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Dr. Amy Vanderbilt Host & Chief Strategist the TrendPOV Show http://DrAmyVanderbilt.com

Host, Writer, Producer & Director at The Trend POV Show Founder & Chief Strategist at TrendPOV.com Owner at Trend Factor Press

Everyone is talking about innovation. The economy itself is evolving to embrace innovation over information as a basis for revenue generation. In this article we explore existing and proposed ways to measure innovative capacity and which may be the most effective for your own organization.
Innovation is the process of creating new solutions, brands, processes, products or concepts in response to opportunities, needs and demands. Several organizations have begun to put forth measures of innovation. One of the most prominent is PRO INNO Europe. The offer two different analyses - the Innobarometer, and the Innovation Index (not to be confused with the Business Week Innovation Index of stocks).

PRO INNO Europe’s Innovation Index, in contrast to the Innobarometer, is more of an actual measure of the innovation performance of individual countries. Their measure is based on seven specific dimensions in three categories: Enablers , Firm Activities, and Outputs.

Another measure of innovative capacity is the Global Innovation Index by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM). The scores for the Global Innovation Index are based on a total of twenty four factors in six categories: Fiscal Policy , Other Policies, Innovation Environment, R&D Results, Business Performance, and Public Impact. 

Michael Porter of the Harvard Business School’s Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness and Scott Stern of Northwest University and the Brookings Institution have also produced a candidate measure in their paper, “National Innovative Capacity.”  Their measure of innovative capacity is based on four sub-factors derived from twenty four measures: proportion of scientists and engineers, innovation policy, cluster innovation environment and linkages. 

What is the same about each of these efforts is the focus on not only what goes into creating innovation, but the ability to turn that innovation into growth. What is lacking, is a focus on the individual business firm or organization. To turn this trend into an advantage, take the time to develop the right measure for your organization. Consider the specifics about the people, infrastructure, money, training, time and other factors that affect your organization. For each, devise a measurable factor. Keep your measures relevant and growth-ready. Lastly, weight each factor based on importance. Now you have your own organizational innovation score.