Managed Innovation Framework: Delivering Consistent Innovation Value to Customers
By Bhaskar Venkatasubramanian, Arunaa ES
Cognizant is focused on delivering innovation value by leveraging insights and contributions of all our associates. We foster a culture in which every associate’s innate capability to innovate is nurtured. We achieve this via our "Managed Innovation Framework" with the following ingredients: Culture, Capability, Process and Infrastructure.
With a proper mix of those ingredients, we have developed in-house capability building initiatives. We follow a structured approach to plumb the innovative minds of our associates to enhance value outcomes for our customers.
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Innovation and Managed Innovation Framework
Cognizant embraces the uncertainties in enterprise innovation initiatives by focusing on opportunities. To achieve this, our Managed Innovation Framework includes four carefully chosen innovation components. They are part of Cognizant’s core values, embedded in our DNA. These four components are:
- Culture. To be innovative on a sustainable basis, we embed innovation into everyone’s daily work. This enables them to seek and identify challenges, to generate ideas, and to collaborate effectively. Through this culture, every associate discovers what it means to innovate—and how they can contribute using their own "innovator’s mindset."
- Capability. Our series of "Innovation Capability Building Programs" fosters Cognizant’s innovation culture. These programs focus on developing associates’ minds, insights and capabilities to deliver innovation value. The leadership team for each account nominates program participants, called "innovation champions."
- Process. Framing strategy is a key ingredient in Cognizant’s Managed Innovation Framework. For each innovation initiative, a series of discussions with stakeholders are initiated; this sets the tone for innovation efforts to be tightly aligned with client business strategy. Based on each strategic context, numerous ideas are generated and shared.
- Infrastructure. Cognizant’s innovation infrastructure enables scaling and global execution of our innovation framework. Cognizant account teams use our Idea Management System (IMS) to manage the innovation process. IMS also facilitates measuring and monitoring innovation efforts and outcomes. Innovation scorecards are periodically reviewed by our leadership team.
IMS, which supports our managed innovation framework, is a crucial component of our Cognizant 2.0 global knowledge management and project management environment. Cognizant 2.0 enables clients to track and participate in our Managed Innovation Framework. This essentially makes our clients our partners—and more importantly, it helps optimize value outcomes.
Figure 1 - Pre-launch teasers of the Innovation Fair
Figure 2 - Idea Management System scorecard
Outsourcing philosophy has long been associated with how a vendor can deliver efficiently and effectively. Dramatic shifts in the customer landscape are increasing the need to strengthen efficiency and effectiveness while building on "higher-value" offerings.
Cognizant is creating new partnerships, business architectures, and technology platforms to thrive in the New Normal. This, we believe, is the most practical application of our Managed Innovation Framework.
How the Framework took shape
In 2007, Cognizant proactively formed a dedicated Innovation Group to navigate impending rapid business and technology changes. We were continuously seeking to change our comfortable status quo.
Innovation ignition workshops encouraged every associate to become a "change maker" rather than a mere "change watcher." Innovation fairs updated associates about domain technology trends, projects and spotlights, and prompted them to share their project innovation with other team members. These fairs helped every Idea Management System scorecard associate to discover their importance to innovation, foster their hands-on contribution, and inculcate the "innovator’s mindset".
Inside the Framework
Based on the business strategy of innovation, numerous ideas were generated, shared and reviewed by Cognizant team members. Leading and emerging ideas were selected, based on likely business value and Return on Investment (ROI). These ideas were supported with a business proposal that was jointly reviewed with a client team and given shape in pilot programs.
Here, our industry domain and technology labs, business consulting groups and research park relationships with leading academic institutions added value in terms of state-of-the-art technology and insightful business process modeling.
The outcome was impressive. In 2009:
- 250+ innovation campaigns were launched
- 5,000+ ideas were captured
- 2,000+ associates participated in these initiatives
- 800+ idea proposals were generated
- 400+ ideas were implemented for our clients
Implications for the Future of Work
In traditional models, innovation typically takes the form of a costly R&D-generated product that may or may not be monetized. In the reset economy, however, these projects are difficult to underwrite.
Cognizant’s Future of Work philosophy fosters collaboration both globally and virtually. Enterprise innovation is no longer a spectator sport; it is now in everyone’s hands.
Few companies have discovered an approach for making innovation an enterprisewide, collaborative initiative. Cognizant has. Our Managed Innovation Framework follows both top-down and bottom-up approaches, in which:
- Vision and enablement are steered by senior leadership
- The middle level owns and drives the initiative
- The team implements the initiatives
Cognizant fosters the spirit of innovation every day, and by everyone. No one waits for a once-in-a-decade blockbuster breakthrough. We have established a trend whereby all associates discover, and re-discover, their innovation potential.
Figure 3 - Outsourcing: Maturity in Value
At Cognizant, innovation is prepared through our Managed Innovation Framework.
This Framework is composed of four key ingredients: Culture, Capability, Framework and Infrastructure.
This managed innovation process is deployed year-round.
Every associate contributes to innovation and is encouraged to develop innovations that tightly align with our clients’ business strategies.