Both learning and innovation are becoming important for organisations, employees and societies. In response to challenging issues such as globalization, Europe has emphasised research, learning and innovationthe “knowledge triangle” as a major aspect of the solution. Learning here is not confined to its traditional meaning of acquiring knowledge but is understood as the expansion of human capacities. When it comes to organizational learning, the implication is to inculcate practices of learning for, through and in the organization (Heyrup, 2010).
Innovation is a multidimensional construct that can be looked at from the lens of several perspectives such as sociology, economics, and psychology. It is defined as, ‘novelty that creates economical value’ (Schumpeter, 2021). But what will be considered novel? What is the baseline? Are minute modifications novel or does it have to be something profound for it to cross the benchmark? The process of innovation can range from changes in the organization to surprising radical developments like a new product. Further, according to Francis and Bessant’s 4P model (2005), innovation expands beyond Product and includes Process, Paradigm and Positioning. Thus, innovation seems to be an overarching term which includes experiences, processes, transformations as well as skills, behaviours and perceptions of employees (Hoyrup, 2010).
Determinants of innovation
Earlier, innovations were primarily considered to be a function of investment in research and development, however, today, knowledge, creation and learning are also viewed as factors influencing innovations (Lorenz and Lundvall, 2007). Thus, the organization and its employees have the potential to innovate products as well as processes.
Capitalising on the potential of employees and the organization
Employee-driven innovation is basically a bottom-up process wherein the human resources of the organisation are used to their full potential. It creates an environment of open innovation (Chesbrough, 2003) where the research from the specialists in the firm is combined with external knowledge which comes from employee networks and interactions. The flux of information into and outside the organization creates a dynamic where the employees can accelerate innovation internally by sharing information.
Engaging the employees in the process of innovation does not just add economic value to the organization by reducing costs, but also creates a working environment that is healthy, and sustainable, supports employee learning and leads to skill development and job satisfaction of employees. The advantages of employee-driven innovation include both radical and incremental improvements.
Google, for instance, taps its employees for ideas and keeps the innovation pipeline alive and thriving. Google has created a culture of team learning which becomes evident when we look at Google cafes designed to increase interaction between employees. The premise of the organisation is often referred to as campus. Further, there is a 20% policy wherein Google allows its employees to work on their passion project for one day every week.
In order to capitalise on the potential of employees, it is important to develop a culture of learning and innovation such that learning is incorporated into the workflow. The employees should be given opportunities to work on themselves, be open to learning, and encourage top-down as well as bottom-up learning. Ann Schulte, the Chief Learning Officer at Procter & Gamble (P&G) has emphasised on the importance of creating a learning culture by pointing out that learning is a prerequisite for rapid-cycle feedback, experimentation and adaptation in uncertain markets.
Why develop learning organizations?
In the book “The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization’, Peter Senge talks about learning organizations and collates the experiences of organizations such as Ford, Herman Miller, and so on. Learning organizations have been explained by Senge as, “an organization where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning how to learn together.”
Learning organizations comprises both formal processes of learning and processes of production and social interaction. Expansiverestrictive continuum is a framework developed by Evans et al. (2006). According to this, the work environment influences the extent to which learning takes place in an organization. Participation, recognition, teamwork and reflection are factors which facilitate the process of learning. Thus, learning entails not just a transfer of knowledge but participation in situations which would enhance their competence, i.e. it is not just limited to an act by the individual, but also takes into context the social situation.
‘All learning in work is to some extent innovative in that it introduces change.’ Fenwick (2003) suggests that the processes involved in innovation can be combined with the processes of learning. Further researchers have emphasized that learning plays a central role in studying and understanding innovation. Therefore, an innovative organization is an output of a learning organization.
Therin (2002), in his study, examined how the learning processes influence innovation in small high-tech firms. It was hypothesised that there is a positive relationship between innovation and organizational learning. It was observed that there is a strong influence of organizational learning on innovation (R2=.362). So, when firms efficiently acquire new information and combine it with existing information, they are more likely to innovate their product or processes. This implies that as the learning processes become more effective the capacity of the organization to innovate also increases.
There is an interconnection between employeedriven innovation and organizational learning. Learning, working and innovating are all interrelated forms of cognition which are often conflicting with each other (Brown and Duguid, 1991). One way to look at it is to say that learning leads to innovation and the same is applicable the other way around. Thus, it is a cycle wherein the two processes interact with each other to give rise to learning both at the level of the individual and the organization.
Learning Organizations, the new secret to innovation
With so much research on the importance of learning organizations, it is high time that we let go of the conventional ways of innovation and instead build organisations that encourage employees to bank on their potential to grow as individuals and in the process lead to systemic innovation, growth and development as a byproduct. High-involvement innovation, nontechnological innovation, non-R&D innovation, and direct participation in organizational change are aspects that can be studied to understand Employee-driven innovation better.
Work Cited:
- Chesbrough H (2003) Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating and Profiting from Technology. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press
- Ellström, P. (2010). Practice-based innovation: a learning perspective. Journal of Workplace Learning, 22(1/2), 27-40. https://doi.org/10.1108/13665621011012834
- Evans K, Hodkinson P, Rainbird H, and Unwin L (2006) Improving Workplace Learning. London and NewYork: Routledge
- Fenwick, T. (2003). Innovation: examining workplace learning in new enterprises. Journal of Workplace Learning, 15(3), 123-132. https://doi.org/10.1108/13665620310468469
- Francis D, Bessant J (2005) Targeting innovation and implications for capability development. Technovation 25(3): 171-183
- He, L. (2013, March 29). Google’s Secrets Of Innovation: Empowering Its Employees. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurahe/2013/03/29/googles-secrets-of-innovation-empowering-itsemployees/?sh=2bc48e9857e7
- Heyrup, S. (2010). Employee-driven innovation and workplace learning: basic concepts, approaches and themes. Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, 16(2), 143-154. https://doi.org/10.1177/1024258910364102
- Joshbersin. (2008, April 11). Managing Innovation: Google and the “Learning Culture.” JOSH BERSIN. https://joshbersin.com/2008/04/managing-innovation-google-and-the-learning-culture/
- Lannon, C. (2017, April 25). Learning Organizations: From Invention to Innovation. The Systems Thinker. https://thesystemsthinker.com/learning-organizations-from-invention-to-innovation/
- Lorenz, E., & Lundvall, B. (2007). How Europe’s Economies Learn: Coordinating Competing Models., Oxford University Press.
- Making Learning a Part of Everyday Work. (2021, August 27). Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2019/02/making-learning-a-part-of-everyday-work
- Schumpeter, J. A., & Swedberg, R. (2021). The Theory of Economic Development (Routledge Classics), (1st ed.). Routledge.
- Therin, F. (2003). Organizational learning and innovation in high-tech small firms. 36th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, 2003. Proceedings of The. https://doi.org/10.1109/hicss.2003.1174262
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