How to create high-performing innovation teams

Index

Prologue

1. Introduction and background

Reading instructions
The purpose of this book - a guideline and hands-on methodology

Innovation - do or die
Planning your innovation portfolio
Incremental and radical innovation
The danger of too slim organizations
Shorter and shorter Product life cycles are - speed up innovation work
Innovate for the future

The group development process and its problems - waste of time
Team building the right way
Group or team - it's not the same! Know the difference
The group development process: forming, storming, norming, performing, and dissolving
Creating high-performing innovation teams - a methodology

Summary

Questions for reflection and discussion: Management-, Team- and Team member perspective

? 2. Organizational conditions for innovation work

Innovation enablers - factors that enable innovation
Innovation enablers in three perspectives - the organization, the team and the team members
The innovation enablers effect innovation teams' work

Organizational structures and innovation teams
Industrial or post-industrial structure affect innovation capabilities

The innovation process - agile work for faster results
Innovation work - not fuzzy and difficult, but more complex

The facilitator - stimulating successful learning
The facilitator - when and how to support the innovation team

Summary
Questions for reflection and discussion: Management-, Team- and Team member perspective

? 3. High-performing innovation teams in five steps
Step 1 - ensuring management commitment and support
Management is crucial for long term success
Develop understanding on innovation and innovation teams
The sponsor - key person with an important mission
Be patient, it takes time
Begin with a small project, to learn the methodology
Setting directions - invitation to creativity
Empowerment for innovation

Step 2 - identification of convener
Establish conditions for long term learning
The convener is not a project manager
The convener wants change, in collaboration

Step 3 - preparation of the convener
The role of the innovation facilitator
Crash course - this is what to know about
Creating the innovation team according to project focus
Keep management and sponsor updated during preparation
Manage change resistance
If it stops - restart

Step 4 - create the innovation team
key persons - how to select team members
Function before personality
Criteria to fulfil by members
The power of small innovation teams
Multifunctional vs homogenous innovation teams - what's the difference?
Avoiding internal competition in innovation teams
Effective communication for success
The innovation team - a safe place

Step 5 - Kick off
Before kick off - a last check before take off
Time for action
Considering learning as an outcome
On the kick off - how to prioritize activities
Establishing the innovation team - norms and ways of working
Getting to know each other - professionally and personally
Common ownership and responsibilities - why it matters
Setting innovation related goals and sub goals
Breaking the rules - navigating in the organization
Swearing the blood pact - let's do this, full throttle
After the kick off

Summary

Questions for reflection and discussion: Management-, Team- and Team member perspective

? 4. Innovation team's continued work

The development of the innovation team - thing to watch out for
Challenges for the newly created innovation team
Avoiding isolation - Increasing collaboration for progress

Questions for reflection and discussion: Management-, Team- and Team member perspective



5. Innovation teams in a global setting - working distributed

Distributed high-performing innovation teams in global companies
Challenges for global companies conducting distributed innovation work

Questions for reflection and discussion: Management-, Team- and Team member perspective