source: www.tata.com

Abstract: Tata Consultancy Services, a firm belonging to India´s Group, makes internal innovation corporate culture top priority. Several strategies have been implemented in order to build a culture of innovation and stimulate employees to think innovatively. These strategies involve e.g. creative thinking as one of nine performance categories on which employees are evaluated as well as making innovation an essential component of all trainee programs. Furthermore five hours of the 45-hour week can be used by employees for developing ideas on new concepts and product improvements. An internal social network that permits employees to post, comment and vote on ideas supports the idea generation process.

Driver 

Social

People increasingly seek to act out their creative and individual potentials in their working life. This growing demand for self-expression spreads in all social levels. Companies try to increase employee loyalty by answering this demand.

Economic / Industrial

Due to the permanent change of increasing customers´ needs and the growing competitive pressure in several markets, companies have to seek new ways to create groundbreaking ideas in order to create value with innovations. One promising strategy is the integration of the firms´ employees into the process of new product development and recognise them as a promising source for ideas on product improvements or even genuinely novel products.

The claim to be an innovative company and to build success on more space for creative and innovative employees was formerly seen as a Western phenomenon. With the shift of economic gravity to Asian countries this approach will become more and more common in companies in emerging countries.

Indication

Change in current innovation patterns

This weak signal indicates that in the future benchmarks for innovation processes and cultures could increasingly come from Non-Western companies.  Irrespective of the regional origin of this weak signal is could be a sign that more and more companies seek innovative inspiration by fostering the creative potential of their employees also beyond the R&D department.

Potential “innovation wild card”

Shift of innovation centres from Western to Non-Western countries.

Source

Internet
www.tata.com/innovation/index.aspx

Magazine

Business Week, URL: http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/aug2009/id20090819_070601.htm
www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jun2009/id20090617_735220.htm