‘Innovation is much more than tech’

When it comes to innovation at the workplace, Ugandan companies still lag behind, Federation of Ugandan Employers (FUE) says.
“Many of the companies are not doing it well. There is no systematic approach to innovation so it is almost by chance,” Mr Douglas Opio, FUE executive director, says.
The companies that are catching on fast are tech-based such as those offering telecommunications and banking services.
Why not the others? Because companies are limited in their understanding of innovation.
“Most people think it is only products so they select a team to design new products,” Mr Opio says. This is besides the perception by companies that innovation is costly and risky.
Others just believe changing organisations is difficult. But Ugandan companies are missing out on constant change not only in terms of products but also in the way they handle customers, working with networks and in their business model. Experts believe companies that are doing things as they did years ago could die because of the changes happening locally and globally.

Innovation in companies
That is why in Kampala, FUE has organised a meeting to get the country’s top chief executive officers thinking about embracing innovation in their companies.
Mr Anders Wengen, a Norwegian specialist in innovation delivered the key address. In a session rich on knowledge about innovation management, two things stand out.
One is that in today’s fast moving world of business, innovation cannot be coincidental. It requires thoughtful work and very often it requires team work to come up with good solutions.
Mr Wengen says more than half of the failed innovations in the world do not fail because the innovation is wrong or it does not work. It is because the innovation is applied to the wrong problem.
According to FUE, the few companies innovating are focusing a lot on products and services. Others, on technology. Mr Wengen says improving products is okay and technology is important but innovation is much more than that.
“One of the most effective kinds of innovation is on networks. That is how you can find partners that complement what you are doing so that you can work together. It will increase your profits. So it has a higher return on investment than only innovating around products,” he says.
However, he implores businesses to ensure this innovation process is done in small adjustments.
“Very often, we see that doing the small adjustments and having an innovative approach to it, finding where to adjust gives much higher investment than radical innovations because they are difficult, expensive, require a lot of time and resources,” he says.
Mr Nicholas Okwir, chairperson FUE, had a different message. He wants corporates to stir interest in new talent and ideas not because they like to have a trendy startup in their mix but because they realise that change is inevitable and is happening faster than ever.

Flexible work
Mr Okwir wants workplaces environments to change too.
“A relaxed and flexible work environment increases your team’s productivity by letting ideas flow. Encourage an atmosphere where a boss is more likely to make you coffee than expecting you to make them one,” he says.
He wants corporates to let go of the traditional 8am-5pm workday and have members come in to work when they are at their best.
“Not everyone is an early bird and that is good. Embrace your worker’s natural rhythm so they show up for work ready to work. I can come in and start at 9 and still do the 8 hours. That is what we are saying. If you ask me to come in at 7am when I have gone to bed at 1am, I will not have rested and I will not give you my maximum output” he says.
Not to miss out on creativity, he encourages diversity. It could be teams with people from different backgrounds, passion and capability. Having a group with a diverse state of ideas and problem solving approaches pushes your product forward.

Innovation drivers
Mr Wengen says companies could have ideas from the employees but still need management who are willing to dedicate time and resources if they are to fuel innovation. One of the most important resources is the workforce. So if management is able to harvest creativity that is within the company and is able to work with customers, that is a good way to drive the innovation agenda.