How do you become an innovation manager?

Innovation management is much more than the basics like what is innovation, what is design thinking, lean startup etc… practices that nowadays everyone can be more or less trained on. Innovation management is connecting an idea to value (the business need), is about finding the right people to believe to this idea, and through them enabling the resources to experiment, develop and launch. Innovation management is about keeping a helicopter view on the business, the needs, the trends and the future. The ability to understand these points, connect the dots, create flows and build value are critical to successfully manage innovation.

You have to be the bridge between creative ideation and practical applicability ? You need to put innovation into the context of your company or the your specific department - differences are quite big. You must have the toolset and framework to fuel innovation. Also a great deal of empathy to understand where the people and business stand and what can be the next step. Good luck!

To foster innovation, cultivate an innovative mindset. Embrace unique perspectives and consistently approach the world from a different angle...

It will take two things: The first is a set of skills you can learn and develop over time.That includes leadership and management, making strategic decisions, understanding relevant technology or product development processes. The second however is a characteristic that you either posess or you don't: a never ending curiosity and riskaffinity. A creative way of thinking and the ability to come up with innovative solutions outside the box. That is where real value can be created.

Two things that I'd like to add to the bucket of basics: 1) You have to learn to read the corporate context of your company and how to work with it. Circle of Control = Output metrics Circle of Influence = Outcome metrics Circle of Contribution = Impact metrics 2) The methods and tools mentioned all refer to the early stage. Innovation is an end-to-end journey. If it does not scale, all these early-stage activities are just a costly hobby. Innovation managers need the skills to transition to scale or to scale. This could mean, e.g., designing a scalable business and transition to scale/Scaling-Up or innovation/business integration

Having a broad and deep experience in product development, marketing and performance or financial management will be helpful to get an entry level role. Alongside, learning and applying design thinking concept and transformation and change management frameworks certainly make an innovation manager stands out from their peers.

Becoming an innovation manager requires an innovative mindset, continuous learning, and effective communication. Key skills include understanding methodologies like design thinking and agile approaches, learning from experience, and fostering a collaborative culture. Strategic leadership, smart risk management, and defining clear success metrics are crucial. Aligning innovation with organizational culture and creating an environment that celebrates creative thinking are essential. In summary, it demands technical skills, a commitment to creativity, resilience, and collaboration, paving the way for a vibrant business future.

Keine Angst vorm Scheitern! Innovationsprojekte sind oft mit try and error verbunden. Ich hatte schon Innovationen, die in der Theorie genial waren, jedoch konnte ich mein Team nicht überzeugen und so wurde nichts daraus. Vielleicht passt es zu einem sp?teren Zeitpunkt besser. Wenn alle Innovationen beim ersten Versuch umsetzbar gewesen w?ren, würden wir wahrscheinlich schon den Mars besiedeln.

I think you have to have deep curiosity, and willing to try and fail. In order to succeed in innovation management. As usually No is the common answer. Change management becomes the key point un the role

Als Innovationsmanager ist man Unternehmer im Unternehmen. Probleml?sung und Change Management sind dabei erforderlich, aber am Ende ist es das wichtigste zu 100% hinter der Innovation zu stehen und für dessen Erfolg zu k?mpfen - als Product Champion!

Get involved in your local innovation ecosystem events, even if you are just getting started. Try to meet different people from those events and ask them to introduce you to people who are experts in a specific topic in which you would like to learn more about. This can help you reach your goals exponentially and might be a great way to break into this industry. Feel free to reach out if you would like to share some thoughts on this or other topics.

In the innovation space, like in many other spaces, knowing people is key. Hiring managers will be bombarded with resumes and applications, and often a personal connection or referral can help one stand out. This can start at conferences and events, getting to know future peers and building relationships. It also entails cold messaging people to buy them coffees and learn from them. The important thing is to be sincere about the relationship and really wanting to care about the person. Connecting for the sake of advancement is cold, insincere and will not work.

In addition to traditional networking, leverage digital platforms like LinkedIn and innovation-focused forums to connect with a diverse range of professionals. Actively participate in online discussions, share your insights, and explore virtual events to expand your network globally. Remember, a well-crafted online presence can enhance your visibility and attract collaboration opportunities, making you a dynamic force in the innovation community.

Im Bereich KI und Online Marketing halte ich LinkedIn für das mit Abstand wichtigste und aktivste Netzwerk. Folgt den Leuten, die brauchbare Insights geben. Nach und nach werden immer relevantere Posts auftauchen. Sehr viele gute und erfahrene Leute teilen t?glich ihre ?u?erst wertvollen Erfahrungen kostenlos - sharing is caring.

la red de contactos es claves, dise?adores, programadores, el gobierno, las entidades de financiamiento, el ecosistema innovador local, nacional e internacional, conocer lo que las universidades o los que promueven el I+D esta realizando etc.

Innovation doesn't belong to one specific industry or area of expertise. It's a factor that brings change, so make sure you frame the portfolio with that in mind by highlighting the initial state as the context, the problem, the solution, the plan or execution, and end with the results. The bigger the transformation compared to the problem, the more impactful. Check Rory Sutherland case stadies.

Go beyond just describing projects; quantify their success. Did your innovation boost revenue by 10%? Increase customer engagement by 25%? Metrics like these grab attention and showcase your value.

Don't be scared to have a multi profile portfolio. Innovation is all about failures and retry. It is also a topic that is profoundly diverse and transdisciplinary. So it's normal to have deep and multidisciplinary experiences throughout the technology spectrum.

Showcasing a portfolio of innovation is how you demonstrate that innovation is managed. It means that you have systems in place to monitor and evaluate them. It is important to have clear and complementary indicators which combine quantitative and qualitative analysis of your innovations. The quality of an innovation portfolio is not only measured by the number of ideas but also on the creation of value. It is also important to demonstrate how your portfolio of innovation is efficient in reducing the ratio knowledge/ assumption.

I might take a different angle on this particular topic. It is probably fair to say that a lot of companies have tried to engage with employees to share ideas; and those ideas didn't lead to any action, including communicating with those employees. When a company does make use of ideas shared and developed by employees, it is essential for future campaigns and involvements to showcase a portfolio of prior successes and implementations. To communicate contributes to making people engage in the long-run.

A nice way Italians put it is: ANCORA IMPARO - "I'm still learning". One never reaches the end in this field, the complete mastery. There is always something new and valuable applied in an ever evolving context and hence something else to learn.

In line with recommendations from ISO56002 a proper innovation management system requires a continuous improvement system and therefore continuous learning. Besides staying in touch with relevant professional institutions it is also important to contribute to the global innovation management community by writing and publishing on our own lessons learned. Capturing and sharing the lessons learned at the end of an innovation management project whether it went well or not every innovation management project has something to teach us as long as we do the effort of capturing it.

Don't fear mistakes, embrace them as learning fuel. Prototype quickly, iterate relentlessly. Failcheap, fail fast, fail often, innovate better

"Learning is the key to survival." Given the fluidity of today's market, where dynamism is the norm, the changing and ever-evolving nature of our environment necessitates constant "updates" to our knowledge. To maintain a competitive advantage over your peers in the market, you must keep learning. Always make time for education and keep it regular—whether daily, weekly, monthly, or even annually. But never stop learning.

Embrace challenges. Constantly seek areas for improvement. Upskill and reskill. Stay abreast with modern trends, tools, technology and techniques. Think strategically - short, medium and long term. Weigh impact of changes and decisions. Collaborate and communicate - very important. Engage stakeholders. Stay adaptable.

Innovation can often be a thankless job. Most people in the business do not understand what you do, or do not see the point of it. When times are tough, it is the first role to cut. And rarely does anyone get enough time to proof their value before being judged for it. Reflect on what innovation truly means and contributes to business and think whether you might be better placed in other roles where you can still innovate but under a business umbrella. This often has more longevity and impact.

The term "manage" might not perfectly encapsulate the dynamic and creative nature of innovation. Key for innovation is stimulating an innovative environment, spirit and mindset, for which "facilitate" is the better term to guide the process. "Manage" will be more applicable to the results of the innovative process to tangible services or products.

As my collegue Cara Antoine would say "it is about becoming a learn it all". Most people think that the job of innovation manager is to innovate, but it is about facilitating the amazing people in the organisation to be able to explore their ideas, To experiment with new technologies, to collaborate with other amazing people in an open and sharing environment. To manage innovation you need to be curious, open and authentic to encourage people to do new things. because ideas are personal and deeply ingrained in people.

Nobody is born an innovator Most Innovator Managers have their own way for innovation, leveraging past experiences, transverse skillset and a lot of stakeholder management skills. Innovation has also vertical skills you need to develop and master. At the moment, there are no certifications that will give you the job. Go out there and hustle to be an innovation manager. It is hard and so rewarding for the ones that stick to it

recomiendo mirar las tendencias en todo ámbito, estar constantemente leyendo autores afines con la innovación, visitando ferias de tecnologías, observando los cambios globales, identificando las oportunidades y sobretodo conocer os activos y competencias de la organización en la que operas para poder ver oportunidades futuras de agregación de valor.