Question 1 - The Roles of Incentives, Training, and Education in Promoting Innovation
Incentives
Organizations use incentives as a vehicle to encourage personnel with measurable motivation while introducing change. When any organizational change is introduced, managers face enormous resistance from employees. Such a resistance is broken down or discouraged by offering employees various monetary, intrinsic and lifestyle incentives for supporting change. Organizations, as an example of change management, give a newly formed product or service to their sales department to generate revenue. To encourage this change activity, sales force may be offered increased commission percentages for them to embrace the product/service. Additionally, managers may offer explanations to the sales staff as to how it is beneficial for the society as a way of providing employees with intrinsic incentive to sell the product/service.
With concerns to identification of incentives, upper management may receive yearly bonuses whereas workers may earn incentives in form of paid leave. Equal incentives for all levels in an organization may include flexible work schedules, medical benefits as well as insurance, retirement plan and tuition assistance for students etc. Employees could be offered non-monetary incentives such as customizing their training programs based on their personal and professional needs. Open communication is encouraged for employees to discuss their targets and performance with immediate managers.
Training
For professional development of employees, organizations offer customized and online training programs these days which include sessions concerning Microsoft Office, Six Sigma, Oracle, Project Management, Lotus Notes and Accounting etc. The training related to these software programs enhances innovative skills of employees for increased work productivity. Additionally, managers are exposed to customized training sessions that make them learn new techniques foe leveraging and developing the necessary talent of their employees. A rotation program could also be implemented, geared towards the leadership, which helps them undertake cross-departmental assignments.
Education
For increased employee productivity at work, educational assistance could also be provided for helping personnel to obtain academic degree for moving-up in the corporate ladder of success. Direct education could be used as an effective tool to make employees familiar with the benefits of transformation.
Question 2 - Role of Leadership in Creating, Managing, and Sustaining Innovation
It is a well-known fact that when a change is being introduced, the leadership of an organization should be so strong in management that it inspires every other stakeholder. In this regard, the role of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is critical in the corporate hierarchy. This is because he/she is responsible for communicating the vision, corporate mission and organizational values to other stakeholders as well as explaining the role of each stakeholder in change management and reasons behind such an organizational transformation . For creation and management of innovative culture throughout the organization, it is imperative that the top leadership inspires everyone (with some form of stake into the business) .
Consider an example when regulations or the competitive forces affecting the business and its bottom-line change. In such situations, it is the responsibility of top leadership to keep every employee think positively about the change to deal and profit from it instead of thinking about the change negatively. In critical times, the top leadership should inspire each member in the hierarchy to overcome the culture of opposition against any given change. In any organization, in particular, top leadership should play an active role as a driving force to introduce change positively and inspire all those employees to whom corporate messages are communicated to create, implement, manage and sustain a culture of innovation.
Question 3 - Ethical Implications of an Individual Reward System
When employees are rewarded as groups, this promotes the culture of cohesiveness, teamwork, growth oriented behavior, increased employee morale, motivation and creativity. However, rewarding individuals have both its pros and cons. In one instance, individual reward system may promote the sense of positive and friendly competition within the workplace for increased innovation and creativity whereas, on the other hand, the same system might lead to differences in performance appraisals. This is because the senior management may still be treated in completely different manner than middle-level managers, employees working under them and wage earners who may receive undeserved yearly awards, bonuses, promotions etc.
Question 4 - Is National Grid PLC an Innovative or Non-Innovative Organization?
This organization, depending on its certain divisions, can both be innovative and non-innovative. Suppose, a division related to Information Technology (IT) Solutions and Service is completely a non-innovative department since it is one of the tightly structured divisions. Similarly, there are some departments in National Grid PLC where only the pre-specified corporate policies are followed making such departments non-innovative. Some departments (like finance, human resources and marketing) seek new ways to meet problems of internal and external customers due to which they could be categorized into highly innovative divisions. Overall, National Grid PLC considers innovative approaches the only key to entrepreneurial success by investing more in research and development area to provide precise innovation management services.
References
Harrison, J., & St.John, C. (2007). Foundations in Strategic Management. Cengage Learning.
Weir-Hughes, D. (2013). Clinical Leadership: From A to Z. Routledge.
