Simprago Logo
Simple & Pragmatic Problem Solving
#80Chapter 6: Group Creative Option Generation• Group Creative OptionsStrategic and collaborative (Governance & Creative) ThinkingGroup (cross-departmental and periodic) ModeContinuous Committee / 4-8 Weeks per Project(Time-consuming (institutional and continuous))

Innovation Committee

From the book "Advanced Problem-Solving Toolbox: 115 Creative Plays" | Compiled & Edited by: Mojtaba Goudarzi, Open translation: Mehrshid Goudarzi
Executive Synopsis & Core Logic:

innovation governance structure in the organization; Forming an interdepartmental working group with the "proposal coordination tender" model so that the most qualified and enthusiastic people take the helm of the transformation projects.

Operational Parameters & Specifications

Category
Group Creative Options
Dominant Thinking
Strategic and collaborative (Governance & Creative)
Participation
Group (cross-departmental and periodic)
Estimated TimeTime-consuming (institutional and continuous)
Continuous Committee / 4-8 Weeks per Project
Workshop
Input Format
Bottleneck issues of the organization, innovative employee proposals, performance data
Output Format
Idea generation and transformation-oriented implementation
Key Application
digital transformation, automation of customer service processes, reduction of operational costs and establishment of organizational kaizen system.
Core Differentiator:

Using a competitive bidding mechanism to delegate the role of project leader to talented personnel instead of appointing upstream managers in the traditional manner.

Quick Field Example:

forms an organization to address the drop in innovation committee support services; A young expert becomes the team leader by presenting a proposal to implement an artificial intelligence chatbot and reduce the response time by 70%.

Operational Benefits & Implementation Risks

Advantages & Value Creation:

Promoting meritocracy and the flourishing of hidden leaders, breaking down the insular walls of the organization, ensuring the operational implementation of ideas to the outcome stage.

Risks & Potential Trade-offs:

The possibility of political friction with traditional managers who feel left out, requiring the CEO's unconditional support.

Real-World Organizational & Industry Scenarios

Online Retail Industry: Innovation Committee to Reduce Merchandise Return Processing Time Led by Warehouse Supervisor.
Banking Systems and FinTech: Innovation in Customer Digital Authentication Led by an Information Security Expert.
Hospitals and Clinics: Emergency Admission Improvement Committee led by night shift supervisor.

Strategic Rationale & Why to Apply

1Intrinsic motivation is stronger than appointment: the person who wrote the proposal and won the bid stands with prejudice.
2Break through corroding bureaucracy: The Innovation Committee has direct executive authority from senior management to test initiatives.
3Uncovering hidden talents: Young people and experts get a chance to prove their potential to manage large projects.
4Sustainable cycle of improvement: Innovation no longer depends on the mood of a manager, but the regular system is organized monthly.

Conceptual Framework & Book Method Description

"Innovation Committee" is a structured framework for institutionalizing continuous innovation in organizations. In this model, a committee consisting of technical, operational and senior managers is formed. Instead of a hierarchical appointment, employees submit their innovative proposals to solve the stated problems (Bidding Process). The committee judges the proposals and appoints the author of the best plan as a "project coordinator" with a defined budget and team to implement the plan in an agile manner.

Step-by-Step Real-World Implementation Scenario

Transforming the customer service system with the tender model of the innovation committee
1
Step 1: Public call for support crisis resolutionInnovation Committee of the organization announced the issue of "reducing ticket response time to below 30 minutes" as a project tender.
2
Step 2: Receiving and evaluating employee proposals4 proposals were received; A support expert suggested integrating an LLM-based responsive bot and connecting it to CRM with a detailed roadmap.
3
Step 3: Select the project coordinator based on the quality of the planThe committee unanimously chose the support expert as the coordinator and provided him with 2 IT developers and 1 content force.
4
Step 4: Sprint development and pilot testingThe team implemented a multilingual chatbot in 6 weeks and answering 60% of frequently asked questions was automated.
5
Step 5: Output Evaluation and Organizational RecognitionResponse time was reduced to 12 minutes, customer satisfaction reached 94%, and the project coordinator received a promotion.

Is this play relevant to your team or organization?

Share this structured playbook guide directly with colleagues or across your network.

Previous Play (#79)
Idea Triggers
Next Play (#81)
Intercompany Innovation Groups
Analytical Q&A & Field Discussions

Share your reflections or inquiries regarding this play or chapter with the author.

Comments are published after review
No operational dilemmas posted yet. Be the first to initiate an empirical discussion.

Submit Operational Challenge

Your inquiry is routed directly to the Simprago moderation panel for review and official response.

Submissions include anti-spam checks