The role of the visionary innovator in moving towards innovative organisations

The urgency to innovate for organisational survival has become increasingly recognized, with the result that innovation has conquered a position high on the management agenda. However, the unfamiliarity around innovation pose a challenge for innovation management. No unique solution exists to building a successful innovation approach, such that firms are forced to experiment with innovation approaches. In analysing the innovation approaches of four large international organisations we find that these organisations share an essential common element: the presence of one or more ‘visionary innovators’ who are determined to lead a movement towards organisational change. We present a theoretical framework to illustrate four core characteristics of a visionary innovator, based on empirical evidence. The visionary innovators possesses traits to discover and realise innovations, business and political know-how, the ability to create and share a vision and space to realise that vision. We propose that a visionary innovator determined to spread such a mindset is indispensable to successfully achieve innovation. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372

The organization as a prototype

Some of the most valuable companies in the world accumulated their fortunes as a result of a business model innovation built upon matured technologies. Now the majority of them are investing and shifting their focus to the development of new technologies such as AI, blockchain and genetic editing. If an organization is to remain profitable, it needs to be able to quickly adjust its structure to the rapidly changing context. We contend that a way to do so is to build an organizational structure that is conductive to both generative and evaluative prototypes. We report on our action research with a leading European airline following the transformation of a team of four into a new department, through the lenses of continuous prototyping. We then propose an initial framework that conceptualises organizational prototypes and provides a rational and systematic way of approaching the devising of such. Finally, we outline several directions for further research. https://doi.org/10.33114/adim.2019.07.227 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372

Exploring the fourth order: Designing organisational infrastructure

Companies are organised to fulfil two distinctive functions: efficient and resilient exploitation of current business and parallel exploration of new possibilities. For the latter, companies require strong organisational infrastructure such as team compositions and functional structures to ensure exploration remains effective. This paper explores the potential for designing organisational infrastructure to be part of fourth order subject matter. In particular, it explores how organisational infrastructure could be designed in the context of an exploratory unit, operating in a large heritage airline. This paper leverages insights from a long-term action research project and finds that building trust and shared frames are crucial to designing infrastructure that affords the greater explorative agenda of an organisation. https://doi.org/10.33114/adim.2019.07.227 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372

Advancing industry through design: A longitudinal case study of the aviation industry

Design educators and industry partners are critical knowledge managers and co-drivers of change, and design graduate and post-graduate students can act as catalysts for new ideas, energy, and perspectives. In this article, we will explore how design advances industry development through the lens of a longitudinal inquiry into activities carried out as part of a Dutch design faculty-industry collaboration. We analyze seventy-five (75) Master of Science (MSc) thesis outcomes and seven (7) Doctorate (PhD) thesis outcomes (five in progress) to identify ways that design activities have influenced advances in the Dutch aviation industry over time. Based on these findings, we then introduce an Industry Design Framework, which organizes the industry/design relationship as a three-layered system. This novel approach to engaging industry in design research and design education has immediate practical value and theoretical significance, both in the present and for future research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sheji.2019.07.003 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372

Overcoming the Valley of Death: A design innovation perspective

In large organizations, innovation activities often take place in separate departments, centers, or studios. These departments aim to produce prototypes of solutions to the problems of operational business owners. However, too often these concepts remain in the prototype stage: they are never implemented and fall into what is popularly termed the Valley of Death. A design approach to innovation is presented as a solution to the problem. However, practice shows that teams that use design nevertheless encounter implementation challenges due to the larger infrastructure of the organization they are part of. This research aims to explore which organizational factors contribute to the Valley of Death during design innovation. An embedded multiple case study at a large heritage airline is applied. Four projects are analyzed to identify implementation challenges. A thematic data analysis reveals organizational design, departmental silos, and dissimilar innovation strategies contribute to the formation of, and encounters with, the Valley of Death. Arising resource-assignment challenges that result from these factors are also identified. Materialization, user-centeredness, and holistic problem framing are identified as design practices that mitigate encounters with the Valley of Death, thus leading to projects being fully realized. https://doi.org/10.1111/dmj.12052 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372

Using dynamic capabilities in an actionable tool as a vehicle to initiate design-driven innovation

In order to become more innovative, corporations are increasingly turning to design­-driven innovation capabilities. These capabilities are dynamic: they influence the way companies run their business and how companies create, capture and deliver value. Building design capabilities has proven difficult, given the tacit nature of design practice and the conflicting reasoning style of abduction that allows for the creative leap. However, if these enterprises don't improve, they are in danger of losing their ability to add value to the market. This may result in loss of market-share, which may lead to job destruction and the loss of valuable knowledge as communities of practice fall apart. This paper describes an iterative design process in which a tool was developed to determine which design-driven innovation capabilities a company is lacking. The tool started as a theoretical framework and was subsequently developed by prototyping with innovation managers from several large corporates. This paper contributes a new 'dynamic capabilities view' on design and innovation and a practical approach to implementing design in large firms. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372

Overcoming the valley of death: A design innovation perspective

In large organisations, innovation activities are often located in separate departments, centres or studios. These departments aim to produce prototypes of solutions to the problems of operational business owners. However, too often these concepts remain in the prototype stage: they never cross the valley of death to become implemented. A design approach to innovation is presented as a solution to the problem. However, practice shows that teams that use this approach nevertheless encounter this problem due to the larger infrastructure of the organisation they are part of. This research aims to explore which factors contribute to the valley of death for design innovation. Additionally, this paper presents first insights into how design practices help to mitigate this phenomenon. An embedded multiple case study at a large heritage airline is used to study this phenomenon. A thematic analysis of the data finds that organisational design, departmental silo’s and dissimilar innovation strategies contribute to the valley of death. The issues with resource-assignment that result from these factors are displayed. Last, materialization, usercenteredness and holistic problem-framing are indicated as practices that help to mitigate this problem. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372

Prototyping for organisational agility: Using the fundamentals of design to manage changing circumstances

In our current and turbulent times, it is clear that some sort of organisational agility, in which-ever way achieved, is necessary to survive and thrive as an organisation. The question is how to achieve such manoeuvrability. We propose the use of design (thinking), with a focus on prototyping to iteratively develop greater organisational agility. Based on literature research into the circumstance that drive change, design, prototyping and a number of organisations that seem to have incorporated the right tactics, as well as observations made at a change-programme for a large Dutch corporate, we have developed a model to guide this process. The model proposes that an organisation should focus on developing a shared sense of purpose, to guide all its undertakings. Afterwards, employees should collaborate on iteratively creating the right (digital & physical) environments, culture and personal grounding for them and the organisation, to be able to achieve this purpose. Based on certain (dynamic) criteria and these various domains, personal responsibilities (action agendas) may constantly evolve and keep the organisation agile. This paper explains the reasoning behind the model and calls for further experimentation to take place to verify its effectiveness. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372