Innovation in Teams and Organizations

Course Description

Innovation can make or break an organization in terms of its ability to win and keep customers. This course looks at innovation in corporations and the public sector. It reviews the latest academic thinking on innovation, including Clay Christensen's seminal thinking on disruptive technology and the proper response to the disruption. Further, it explores some of the internal responses to the need for creativity, including idea champions, idea incubators, new venture teams and skunk works, and the process of moving from innovation to commercialization. This course also covers some of the more successful corporate innovators as a way of illustrating the principles of effective innovation in large organizations.

Learning Outcomes

After completing this course, the learner should be able to:

• Outline the key factors for an innovative organization
• Discuss the barriers to innovation
• Explain the differences between incremental, semi-radical, and radical innovation
• Describe internal innovation tools such as idea champions, idea incubators, new venture teams and skunk works
• Explain the process of moving from idea to commercialization
• Discuss the issues surrounding innovation in the public sector