Women in Innovation – formulating a strategy and identifying change.  

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In April, our monthly Women in Innovation event focused on the topic of ‘formulating a strategy and identifying change’ hosted by Giulia, Hannah, and Angela from Innovate UK EDGE and Chi-chi from Fund Her North.   

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‍About UKRI   

Opening the event, Giulia (Senior Internationalisation & Innovation Advisor at Innovate UK EDGE) presented the funded support available for companies doing innovation. She talked about Innovate UK EDGE and UKRI’s partners and how they work with the government to invest over £7 billion a year in research and innovation by partnering with academia and industry to make the impossible, possible.   

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‍Innovate UK EDGE Support  

Innovate UK EDGE support innovative and ambitious small to medium-sized businesses to commercialise innovative ideas and succeed in new markets in the following ways:   

• Funded by Innovate UK EDGE 
• High Growth support: 7-9 days of tailored innovation & business support for small to medium-sized businesses  
• Internationalisation support through the Enterprise Europe Network and international stakeholders  
• 1-2-1 coaching / advisory support  

Polls & Data

‍Hannah (Research Executive at Innovate UK EDGE) talked through lots of interesting data – see the stats below! These polls and data were used to showcase how organisations often want to change but they don’t formulate a strategy beforehand, leading to complex restructures and transformations, with poor communication.   

A recent KPMG global transformation study found that:  

• 96% of organisations reported they were undergoing business transformations, but only 47% expected to realise sustainable value  
• It’s estimated that 70% of change efforts fail outright – often due to employee resistance  

Others found that:  

• 69% of the most effective change programs offered training before and after go-live  
• 29% of employees say that poor internal communication is the reason why projects fail  

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Change Management  

Angela (Scaleup Director at Innovate UK EDGE) went on to use this session to discuss change management and how it is critical to business success. Strategic change and operational change are the difference between today and tomorrow for businesses.   

One of the key things to take note of when undertaking a business change is to understand how different perspectives will help people to get on board with the changes. We all see things differently, taking time to understand the perspective of others will add richness to your change plans.   

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Successful Change   

To conduct a ‘successful change’ within a business, there are 5 critical building blocks required. These building blocks will set the foundations for change and ensure that it is a smooth process, they are:   

1. Shared vision   

2. Skills   

3. Monitor & Incentives   

4. Resources   

5. Action Plan   

Can I learn more?   

Sure – if you’re keen to hear more about Women in Innovation and our events, or Innovate UK EDGE and the support that we can provide then email: InnovateUKEDGE@inventya.com REF: Women in Innovation