Innovation Leadership Evaluation
Assignment Overview
In this course, you have explored three main concepts:
How leadership practices support innovation in the global context.
The behaviors of leaders that drive innovation and the creation of innovative organizations.
What innovative leaders do to shape organizational culture and processes.
The final assignment for this course challenges you to integrate these concepts while focusing on a particular organization. You will integrate what you have learned from the course studies, discussions, and previous assignments to demonstrate your mastery of the course competencies.
Effective leaders of innovation must consider three levels of thinking and action by:
Considering the global context in which their organization competes.
Strategizing their personal actions for innovation.
Shaping their organization's culture and processes to enable innovation.
All of the leaders and organizations that we have explored in this class have strengths and weaknesses in each of these levels. Your final assignment is an opportunity to explore and analyze all three levels regarding the organization you have chosen (either Procter & Gamble or Intuitive Surgical).
Assignment Instructions
For this assignment, you will write a 5-6 page paper with a focus on either the Procter & Gamble or Intuitive Surgical case studies. Choose one case, and focus your efforts on that organization. Both Procter & Gamble and Intuitive Surgical are also profiled in various discussions throughout The Innovator's DNA. You must integrate that information, as well as any other research regarding innovation in these organizations, into your work too.
You will be evaluated on how well you communicate your insights and analysis. It is expected that you will communicate in a manner that is professional and consistent with expectations for members of the business professions. To aid you in doing this, follow these guidelines:
Carefully organize your paper so that a balanced amount of text covers each item below, and label each section with a heading so that it is clear which of the following topics the section covers. You want your reader to be able to easily find:
A section that analyzes which leadership practices would encourage innovation, considering the global context of the organization in your chosen case. Explain why you chose these practices and how they will help the leaders in their responsibilities as leaders of innovation.
A section that evaluates how the chosen case exemplifies-or does not exemplify-the five discovery skills of innovation leaders.
A section that analyzes the actions the leaders of the organization in your chosen case took to shape culture and processes to be more innovative.
Present an argument for which one of the three organizational DNA factors is most important for this organization's future success.
Graphs or diagrams may be included in appendices, if they are well-explained and applicable.
Each section of the paper must be supported using the course readings, and additional scholarly resources or reputable industry publications may be used, if needed. One to three supporting resources are recommended.
Your assignment will be scored on the following objectives-see the scoring guide for details:
-Analyze leadership practices that encourage innovation in the organization's global context.
-Evaluate the application of the five discovery skills of innovation leaders.
-Analyze the effect of leadership on an organization's culture and processes.
-Argue which organizational factor is most important for an organization's future success.
-Communicate in a manner that is professional and consistent with expectations for members of the business professions.
Becoming a Leader of Innovation
Review your post from the first discussion in Unit 1, and evaluate your initial understanding of innovation compared with what you know today. For this discussion, describe how your knowledge of innovation has changed. Also explain how your perception of your own role in leading innovation has changed. Going forward, what one thing will you do differently to be a leader of innovation?