In pursuit of innovation

Is your organization on the path to pursue innovation? Use this checklist to help find out.

Many of today’s health care organizations are exploring new innovation strategies to create value and sustain competitive advantage. CEOs – together with their boards of directors and clinical leadership – should consider if they are prepared to maximize the impact of their innovation investments.

What do successfully innovative organizations have in common? Deloitte found that 92 percent of innovative organizations have instituted a system of innovation built around four key components that serve as the foundation of “A CEO checklist” – a toolkit for leaders to determine if their organization’s approach to innovation measures up to that of demonstrably successful innovators:

·         Approach – An organization’s method for establishing clear definitions for the work to be done in creating innovations. Levers include innovation strategy, pipeline & portfolio management, and process.

·         Organization – The units that house innovation competency and the connections among those charged with driving innovation within the broader enterprise and the world. The three levers for organization are senior leadership, governance, and collaboration.

·         Resources & competencies – The individuals who perform the work; the skills, tools, and training they need to perform that work capably; and the funding and time to fuel the work. Levers include funding, talent management, and innovation tools.

·         Metrics & incentives – The targets to guide performance, the measures to evaluate progress, and the incentives (monetary and otherwise) to drive supporting behaviors. The three levers are financial & nonfinancial rewards, innovation metrics, and external attraction.

This checklist describes each component, with short examples and case studies from across health care.