Implementing an Employee Suggestion & Innovation Program

Employees are your best source of ideas for change. Traditional models emphasize cost savings and efficiency through small changes and continuous improvement. At the same time, today’s organizations need to foster innovation and creative ingenuity just to keep up.

Great businesses never stop improving.

Employees are your best source of workable ideas

They know how to put the customer first and help you get back to the basics. So, why not let them help? Employee suggestion programs give your team a voice, increasing participation as they share their ideas.

1. Market The Program

Your program can’t be successful if no one is participating. Make sure employees understand how the project works. Make it easy to be involved. Have logos, taglines, posters or newsletters to help continuously spread awareness.

2. Match your system to your organization’s culture

Create flexibility and design programs to fit particular missions and objectives.

Are you more team oriented? Focused on individual feedback? Is middle management actively engaged in

encouraging and facilitating the idea process?

3. Take Risks

Anonymity gives employees the ability to voice concerns, but your program will be more effective and engaging if you create a sense of ownership. Do not discourage creativity, but instead hold employees accountable for their suggestions. Take risks. You never know how something will work until you try.

Empower your employees to be creative.

4. Be Smarter, Better, Faster

The goal of these programs is to help save costs, boost efficiency and uncover best practice solutions.

What’s changing in your industry? Cultural,

technological and industry trends all serve as sources for improvement and inspiration in innovation platforms.

5. Collaborate and Engage

A great idea can be easily defended to critics. Collaboration and communication help develop more articulate and insightful ideas. A well developed strategy is more likely to reach execution and bring in big results.

6. Submit, Review, Discuss

Put ideas to the test. Is it plausible? Are you noticing any trends?

Overlapping ideas highlight key areas for improvement

Make sure ideas match your values or strengthen your positioning.

7. Approve and Implement

Be timely. Create cross functional review boards to explore your options and debate possibilities. Assign responsibilities and get to work bringing ideas to life. Monitor progress to make sure these great suggestions see the light of day.

8. Measure Results

What changes have you seen? What is the feedback from your employees and customers? Pay attention to both tangible and intangible benefits.

9. Reward and Recognize

Recognize great ideas. Whether your culture offers prizes or recognition, help employees understand the importance and impact of their ideas. The best combination depends on your culture and the nature of the work.

10. Review

How did the process go? Is your program working for your firm? Are there things you can change?

Don’t lose steam. Focus on ongoing promotion and publicity. It’s all part of the improvement cycle.

With employee suggestion and innovation software not only do you get a happier work force…

…But you’ll save time and money!

Remember, no single type of program fits all organizations.

Adapt these suggestions to fit your company’s culture and reinvent the suggestion program.

To learn more visit us at www.vocoli.com