How do you get your innovators to share knowledge?

Its a tough one but have seen it work in organisations which appreciate and reward sharing of knowledge and reward them as key SMEs. It not only gives innovators to contribute but also rewards them for the effort and encourages more such individuals to drive the behaviour.

Innovation should be aligned to organizational goals. But it doesn't have to be. For example, innovation may be spurred by an accidental discovery. Employees see the value and coalesce around it. Eventually, that innovation's success will drive strategy...but it's origin was detached from strategy. Though - an organization that strategically values adaptability could claim that all such deviations are still aligned with strategy.

In order to make innovator contribute to the organization, management has to show that their idea is something that bring high value to company. Make them feel that their contribution/idea will be appreciated. Creating culture of a small token for each contribution will help to boost innovator spirit to speak and give the signal that all effort have a value no matter what. They are company Internal Equity that able to speak best on company betterment.

Innovation spreads at scale when you ignite community around the topic in immersive ways. At ESPN, we have a video masterclass series called ESPN Career Center Innovation Ignitor Masterclass Series where we celebrate innovative work across our company priorities. We produce these videos to showcase HOW our teams accelerated their innovation, and their learnings and celebrate their wins. Micro Content + Employee Recognition + Integrate Company Priorities = Innovation Meets Community

I firmly believe in the significance of establishing a dedicated platform where innovators can effectively disseminate their knowledge. This platform should be designed to cater to the specific needs of the end users, ensuring that content is not only available but also highly adaptable. This way, individuals can access and acquire knowledge precisely aligned with their requirements and apply it as needed. By customising content delivery, we empower users to learn and utilise information in a manner that maximises its relevance and impact.

It's important to cultivate an environment of innovation. If people feel fear then they will keep all their good ideas to themselves. If they think you will steal their ideas and not give them credit, they will not share. One CEO once told me that he was the only person who came up with ideas in the company. When I talked to his VP´s they had many ideas, but the CEO would often berate them in public. They decided to keep quiet and maintain the status quo. If you believe that there are no ideas generated in your company and innovation is limited, then consider how you are reacting when ideas are shared.

To innovate, we must first create. So, let's create an environment where innovation flourishes. But how can we create such an atmosphere? It starts with leadership. Leaders must cultivate a culture of trust, where team members feel safe to share their ideas without fear of criticism. It's about encouraging diverse thought, providing resources, and celebrating every step of the innovative journey, not just the end result. But beyond leadership, it's about everyone in the organization playing their part. It's about encouraging each other, learning from each other, and working together to turn ideas into reality.

Offer timely, specific, and actionable feedback. This empowers innovators to understand their performance, make improvements, and see the value in sharing their knowledge.

One way to help foster innovation in team settings is through design thinking workshops, where a certain challenge can be collectively discussed and unpacked to foster creative ideas, no matter how small or large. Depending on team size, sometimes breaking groups into smaller sub-groups will also assist with the psychological safety and diversity of ideas to flourish than in one large collective group where dominant ideas and personalities may prevail. By allowing multiple conversation spaces to flourish, a wider selection of creative and innovative solutions can be encouraged.

As a Co-founder I believe a lot rests on the company's management to create a safe and supportive environment . We believe that our company is an extension of our family , where each is treated with trust , respect and support . We are all co-workers who have a right to expression . We are all equal and our evaluations are always 360 degree!

Utilize gamification elements like badges, points, and leaderboards to incentivize and motivate innovators. Gamification can spark healthy competition, encourage participation, and facilitate cooperation in knowledge sharing efforts.

I will recommend tools like Slack, Microsoft teams, Zoom for real-time communication. Google Drive, Drop Box and Microsoft One Drive for cloud file storage and sharing, and Trello , Asana , Jira for project management and task organisation. Notion, Evernote and Webinar tools , Whiteboarding tools, social collaboration tools ,project documentation and version control tools . Discord, Reddit and survey feedback tools are also important ! I think more important then the type and kind of tools and technology is the culture creation conducive to sharing and collaboration. Also essential is that the journey of innovation is celebrated as much as the end results !

Imagine a situation where innovators are self motivated and excited to collaborate with L&D as content curators. How to make this possible: 1. Find them : Every team has some brilliant people who are the hubs of Innovation.Keep your senses on to tap into their potential. 2. Make them learning heroes : Reward them as content creators to showcase their innovative ideas 💡. 3. Leverage on Tech : Use your learning platform/s to unleash what these heroes are doing.Make it a little larger than life at times to entice your audience. 4. Maintain a healthy pipeline: Keep on finding your champions.

Skills have become the new currency of our workforce, and with that in mind, LXPs have become the primary tool for managing organizational skill strategy. LXPs enable skills-based discovery, skills assessments, and skills inferences; these skilling solutions offer organizations a solution to the much-desired skills-based approach to learning.

One way that I can suggest is to create rituals that can help innovators share knowledge that inspires others. For example, weekly tech talk sessions where individuals who have filed patents come and talk about their approach to solving unique problems and building IP for the company. This inspires others to develop patents and fosters innovation across the board.

Even the best of teams without accountability will go in multiple directions without achieving much.It is essential to define SMART goals, communicate them and then empower and trust employees whilst setting expectations and providing resources and support. It is important to foster a culture of responsibility and provide regular feedback and evaluation in a transparent environment. I have also contributed at an organization where performance evaluation is replaced by conversations but still all above continues to be a pre-requisite !

One thing I've found to be helpful is having regular meetings (weekly or biweekly) to ensure goals are on track to be met or if calibration on either side (employee or manager) need to be made.

Introduce an "Innovation Scorecard" for each project or initiative. The scorecard could have criteria related to both autonomy and accountability, tracking both the innovative steps taken and the outcomes achieved. For example, categories might include 'Novel Approaches Tried,' 'Risks Taken,' and 'Milestones Reached.' Quarterly reviews of these scorecards can foster a culture that values both independent thinking and alignment with organizational goals. It not only serves as a performance assessment tool but also as a dialogue starter between management and innovators, ensuring that there is a balanced focus on both autonomy and accountability.

Mentorship Programs: Pair innovators with experienced colleagues to facilitate knowledge exchange. This can be done informally or through structured mentorship programs. Open Access to Information: Ensure all team members have access to relevant data, research, and reports. Use free online sources like academic journals, Google Scholar, or institutional repositories. Learning Management Systems (LMS): Employ LMS tools like Moodle or Canvas for creating courses, webinars, and tutorials that innovators can access and contribute to.

Yes both things go hand in hand. If I have been delegated something from my leaders It is my responsibility to use such freedoms for the development of self and the organization with the full accountability of the Things I do to achieve. Acceptance of failures and committing mistakes solves most of the problems & helps them in learning from them and now when they will start they will not be starting it from "Zero".

Bring your innovators in contact with the external world. Bring them in contact with innovators from other sectors. Let them share their knowledge with others and benefit from their insights in return. This will boost your innovation and your brand. The concept of intellectual property is and will continue to evolve among others due/thanks to OpenAI. Sharing is caring.

We invest 100% of development of our employees in the form of - Skill development Programs, End to End Process trainings, Coaching and Mentoring for Leaderships, Succession planning to mapping their skills with the future needs. They should be learning things which they will be using in their day to day work & helping them in being better than we were yesterday

People are driven to share knowledge by three main things. Create incentives around them to spur knowledge sharing: — WALLET - Give financial awards or tangible credit for knowledge sharing in their performance review so it can help them get bonuses or raises. — EGO - Give recognition to them that makes them feel special and appreciated by the organization leadership. — HEART - Let them know how helpful their knowledge sharing is to their colleagues, customers, and other people it helps.

Innovation Challenges: Pose challenges or problems that require collaboration and knowledge sharing to solve. Platforms like InnoCentive allow organizations to crowdsource solutions. Social Media for Internal Use: Utilize platforms like Yammer or Workplace by Facebook for internal social networking and knowledge sharing.

Encourage learning and development among leaders, allow collaboration and foster a culture of growth. Key innovators are never "finished" developing, you must encourage your team to be a continuous project for development.

We need to create a culture of collaboration and recognition for innovators which needs to be continuous in nature and reward needs to be incremental in terms of participation and submission. Implement regular knowledge-sharing sessions, provide incentives, showcase success stories, and offer platforms for easy sharing

Celebrating and sharing success is a pre-requisite to create an innovative environment. We sometimes think that It is the leadership that creates this environment to celebrate their team's journey . To recognize the team members is essential but equally essential is to create a culture where you also recognize your peers and even your leadership! 360 degree is to way to go when it comes to celebrating and sharing success! I believe HR can play a huge role to foster such an environment . And trust me you dont necessarily need budgets - an acknowledgement - verbal , written is also recognition and so is even a pat on the back.

Acknowledge and appreciate innovators who actively engage in knowledge sharing. Recognize their contributions through incentives, rewards, or public recognition. This can include highlighting their achievements in company-wide communications, awarding innovation or knowledge-sharing prizes, or providing opportunities for visibility and career advancement.

 Create a Knowledge-Friendly Environment:  Facilitate Cross-Functional Collaboration:  Encourage Experimentation and Risk-Taking:  Set Clear Objectives and Expectations:  Encourage Informal Communication:  Leadership Support and Involvement:

Use Technology Wisely: Leverage digital tools for knowledge sharing. Implement collaboration platforms, wikis, and internal social networks. These platforms facilitate real-time communication and document sharing. Evaluate and Iterate: Regularly assess the effectiveness of your knowledge-sharing initiatives. Seek feedback from innovators and adjust your strategies accordingly. Continuous improvement ensures that knowledge sharing remains a priority. In summary, creating a culture of knowledge sharing among innovators requires intentional efforts, leadership commitment, and a supportive environment. When innovators feel valued and empowered, they willingly contribute their expertise, driving organizational success.

Create an environment for taking risks without a concern for reprimand or impact on future opportunities. Often, large organization speak about innovation, however, they do not create an environment where failure is celebrated and rewarded. Failure and learning is the key to driving a culture of innovation. Providing an environment where one can thrive despite failures and the ability to risk it without being reprimanded is the corner stone for innovation.

Give people structured, scheduled time for knowledge sharing that goes beyond a lunch and learn. The knowledge sharer should take time at a regular team meeting to give an elevator pitch and then based on interest, learners should be allowed to take that deep dive. This is the only way to make the members of your team fungible-- good for your team but great for your people, their careers and their development.

Make it part of the job. If sharing isn't integrated into someone's role expectations, why would they do it? If they're not measured and rewarded for it, why would they do it? If it's not built into the workflow, how will they find time to do it? There will always be a uniquely-motivated group of employees who find ways to share their knowledge with the team. But the vast majority of your org's know how exists in the minds of your people. Codify it or lose it.

A good way of getting your innovators to share knowledge could be to create an incentive or a kind of competition. For example, once a quarter, the most liked / most downloaded / most viewed innovation is awareded. The higher the hierarchical level and thus the higher the visibility, the more likely it is that knowledge will be shared.

I’m mentoring a few and only guiding them to stay away from browsing and add 2 pointer to the subject about they are passionate and thoughts running on their mind!!! on daily basis… It sounds simple… B U T it’s mind blowing!