This GII report investigates and reports on 129 countries and then analyzes and ranks them accordingly.

When you are caught up in generating innovation within a business these sorts of reports can often pass you by as not so relevant to your everyday job of innovation.

I can certainly understand that but as a barometer of the health and investment going into innovation, it will eventually filter through to you and has more relevance than you first imagine.

This report is mainly for those interested in forming national policy on innovation, or judging where they are within the global race on innovation, yet it tells us all some really important points on the current health of innovation.

Yet the innovation message is for us all. If nothing else read this summary.

The really important message to hearten all involved in innovation is “that formal and informal innovation seems to be blossoming globally” (pg 2) even though the concerns are growing on the effects of both economic and geopolitical uncertainties are taking their toll on global economic growth. The report suggests this is “losing momentum”. As innovation is a major engine to investments and productivity growth around the world this is signaling some problems ahead unless things change.

The suggestion in the report is there are two possible bottlenecks from the innovative perspective might be contributing to the forward-looking innovation investment and adoptions needed

These being, firstly a decline in the level and speed of innovation, partly due to lower investments in research and development and also a continuing uneven adoption of innovation across individual economies and the world at large. This fits very much with the present needs of innovators, managing on the job, are struggling to scale and attract the right levels of investments or have sufficient resources to implement innovation. Then as we continue to run our innovation activities in many unstructured ways, failing to provide a comprehensive approach to innovation from end-to-end we do limit adoption and identification. Both of these policy issues are very much part of the incumbent innovator’s dilemma to resolve. Policy and Reality seem to mirror the same issues.

The scope of “breakthrough innovation” is coming increasingly reliant on digital technologies, automation, data processing and artificial intelligence (AI) the view is this has a longer-term impact and is potentially drawing from the immediate and medium-term innovation as this shift in innovation continues to gather momentum. This longer-term focus might not provide the productivity growth in the medium term as we go through the changes that these technology and digital solutions require. Again, I think this mirrors the current organization dilemmas on making the level of commitment to changing and adapting to technology and what it will bring in any new innovation activity.

The two other crucial observations that emerge from this GII report are, firstly “businesses do not seem to engage in innovation processes, products and solutions evenly, leading to slower productivity growth” I view this comment validating the struggle many organizations are facing moving from a closed innovation approach into a more open one, even embracing platforms and ecosystems which point far more to greater growth potential.

Secondly, they worry over “knowledge gaps” are still prominent and possibly growing. Perhaps we are losing more experience in capabilities and competences and becoming a little over-reliant on automating the process would be a question I would have from this comment?

The really encouraging messages for us all are these.

The really encouraging messages that should give belief into the innovator working in the trenches from this report are the following

1. Innovation is recognized by all economies as vitally important to nurture and develop. In the past, it was the domain of the high-income economies but the developing economies are getting the “innovation message, where they have an “abundance” of natural resources they need innovative thinking and policies to boast both economical and social development. The interest in innovation is getting wider appreciation and attention. That is a good thing for innovators in those countries to get the sense of identity of innovations importance and their need to embrace it.
2. Then the recognition that innovation covers “all realms of the economy” and finally “breaking the myth” innovation is solely concerned with science-driven and high-tech driven outputs is a potential breakthrough for the sustaining health of innovation into the future. We need solutions to countless global challenges so we need to recognize innovation’s place within this.
3. The ability to conceptualize innovation has radically altered innovation understanding. The active interest in promoting local, frugal and inclusive innovation is taking hold and blending far more with local cultures, crafts, and skillsets. This recognizing innovation is local, it can evolve in local ways that may on the surface not be traditional but can encourage a platform of new entrepreneurs and creative thinkers to release themselves from the shackles of doctrine and just experiment, explore and discover innovation “their way”.

What I take away here is the changing recognition we are having of the importance of innovation globally.

This bottom-up movement of innovation activity is so much more productive than imposing innovation conditions from the top. The policy should be far more towards enablers and facilitators, measuring engagement and achievement so much differently than we do today. Grass-roots innovation leads to green-shoots of economic and social stimulus and growth. The policy should be more nurturing and more sustaining.

Each of these has stimulated modern-day trend shifts in innovation policy.

• The realization of societal challenges, such as food security, environmental challenges, energy transitions, and health is gaining increased attention and realization that innovation is central to these.
• The organization of innovation is for all. Innovation stimulus or activity is not the focus of one department or ministry, it has become cross-ministerial in the task and collective government attention. This allows for greater potential in public and private collaborations as dealing across ministries was always a significant barrier, that seems to be finally addressed.
• The really major shift is towards dynamic innovation ecosystems. The report is detecting the gravitating from “just” fostering science and R&D expenditure to the striving for the creation and upkeep of sound and dynamic innovation ecosystems. This is absolute (lovely) music to my ears, focusing my time and energy onto dynamic innovation ecosystems.
• The last one is how date-based evidence and innovation metrics are increasing at the center of crafting, deploying and evaluating innovation (policies).

Equally, the good thing is innovation is gravitating into a healthier recognition of its critical role at the national country level.

The report points towards a growing awareness for promoting “increased curiosity of science and entrepreneurship in children and students, on how to make public research more relevant to business, how to promote inward technology transfers and foster business innovation expenditure to be designed into innovation policies to gain increased adoption of innovation and enabling the conditions for this to happen.

The underlying messages from the GII report.

The underlying message one gets is the realization (finally), at national level, to anchor policy objectives into innovation is necessitating investment in these enabling conditions such as infrastructure in research and technology transfer, in education and skills, in promoting entrepreneurs and seek to attract venture capital as occurring, not just as part of past practice for a few developed economies but for the vast majority seeking ways to reduce the divides and gaps, finally recognizing that within their possession is a cadre of innovators who can make a real difference in their national economies but also increasingly on the global stage,.

The report concludes there is true progress in fostering innovation on the ground globally to foster innovation. Now that enables all innovators and can help in recognizing and delivering the foundations for innovation-driven growth, something we all need to work towards.

The post Checking for the global pulse of innovation first appeared on Building Your Innovation & Ecosystem Intelligence.

We all need to begin to grapple with what is redefining work in knowledge, skills, our experience, and our necessary abilities to be viable and useful

We continue to hear and begin to see the effects of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It continues to impact skills, tasks, and jobs.

The implications are a growing concern that both job displacement and talent shortages will impact business dynamism and societal cohesion. It is the pervasive power of technology integration that will change the business models of all industries.

Yet we are recognizing it will also giving rise to a number of emerging jobs yet to be identified or formulized to be trained in. A proactive and strategic effort is needed but based on what? We need to manage reskilling and upskilling to mitigate against both job losses and talent shortages but prepared the future workforce to be more nimble, agile and fluid. Here is where innovators are going to be well-positioned.

Working within the innovation space will be one of the best launching pads for being more comfortable for the future of work. Let me explain why

First, we have to recognize “Human capital is still the most crucial asset of any business—in fact, even in an age of ubiquitous technology, it is human skills, creativity, and capability that will form the competitive edge for any organization” (WEF report quote). We will continue to have basic components of a job. Aptitude in Knowledge, in our Skills and our Abilities, to do the job on hand. Then it will also rely on the experiences we have gained in education, in improving on what we know and the work-related experience.

A detailed report for the World Economic Forum in 2018 “Towards a Reskilling Revolution: Industry-led action for the future of work”, in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group, investigated viable and desirable job transition pathways on the Future of Jobs. What struck me was the role innovation plays in all three categories: today’s skills (2018), those that will have demand in 2022, and those that will decline in 2022.

Look at the skills predicted to decrease in 2022, many of which are still being taught in our schools, and many that we continue to traditionally focus on within our present work. Transitioning from skills we find comfortable today to skills that will be new to many of us, is a journey for each of us.

This list of skills we all need to increase is the source of innovation thinking, technology certainly gives us knowledge and insights but it is capabilities to “string this together” in connections that might not be capable to be provided on the pure reliance of algorithms, artificial intelligence or machine learning. Humans are better at making the randomness form connections that are often described as “light bulb” moments or eureka discoveries. We seem to connect more of the unconnected and reform it into a new connect.

We all need to recognize and begin to adapt to this transition that we will all need to become readier to accept being self-managed. That’s a good thing. For many, it is a little uncomfortable to not be supervised but for the innovator within us, it is the pathway to creative freedom. So, we need to look around and see what might help us.

We need to understand how to become more intrapreneurial, agile, and adaptable, and continuously seek out a diverse set of collaboration spaces as places where we can be seen, appreciated, and valued. Working in the innovation space offers you the opportunity to grow and learn what this means and how it works for you.

So, the value of becoming more engaged in being creative, wanting to participate in innovations, will position those people at a significant advantage in the new world of skills we will be needing.

The Big Takeaway for me is the positioning of working in the Innovation Space

Working in the innovation space will greatly enable you to build skills that will become increasingly valuable.

Just STOP here and re-evaluate this skill demand 2018 vs 2022- What do you see? Differences that you need to adjust too and learn now.

Just take this insight into our roles, the role to influence, to change existing roles, to influence and lead others, and lay claim to mastering the skills that are needed in 2022. Prepare yourself, innovators, and take that “future of work” hill.

How can we “give voice” and influence bigger challenges? How can we project ourselves beyond those that know us? By taking a more outward action, even we can get re-engaged to influence and change things that can make a difference. Innovation is a terrific enabler to gain confidence, to show your worth, and to feel like you are contributing to the future. We need to focus on bringing value into what we do, and innovation is one of those uplifting ways to achieve this.

Let’s think about this a little more with some higher-level thoughts.

Recognition of being empowered by innovation

Innovation needs to transform from being some abstract, distant, vague thing that seems still separated in its specialized unit and not seemingly part of the core of the business we work in. Innovation is central to surviving in the future; it is where we provide not just something new but a better advancement on what we presently have. It is far more than a means to make things faster, cheaper, or slightly different; it is a place to show transformation – to become more radical in what can be possible and seen as highly valuable. Breakthroughs in health, food, energy, agriculture, and tourism can all be more “sustainable” for our planet and for us to live better lives.

Have you noticed everyone has a different definition of innovation? We all struggle with our own definitions of what innovation means. So what? Get over it, and let’s recognize that innovation needs to have outcomes that give a certain uniqueness or that sustaining edge to what is presently available.  We need to finally nail innovation down, it aims to improve on what we have. Look for your innovation to be distinctly different, empowering, motivating, and showing engagement.

The Big Recognition Innovators All Need

As you innovate, you grow your personal value. You get exposed to risk and uncertainty, and how you react gives you confidence or can equally drain that confidence away. Whether you gained confidence in your actions or lost it, it is the experience that lets you grow. It helps you navigate unknown scenarios better, and this skill increases the more you expose yourself to risk. Engaging in innovation can have a profound impact on you. Is this why we shy away from innovation when it seems to have far too many obstacles? Or do we push back and overcome these obstacles? As we push back, we are reshaping ourselves to be far more ready for a different future. Not a bad thing in my mind. It all prepares us to be more confident in the future.

When we feel our culture to innovate is wrong, what should we do about it? Should we disengage, or should we show its viability and make your voice one that matters in that validation? We are pushing ourselves as we equally need to push our organizations. We are becoming more entrepreneurial or intrapreneurial in seeking curiosity, creativity, and human capability, to demonstrate why the culture should change, and here’s why in your endeavors you look for those positive climates and environments, that can allow you to innovate.

We all must get far more comfortable with dealing in all the unknowns coming towards us.

The innovation spaces provide plenty of the unknowns; how we go about overcoming them is the gift we have as humans. Machines can help, but humans can recognize and relate far more. We see multiple patterns if we open our minds to them. Machines help us, but ingenuity is with us for a long time.

We often have a natural reflex to go back into safe mode, especially when it comes to innovation. We see the over-investment in productivity that not only drives out variances, but it can also drive out the space and time for creativity equally. We must fight this. Evolution is not built around today’s operations. We need increased flexibility. In shorter production runs to cater increasingly to individual customer demand, we need to tailor our responses far quicker, and we need to be highly adaptive and agile. So, when you feel that reflective urge to revert, fight it. You become far quicker and skillful in what you do.

Raise your voice; offer sound reasons why a different culture would help find better answers to grow the business and keep your ‘own eye on the ball’ when it comes to your personal learning. You will be in increasing demand in the future with these skills shown above.

Can you push for more “foundation” investment in innovation?

Just reconsider this list of the roles that need greater investment and the ones that will decline and will over a fairly short time have a declining investment in. This becomes a very compelling argument for skill investments, on where to spend the organization’s money to re-equip it for its future. Let machine learning, artificial intelligence take over the “declining list” as its natural place. Fight to make human space in the increasing skills you need, where humans do have a significant advantage.

This transition to positioning ourselves for the jobs in the future is ALL ABOUT the needs of the innovator to get to build their knowledge, skills, and aptitudes in each of these listed above. Go back and look at the list. Innovators need all these and they need to focus on these even more as they are the basis of all work of the future.

My advice, start early and become an innovator and spend your time and energy learning and experiencing all these learning components can offer, to give you a set of experiences that position you for the future.

We need to build our personal roadmap.

We need to be clearer on our own personal ROI. To seek out challenges and opportunities, and go closer to the edge, we do see within ourselves, so much more, far more because we are experiencing the edge; the edge of discovery, investigation, and inquiry.

We gain personal power, and our voices are respected and recognized because we were just that bit bolder, edgier, or ready to take something on. Try it. It is invigorating and sometimes a little scary, but we are in that sort of world. The innovator’s skills will be in increasing demand, so be ready, willing and able.

The post Your Future Lies in Occupying the Innovation Job and Using the Skills it Provides first appeared on Building Your Innovation & Ecosystem Intelligence.

I have a group of Ecosystem Mind maps but I thought I’d share this one here to trigger further the thinking that needs to go into building an Innovation Ecosystem. Does it work for you? To be honest I am not sure if it conveys as much as I would like, to reflect on differences when you come to working in innovation ecosystem designs .

To get groups to think more openly about considering innovation in a more ecosystem approach to design and interaction I like to often refer to my mind maps to trigger discussions.

Sometimes it is mine, and mine alone, and I simply talk around it without showing the map, other times I show the map. The problem when you show maps, everyone works through it in their own unique way, however hard you try to get them to work through it in the way you want them too.

I have found mind maps are increasingly highly personal and it can take twice as long to explain something when you show the map to someone else. I think to put the mind map into a powerpoint “stages” it accordingly but it takes away the total map effect.

The key for me in the map shown below is to view considerations differently when you are thinking innovation ecosystems. There are your strategic considerations, there are tactical considerations and then there are value building considerations.

It is when you have these a little more firmly in your mind you have to repeat these different considerations for those other parties that are looking to be within the same innovation ecosystem. They can produce, seemingly, very different aims but it is working around this map you begin to see common goals or objectives.

Partners come into a collaborative ecosystem for different reasons and equally are looking for their own distinct outcomes, they can achieve in partnering with you. You might offer the product, they the service, the logistics, the linkages into technology designed into your innovation, etc., etc. Does the map make any sense to begin to structure thinking around innovation ecosystems?

I know I need to begin a version two fairly soo,n as there is a lot of other parts of this map that are missing to build a complete ecosystem approach. Presently these are ‘captured’ on separate ecosystem mind maps that help me in any preparation or referencing. The problem when you map them they become too complicated and “dense” that you cannot convey all the “connected parts” in an easy, quick way to grasp.

I need to think how to handle this but in the meantime, I just wanted to share my current (earlier version) as something to trigger your thoughts about considering innovation within a more ecosystem way of thinking. I hope you can read it, sorry but I think you will have to squint away on mobiles.

I need to change to a different approach to mapping complexity or linked parts. Any suggestion for me?

The post Facilitating the Innovation Ecosystem Design first appeared on Building Your Innovation & Ecosystem Intelligence.