Last lesson learned: Ideation for Innovation is a social networking activity

Today's look at how to get people to engage in collaborative ideation.

In a final thought for the year, as we wrestle with getting our Innovation Strategies in line with our Innovation Climate; with getting our Innovation Technologies in place, the biggest hurdle remains adoption. How do we get people to collaborate. How do we get everyone to use the new idea management system? Well here are some thoughts.

We all continue to learn how best to get communities of individuals to work
together on the challenges organizations face.
We know we need technology to get enough people to engage; to have them
engage across divisions and time zones; to keep track of all the accumulated
ideas and information. We know it takes
more than technology; it takes an Innovation Strategy and creation of a climate
conducive to collaboration. But we keep
learning more based on both experience and ongoing social science conducted at
an academic level.

Here are some thought from the world of academia'

• You need good examples from the top. This
  should be no surprise based on our intuition.
  We all sort of know that if the boss makes a contribution then everyone
  else get a bit more comfortable. But
  recently, a study showed that a decline in prejudice was strongest when
  populations saw good examples in an active way. The effect was also stronger
  among those least likely to embrace.
• We've always embraced failure out
  here in Innovation world but a common question I've heard from neophytes is
  'What do we do with all those old timers and conservative types who post
  negative comments? They can kill a
  project before it starts.' Studies have
  shown it is healthy for folks to post their negative thinking, but only
  if it is dismissed as such by consensus or the moderator of the challenge. By writing down'then throwing it away, the
  community can actually reverse one's judgment.
  Contributors then tend to rely less on those thoughts to judge. BTW, imagining the act of throwing
  one's thoughts away didn't have the same effect.
• When we start vetting ideas by pointing out the negative attributes (like
  Weaknesses and Threats in a SWOT approach), we can draw attention to the
  catastrophes awaiting our organization by NOT following through on
  Innovation. This starts opening minds
  making communities more open to the ideas of others; it creates a preference
  for diplomacy and negotiation instead of outright rejection of others notions.
• Lastly, new research suggests that
  you can boost contributions merely by offering
  up rewards in separate categories. In several studies, participants were
  asked to participate in tasks in exchange for up to two rewards, awarded in
  proportion to effort. In the first scenario, some contributors were told that
  for extra work (like ideas instead of working on their day jobs), they could
  pick a second prize from the same large pool of prizes; in the second experiment,
  the community was divided into two small groups, and collaborators were told
  that for extra work, they could pick a second prize from the another category.
  Even though the first scenario allowed participants more options in choosing rewards, the second scenario caused participants to expend significantly more
  effort on the tasks, because participants didn't want to regret not choosing a
  reward from the alternative collection.

Of course expert advice is offered
for community management, idea management and how to kick off a social network
dedicated to innovation from your software vendor.

Goldman, S., 'Effects of the 2008 Obama
Presidential Campaign on White Racial Prejudice,' Public Opinion Quarterly
(Winter 2012).

Pyszczynski, T. et al., 'Drawing Attention
to Global Climate Change Decreases Support for War,' Peace and Conflict:
Journal of Peace Psychology (November 2012).