What if we could get our people and partners to work and innovate together as one global team towards digital transformation? And to do it seamlessly across functions, regions and job titles? The scene is set in the recent Arthur D. Little report on how digital technologies will transform the way companies innovate. The research found that one of the most fundamental pillars for digital transformation lies, perhaps unexpectedly, in people’s collective intelligence.

According to the study “Innovating in the digital age – a cross-industry exploration”, 93% of companies agree that digital innovation will transform their organisation and the way innovation gets done. Almost all the participants expect to fully digitalise their innovation engine or even their entire company, yet 89% feel that current strategies are insufficient and successful digital innovation will require a new approach to innovation management.

Remember the human factor in digital transformation

Given this reality, the firm identified 9 building blocks that can improve the way businesses innovate. They include Big data/advanced analytics, Connected things, Cognitive, self-learning systems, Augmented reality, Virtual modelling/simulation, Additive manufacturing, Virtual workplace and eLearning.

Beyond these more technological assets, Collective intelligence/crowd-sourcing stands out as one of the most fundamental pillars and sources of innovation management in the digital age. Innovation interactions must therefore be promoted, allowing people to work seamlessly and effortlessly with anyone, anywhere.

The message is clear: in the age of digital transformation, businesses mustn’t forget that one of their greatest assets isn’t just technology, but also the human side of their organisations.

Companies can and should make people more effective innovators through a clever design of their digital environment, to leverage all their expertise and collective knowledge.

How digital unleashes your untapped Human Resources potential

By uniting technology and the wisdom of the crowd, gaining insights from the collective intelligence of both internal and external individuals brings a distinct benefit to the way companies innovate. While the advantages of drawing on the collective intelligence of an organisation’s workforce are well-documented, broadening the reach to external individuals through technology has also proven results for businesses today.

Looking beyond corporate walls, businesses can increase customer satisfaction, improve quality, and reduce cost and risk by bringing in and connecting stakeholders, such as suppliers, universities, labs and entrepreneurs, throughout the development process. This open innovation approach, which is enabled by specifically designed idea management tools and platforms, allows organisations to tap into the knowledge, insights and viewpoints of important external actors, building further value in their innovation programmes.

Driven by the input of both internal and external individuals, the adoption of an end-to-end business platform leads to faster and more efficient development of novel solutions, and reduced production costs through improved production output. Platforms such as Exago innovation management software can help focus a company’s collective intelligence on key business challenges, aligned with digital transformation purposes – something that innovation leaders today are discovering to ensure continuous and sustained success.

For further reading into how businesses today can innovate, take a look at our Innovation Library.
 

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