Blog Post

Companies are increasingly recognizing the impact of innovation. As such, many are implementing internal talent development programs to promote innovation within their workforce. Employees gain a range of skills that make them competitive job candidates in today’s innovation age.

How does internal innovation directly benefit the organization and employer? Here are some top 10 benefits of internal innovation for the organization and employer:

Increased employee productivity

Employees who innovate foster a culture of performance and productivity. Why? They are challenged to innovate solutions to real-world problems, forcing them to learn new skills quickly.

Employees grow as professionals as they cultivate growth via innovation, and in doing so, they inspire themselves to continuously work hard at what they do.

Innovation talent development challenges employees to reach new levels of their potential, which increases confidence and energizes their work habits. Moreover, in learning new skills and tapping into diverse ways of thinking, individual employees learn more about themselves, helping them to self sufficiently produce more.

Organizational growth

A primary benefit of innovation is the organizational growth that is built by these talent development programs. When employees upskill in an innovative environment, they become more productive with motivation and a growth mindset.

As a result, the organization benefits from a more motivated and skilled workforce. Innovation in talent development is significant for organizational growth because it teaches employees to think with growth and continuous improvement in mind.

Moreover, employees are innovative thinkers and skilled creators, having gained the necessary skills—like creativity, project management, and collaboration—to make innovative ideas a reality.

Along with employees’ individual growth, the organization grows as a whole because employees become strong collaborators focused on growth and producing collaborative innovations.

Connected company culture

As employees come together as professionals to innovate, they come together as people.

The company team connects like never before: together, they have accomplished innovation. They have faced adversity, learned new things, and strengthened their weaknesses together. Employees are united by the shared mission and values, creating a more connected company culture.

Research shows that stronger connections between employees make for happier, more productive, and more loyal employees. For this reason, employers should consider introducing a collaborative innovation challenge to their employees.

Skills gaps solution

A significant benefit of innovation in the workplace is that employees gain top in-demand skills that are lacking in the workforce today. With internal innovation, employers have a golden opportunity to fill skills gaps that are stunting their organizational growth.

Universally valuable yet lacking, skills including communication, collaboration, problem solving, critical thinking, and creativity, are the primary skills gained through innovative talent development programs.

More leadership

Employers face a challenge of their own with internal innovation: leadership. Planning the innovation, discussing organizational and individual goals with employees, supporting the team throughout, and providing constructive feedback are critical tasks.

The employer strengthens their leadership and mentorship skills throughout the innovative talent development process.

Growth mindset culture

A growth mindset culture in the workplace is invaluable. Employees are motivated, individually, and with one another, to continuously learn, grow, and improve. This translates into a company that is consistently growing, driven by a team of motivated lifelong learners.

A study on growth mindsets in the workplace revealed that employees in organizations with a strong growth mindset culture are 49% more likely to report that the organization fosters innovation. Evidently, innovation and a growth mindset go hand in hand, cultivating a company culture founded on future-proof strategy.

Better company reputation

Forbes reports that “investing in continual learning” earns employers a better reputation. External customers, clients, or candidates will take note of the organization’s genuine efforts to develop its employees.

Research shows that internal talent development impacts external brand strength, specifically the employer brand strength. For a more positive reputation, displaying themselves as a company that cares, employers should invest in their talent’s development with innovation.

Staff retention

For the host of employee benefits, it should be no surprise that internal innovation and talent development make employees stick around. Organizations can earn themselves a lower turnover rate with innovation development programs.

As employees advance their careers with expanded skills sets, a confident professional identity, and a mindset of lifelong learning, they are incentivized to remain with the organization that fostered this growth.

Tailored problem solving

Another great benefit of internal innovation development is that employers can tailor the program to suit their needs, mission, values, as well as the needs, strengths, and skills gaps of their workforce.

Innovation emphasizes problem solving, which means that organizations can use innovation as a way to teach employees how to solve real-world problems that are applicable to the workplace.

Moreover, the fact that the issues are tangible and relevant to the employees makes the experience more meaningful. Internal innovation empowers employees with tailored problem solving and subsequently empowers the organization’s growth.

Future-proof team

Lastly, the organization gains a future-proof team. Increasing skills gaps and requirements, jobs that don’t exist yet, and rapidly changing technology make the future of work uncertain.

However, employers who are proactively future-proofing their organization through internal innovation will be prepared with a workforce that hones lifelong skills and a mindset that ensures continuous growth.

These top 10 benefits of internal innovation for organizations are a brief overview of the organizational growth possible with innovation. Employers should begin implementing internal innovation now in order to prepare for the uncertain future of work.