must be introduced into the marketplace and become generally accepted.

• Perceived Innovation Championing Strategies and Intrapreneurial Orientation

Sinha, N., & Srivastava, K. B. L. (2016). Perceived Innovation Championing Strategies and Intrapreneurial Orientation. Journal of Management Research (09725814), 16(2), 77–86.

This study examines the impact of employee intrapreneurial orientation on innovation championing strategies in the Indian cultural context. Findings from data collected from 272 executives in the manufacturing sector highlight the significant positive association between intrapreneurial orientation and perceived cross-functional support championing strategies. The study emphasizes the importance for management to foster an entrepreneurial culture in the workplace to enhance innovative behavior.

• Innovation Means Relying on Everyone’s Creativity

Wheatley, M. J. (2001). Innovation Means Relying on Everyone’s Creativity. Leader to Leader, 2001(20), 14–20.

Discusses the need for leaders to recognize people’s innate capacity to adapt and to innovate while ensuring that identity and values remain constant. Suggestion that the human capacity to invent and create is universal; Complexity of modern systems; Principles of leadership offered by the worldview of organizations as living systems rather than machines; Importance of building participation; Need to rely on human goodness

Assignment 4: Investigate Methods to Increase Innovation and Meet Strategic Objectives

Instructions

Instructions

For this assignment, you will be a consultant for your employer or the company of your choice. Your assignment is to prepare a slide presentation with three to five change recommendations for addressing customer needs and building an ecosystem for innovation.

To do this, you must answer the following questions for your recommendations.

• Where will your innovations take the company in the future?

• How will the changes help the company reach consumers at the right time?

• How will these recommendations for innovation affect the company’s competitive advantage?

Your answers should be brief and provide a well-developed recommendation. Please keep in mind this is a presentation, and you will need to include notes for your slides to share the key details that you cannot include in the bullets on your slides.

Length:  Your slide presentation should be 8-12 slides. This will include a title slide and a reference slide.

References: Include at least 3-5 scholarly resources.

Your presentation should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas and concepts presented in the course and provide new thoughts and insights relating directly to this topic. Your response should reflect scholarly writing and current APA standards.