Encouraging Innovation in Businesses: Approaches & Examples

The video explores how businesses can foster innovation through various approaches like kaizen, R&D, benchmarking, and intrapreneurship. It highlights the UK's productivity puzzle and the role of innovation in addressing it. The importance of creating an inclusive culture that encourages employee ideas is emphasized, with examples from Google and Facebook. The video concludes by stressing the need for planning and evaluation in implementing innovative ideas.

What does the term 'kaizen' refer to in a business context?

• A one-time quality improvement

• Continuous quality improvement

• A cost-cutting strategy

• A marketing technique

Why is collaboration across departments important for innovation?

• It reduces the workload for managers

• It simplifies the decision-making process

• It allows for diverse perspectives on product improvement

• It increases competition among employees

What is the 'productivity puzzle' in the UK?

• A sudden increase in productivity

• A decline in productivity despite economic recovery

• An increase in labor costs

• A consistent productivity trend

How does cheap labor affect innovation in UK businesses?

• It leads to a focus on process innovation

• It encourages more R&D investment

• It increases the demand for skilled workers

• It reduces the need for costly innovation

What is a major challenge of R&D in businesses?

• Guaranteed success

• Low costs

• Immediate results

• Time lags and high expenses

What is benchmarking in the context of business innovation?

• A technique to lower production costs

• A strategy to increase competition

• A way to share information for mutual benefit

• A method to reduce employee workload

Why might companies from different industries share information?

• To simplify operations

• To increase rivalry

• To benefit mutually

• To reduce market size

What is intrapreneurship?

• Encouraging employees to propose innovations

• Encouraging external entrepreneurs

• Focusing solely on financial growth

• Top-down management of ideas

How did Google's 20% program benefit the company?

• It decreased the need for external partnerships

• It increased the company's market share

• It led to the creation of successful products like Gmail

• It reduced employee working hours

What is essential for a business to effectively implement innovative ideas?

• A focus on short-term gains

• A structured and inclusive culture

• A top-down management approach

• A large budget