Why Suggestion Schemes Fail

A suggestion scheme is good a way to capture and review ideas.   But, it is a flawed method, at least in its raw form. Most suggestion schemes fail after about 12-18 months. There two main reasons:

1. Failure to reply to contributors puts people off making suggestions a second time
2. “Your” interests are not the same as “mine” eg company and employee

There are more reasons, see below.  BUT some solutions first.

President Obama had thousands of suggestions when he was newly inaugurated.  His team made it simple for people to submit ideas.
People have different preferences. In an ideal world we capture ideas in every way possible, for example you can let people:

• Speak it
• Tick it
• Press it

STAGE 1 – collect ideas in every possible way

What to do? It depends on YOU…  Beware prescriptive solutions because your culture is clearly distinctive. Some ideas for you:

• A helpline telephone team
• A survey “bin collection tool”
• An ideas management tool
• A drop-in room people can visit with ideas
• A regular survey
• A blog from the with reply options
• Social networking
• …and more
  Need advice or help implementing any of the above? contact@oisolutions.co.uk or call 01202 706 975

Keep it simple

Once you have the information the process needs mapping. Here are some key points to review:

• Review ideas with experts
• Feedback to contributors and reward for contributions
• Seek further input on ideas if appropriate from employees and stakeholders
• Review again
• Implement or abandon

Innovation Training from ois
This process is good project management. We teach this on our Innnovation Training Sessions. It is also similar to a marketing or business audit.

Call us if you want some help applying it or using templates, surveys or idea management systems.  Call 01202 706 975

An Innovation Audit is another option, see Innovation Audit

More reasons why suggestion schemes consistently fail

	Too Many Ideas and Poor Processes
	The suggestion box collects ideas. Although some are processed, others are not. Over time, the suggestion box will have more ideas than can be managed by an innovation manager.
	Lack of Transparency
	The suggestion box is not transparent. Employees cannot see their ideas once they are in the box and do not know what is happening to their ideas. This is demotivating.
	Overwhelmed Managers
	Because suggestion boxes are not transparent, many ideas are submitted by several employees at the same time. A popular television programme can lead to a deluge of almost identical ideas, leaving the innovation manager overwhelmed. All suggestions are processed by the same person. She may not always recognise the potential of a powerful idea, particularly if it is outside of her area of expertise.
	Irrelevant to Organisational Needs
	Ideas focus on all kinds of issues, some of which are important to the company, some of which are not. Moreover, there is no way to focus ideas on corporate needs.

Peter Eales article for Oxford College on this whole issue and why Barack Obama has nearly got it right!

Next Step: Just contact us now for a demonstration online

or call us on 01202 706 975 Also "Getting Started With Jenni"


---Innovation in sustainable presents---