In today's fast-paced and dynamic business environment, companies need to continuously innovate to stay competitive. However, innovation is not an easy task, and it requires a lot of effort, resources, and creativity. 

One of the key ingredients for successful innovation is effective idea management. Integrated idea management is a holistic approach to managing ideas across an organization. 

This article will explore what integrated idea management is, how it works, and the benefits it can offer to businesses.  

What is idea management?

Idea management is a process of collecting, organizing, evaluating, and implementing ideas within an organization. It involves creating a systematic approach to managing ideas that can be used to generate new products, services, processes, or business models. 

Idea management can help businesses to stay competitive by encouraging innovation and creativity within their workforce. 

The goal of idea management is to create a culture of innovation and provide a platform for employees to share their ideas, while also ensuring that the best ideas are evaluated and implemented. 

Idea management can involve a range of techniques and tools, such as brainstorming sessions, idea management software, and crowdsourcing platforms. 

So, the success of idea management depends on the ability of organizations to create a supportive environment that encourages the free flow of ideas and provides a structure for evaluating and implementing the best ideas.

What is Integrated Idea Management​?

Integrated idea management is a process of collecting, evaluating, and implementing ideas across an entire organization. 

It involves creating a culture of innovation that encourages employees to share their ideas and suggestions, and then using a structured approach to evaluate and prioritize these ideas. Integrated idea management is not just about coming up with new ideas but also about managing the entire lifecycle of ideas, from ideation to implementation.

Integrated idea management involves various tools, techniques, and processes that facilitate the collection and evaluation of ideas. These tools can include idea management software, crowdsourcing platforms, and innovation management methodologies. 

The goal of integrated idea management is to create a centralized system that enables the organization to generate, evaluate, and implement ideas in a systematic and efficient manner. 

How Does Integrated Idea Management Work?

Integrated idea management involves several steps that are critical to its success. These steps include:

• The first step in integrated idea management is idea generation. This involves encouraging employees to share their ideas and suggestions through various channels such as suggestion boxes, online forums, or brainstorming sessions. Idea generation should be an ongoing process, and all employees should be encouraged to participate.
• The second step is idea screening. This involves evaluating and selecting the best ideas from the pool of ideas generated. This can be done using various criteria such as feasibility, impact, and alignment with the organization's goals.
• The third step is idea evaluation. This involves a more detailed evaluation of the selected ideas. This can include market research, feasibility studies, and financial analysis.
• The fourth step is idea implementation. This involves developing a plan to implement the selected ideas. This can include creating a project plan, identifying resources, and defining milestones.
• The final step is idea monitoring. This involves tracking the progress of the implemented ideas and evaluating their impact. This step is critical as it enables the organization to learn from its successes and failures and continuously improve its idea management process.

What are the Benefits of Integrated Idea Management

Integrated idea management can offer several benefits to businesses. Some of these benefits include:

• Integrated idea management can help businesses to generate more innovative ideas by tapping into the collective creativity of its employees. By creating a culture of innovation, businesses can encourage employees to think outside the box and come up with new and creative ideas.
• Integrated idea management can also help to improve employee engagement. By involving employees in the idea generation process, businesses can create a sense of ownership and empowerment. This can lead to increased motivation and productivity.
• Integrated idea management can help businesses to make better decisions. By using a structured approach to evaluate ideas, businesses can ensure that they are selecting the best ideas that align with their goals and objectives.
• Integrated idea management can also help businesses to become more efficient. By streamlining the idea management process, businesses can reduce the time and resources required to manage ideas.
• Competitive Advantage: Finally, integrated idea management can provide businesses with a competitive advantage. By continuously innovating and implementing new ideas, businesses can stay ahead of their competitors and create value for their customers. 

The problem with 'traditional' idea management

Traditional idea management approaches can be problematic for several reasons:

• Lack of engagement is a big issue today, and traditional idea management approaches often involve top-down decision making, which can lead to a lack of engagement from employees. Employees may feel that their ideas are not valued, leading to low participation and a lack of innovative ideas.
• Not enough information  or limited scope another problem with traditional idea management approaches can have a limited scope, focusing only on a specific department or area of the organization. This can result in a narrow range of ideas and a lack of cross-functional collaboration.
• Wasted and time-consuming in todays world, with ideas often going through a lengthy review and evaluation process. This can lead to frustration among employees, who may feel that their ideas are not being acted upon quickly enough.
• No transparency is a big one, with ideas being evaluated behind closed doors. This can lead to a lack of trust among employees and a perception that the decision-making process is unfair.
• Another one is resources, require significant resources, including staff time and budget. This can limit the organization's ability to implement innovative ideas.
• And final lack of technology means we cannot leverage technology to its full potential, resulting in a lack of automation and efficient workflows.

In summary, traditional idea management approaches can be problematic due to a lack of engagement, limited scope, time-consuming processes, lack of transparency, insufficient resources, and limited technology. To overcome these challenges, organizations need to adopt a more integrated and collaborative approach to idea management that leverages technology and provides a platform for employees to share their ideas openly and transparently. 

How to collect ideas in the workplace?

Collecting ideas from employees is an important aspect of idea management in the workplace. Here are some effective ways to collect ideas in the workplace:

• Place suggestion boxes in common areas, such as break rooms, to encourage employees to drop in their ideas. Suggestion boxes can be physical or digital, and they provide a simple and anonymous way for employees to share their ideas.
• Organize brainstorming sessions with cross-functional teams to generate ideas on a specific topic or challenge. Brainstorming sessions can be led by a facilitator and should encourage employees to share their ideas openly without fear of judgment.
• Conduct surveys to gather employee feedback and ideas. Surveys can be anonymous, and they provide a way for employees to express their thoughts and opinions on specific issues.
• Use idea management software to collect, organize, and evaluate ideas. Idea management software allows employees to submit their ideas online and provides a platform for managers to review and evaluate them.
• Implement an employee suggestion program that rewards employees for their ideas. This can be in the form of monetary rewards or recognition programs.
• Create innovation challenges that encourage employees to come up with new ideas. Innovation challenges can be themed, time-bound, and provide a platform for employees to showcase their creativity.
• Implement an open-door policy that encourages employees to share their ideas with their managers. This can help to create a culture of open communication and collaboration.

In summary, there are various effective ways to collect ideas in the workplace. The key is to provide a platform that encourages employees to share their ideas and create a culture of innovation and creativity within the organization. 

Is integrated idea management right for you?

If you're only seeking a few concepts from a limited number of individuals, the integrated approach may not be suitable for your needs. In cases like this, methods such as a hackathon or a focus group can be highly effective and provide the desired results.

On the other hand, if any of the following scenarios apply to you:

• You have challenges that require the involvement of a broad audience
• You want to foster cooperation around open ideas
• You want to engage with front-line workers or departments that are difficult to reach
• And you use a collaboration platform like AgilityPortal, Microsoft Teams, Yammer, or Workplace from Facebook then integrated idea management could be the solution to unlock your company's idea potential.  To discover ways to enhance our business, there's no one better to ask than our own people. By utilizing AgilityPortal's Ideation Hub, you can create challenges and involve your employees in collecting and managing ideas through to the delivery stage. This approach helps to engage our team and encourages a collaborative effort to improve our business.

Idea management platforms

Idea management platforms are software tools designed to help organizations collect, organize, evaluate, and implement ideas from their employees, customers, partners, and other stakeholders. 

These platforms typically provide a centralized system for idea submission, collaboration, and evaluation, often with features such as voting, commenting, and scoring.

Some popular idea management platforms include:

• AgilityPortal
• Brightidea
• Spigit
• HYPE Innovation
• Wazoku
• Crowdicity
• Idea Drop
• Aha!
• IdeaJam
• Miro

These platforms can help organizations tap into the collective intelligence of their stakeholders and foster a culture of innovation by making it easy for anyone to share their ideas and contribute to the organization's success.

Wrapping

Integrated idea management is a powerful approach to managing ideas across an entire organization. By creating a culture of innovation and using a structured approach