Managing Innovation

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2016:

85 hours

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Objectives, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this course are encouraged to discuss this matter with the Student Equity and Disability Support Team: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

Managing Innovation as a powerful and practical way to create value for individuals and organisations, but only if innovators are able to select and exploit the best new ideas.

Managing Innovation introduces the critical elements of designing and developing innovative products and services, how these can be configured, and how the results are managed. These elements include product /service development process design and improvement; the understanding and integration of customer needs; development strategy and project management; and the powerful challenge of designing and managing development networks.

Participants will learn from benchmarked companies some of the key dilemmas encountered in the process of managing innovation and will develop solutions that they can put into practice. They will create a plan to move their own skills forward and to create a more innovation-supportive structure and culture within their organisations and teams.

On successful completion of this program, students should be able to:

• Describe how innovation could benefit their team or business unit and the wider organisation
• Assess when and where innovation is needed and when other approaches would be more useful
• Identify organisational and individual innovation capabilities and barriers
• Understand how to integrate customers and new technologies into product development processes
• Apply selected best practices in innovation to their organisation

2500 word assignment on Managing Innovation from ideation to commercialisation in a selected firm (100%) due 4 weeks after the intensive class.

A study guide with readings and cases will be provided before the commencement of the subject.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.