Corporate Research and Innovation Strategies

We intend to launch a new Research and Innovation Strategy in Spring 2025 We're combining our previously separate strategies for research and development and data and innovation to demonstrate how they work together to advance our profession and create chances for growth. This plan will be consistent with our strategic priorities of Rise up, Open up, Lift up, and Build up, as well as current allied health professions research and innovation strategies in the UK.Our vision is for our members to see themselves as changemakers, promoting a culture of curiosity, collaboration, and continual development to elevate the occupational therapy profession. Based on the principles of Equity, Diversity, and Belonging, we will work together to accelerate research and innovation to improve the lives and well-being of the people and communities we serve.

We need our members, people with lived experience, and other key stakeholders to provide us with feedback on the content of the new plan. What is important to you. We need you to participate and help develop the new strategy. Strategy-shaping workshops We are holding a series of nationwide online strategy shaping workshops for you to share your thoughts. All workshops will be held online using Zoom. We know that persons from marginalised groups face significant barriers to participating in research and advancing their careers.

We want the new Research & Innovation strategy to be inclusive and accessible to everyone, thus we'd want to invite people from many backgrounds to join us

Corporate innovation refers to the purposeful and thoughtful developments that help firms become powerful long-term competitors in their marketplaces. Research and development departments, which are made up of engineering and scientific teams, have historically driven business innovation. They identify upcoming difficulties and devise strategies for implementing these solutions. The R&D field has expanded dramatically and now receives major input from marketing departments, resulting in a more comprehensive grasp of client wants and how to best introduce them to new products. Company mergers and acquisitions have also facilitated corporate innovation. Mergers, which have historically been less prevalent than acquisitions, occur when two different companies—usually competitors—join to form a new corporation.

Acquisitions, on the other hand, occur when a corporation agrees to purchase a separate, smaller company in its entirety and integrate it into its existing corporate structure. As industrial techniques and technology advanced during the twentieth century, an inflow of businesses emerged to meet the quickly changing requirements of customers. Acquiring or merging with other firms allows large corporations to accelerate innovation by absorbing ideas that have already taken shape at other, typically more nimble, startups. In recent years, corporate incubator or accelerator programs have emerged as a means of innovation. These initiatives can be meant to drive the development of ideas generated within an organization, or they can serve as collaborative workspaces where external entrepreneurs can benefit an organization's resources and skills. Further Reading How 23 Top Tech Disruptors Maintain Their Magic Why Corporate Innovation is Important. Corporate innovation is a must-have for any firm seeking to grow or remain at the top of its market for the foreseeable future. It offers the forward impetus that allows firms to stay current with technology developments and upgrade their goods and services, as well as internal business practices. According to Planbox's 2022 State of Corporate Innovation Report, firms that approach innovation holistically are more likely to have their ideas implemented successfully.

as well as the acquisition of startups and other businesses, are feasible methods of corporate innovation

However, these are not the only techniques that a firm might employ. By incorporating a number of approaches into their corporate innovation strategy, businesses can gain access to a wide range of ideas that will allow them to extend their market lifetime and succeed in staying ahead of competitors.There are several approaches to develop an innovation strategy. Corporate innovation is often divided into two categories: closed innovation and open innovation, depending on whether it is based on internal teams or outside ideas. Closed Innovation. Closed innovation refers to using internal resources to generate new ideas and plan for the future. Common closed corporate innovation strategies include building teams dedicated solely to innovation, soliciting new ideas from existing employees, forming dedicated innovation teams, and initiating internal corporate accelerator programs.

Open Innovation Open innovation is the process of sourcing new products, ideas, and, in many cases, new brands from partners outside the corporate structure. Corporations promote open innovation by making investments and acquisitions, establishing innovation outposts, collaborating with external accelerators, and sponsoring competitions such as hackathons and pitches. Corporate Innovation Models These are some of the most common programs that businesses use to carry out open and closed corporate innovation strategies. Closed Innovation ModelsEmployee Sourcing The most basic type of organizational innovation is using people' experience and imagination. Existing personnel have a better understanding of the company's subtleties, customers, market, and competition than any outside party, offering them a great perspective for solving existing problems or developing new product ideas.

Dedicated Innovation Teams Many corporations have shifted their focus away from traditional R&D departments and toward innovation laboratories

Innovation teams are often made up of scientists and strategists who are dedicated to refining existing products, releasing pioneering new concepts, meeting customer requirements, and staying on top of competitors' innovative implementations. Internal Corporate Accelerator Programs A frequent closed innovation method is to establish an inside company accelerator program. Corporate accelerators provide financing and resources to technologically oriented personnel in exchange for their commitment to solving existing corporate difficulties.Investment and Acquisitions When it comes to innovation, many firms find that cash on hand is their most precious asset. Corporations can opt to invest in or buy startups and innovative companies that are adjusting to client needs, allowing them to outperform competitors and save critical innovation time.

Innovation Outposts To successfully invest in creative startups, a firm must first understand where to look for them. Many businesses achieve this by creating satellite offices in regional hotspots known for specific industry innovation, such as Silicon Valley for technology or Detroit for automobiles. These outposts provide a high level of networking opportunity with rising enterprises in the area, as well as a space for businesses to focus on refining current unique concepts. External corporate accelerators External accelerators, unlike internal corporate accelerators, are founded independently of corporate finance to allow companies to focus on their own mission while creating. Corporations can then fund these accelerators, network with startups, and gain fresh product ideas through the program. The top startups in external accelerators are frequently bought by the sponsoring firm or given financial and reputation boosts, transforming them into viable organizations. Hackathons and pitch competitions To encourage corporate innovation, forward-thinking companies frequently hold hackathons and pitch challenges. These events can be conducted in a variety of ways, with individuals, amateur teams, startup teams, and other parties collaborating to solve difficulties and contribute ideas in a timely, planned manner. Winning teams receive compensation in a number of forms in exchange for their expertise and intellectual property.