Emerging Innovation and MicroMBA

An empirical approach

Without entering into theoretical considerations aimed at explaining why, we present here an empirical approach which has produced very concrete results in the various companies where it has been implemented, both in Switzerland and in other countries, in organisations as diverse as Nestlé, Sanofi-Aventis and Microsoft, Edipresse, as well as banks, industrial firms and a hospital. The testimony of John Huss, CEO of Sanofi-Aventis (Switzerland), puts it this way: “We have increased the level of effectiveness and interdependence in the company, which in turn has led to great results and the ability to be prepared for the future.”(3)

This approach starts from a very simple observation: employees have plenty of ideas, but very few are actually implemented. The challenge is in fact to make people want not only to identify opportunities but also, and above all, to exploit them in concrete terms.

Starting from the aspirations of middle managers

To turn employees into agents of change, we adopted a very pragmatic approach: tapping into their “WIIFM” (= what’s in it for me).(4) In other words, building on the motivational levers of middle managers to encourage them to innovate. We therefore drew on their aspirations, including the desire to:

- progress professionally and gain recognition; - improve their employability by acquiring new skills; - show what they are capable of so as to be even more appreciated by their superiors; - broaden their horizons; - be intellectually stimulated; - develop their professional network; - have fun...

Why focus on middle managers? Because, being active on the ground and sometimes even in contact with the company’s customers and partners, they are very well placed to identify opportunities. Because the training opportunities offered to them are very often aimed at remedying shortcomings brought to light during a periodic performance review, the invitation to undertake training ultimately rests on a finding of incompetence: this is obviously not very flattering! As middle managers are generally specialists who rarely have a holistic view of their company’s activities, they are often confined to the territory assigned to them. This de facto creates compartmentalised thinking that prevents cross-functional collaboration.

Combining training and action

To get round these difficulties, we developed a training programme entitled MicroMBA, a general management course designed to complement the “catalogue” management training(5) traditionally offered in companies. In addition to the acquisition of skills, it also aims to stimulate cross-departmental collaboration and change. At the end of the programme, and in order to apply concretely what they have been taught, participants must also carry out an innovative or change project within their company.

The topics covered by the MicroMBA may include subjects as varied as tools for identifying and seizing opportunities, the modalities of intrapreneurship, building interdisciplinary teams, legal aspects, leadership, financial management, cost control, human resource management, conflict management, negotiation techniques, internal and external communication, project management, process optimisation and stress management.

The recipe for making – and succeeding with – MicroMBAs rests in particular on the following ingredients:

- it brings together participants from a single company but from different departments (= networking opportunity); - the course content covers the themes addressed in an MBA but in a condensed version, so as to teach only the conceptual framework, the vocabulary and the key questions to ask; this enables participants to understand the issues faced by functional specialists, to know how to interact effectively, and finally to integrate other dimensions into their own area of expertise (for example, a more “marketing” approach in a hospital care department); - the choice of modules is made according to the needs and objectives of each company so as to produce a tailor-made programme that is relevant to participants; - the MicroMBA provides practical tools that can be used in day-to-day work (= increased skills and employability); - participants must, in multifunctional groups, identify and implement innovative projects that support the strategy.

These projects provide an opportunity to put into practice everything taught in the courses while discovering other dimensions (= broadening their horizons). It is in particular an opportunity to show what they are capable of (= opportunity for recognition);

- for participants who so wish and who have the required skills, successful completion of the MicroMBA can, under certain conditions, contribute to obtaining a university qualification that may lead to a full MBA (= valuing the training received and increasing employability).

The innovative projects, which are the cornerstone of the MicroMBA and contribute to its originality, can of course only be launched with management’s approval. This requires participants to sell their projects very convincingly and to ensure that they are relevant to achieving the company’s strategic objectives, failing which they will obtain neither authorisation nor resources. Once this feat has been accomplished and knowing that innovation is possible, participants are thus equipped to identify and exploit other opportunities in the future. Without realising it, they become agents of change.

Experience has shown that participants derive enormous pleasure and stimulation from turning real projects of their own making into reality. Having tasted the fruits of paradise and better understanding the ins and outs of innovation, the seed is planted and the desire aroused. All that remains is to let things happen and ripen so that the fruits can be harvested...

Convincing results, relevant projects

Unlike what is observed with most training programmes, the organisations that funded a MicroMBA benefited from a measurable return on investment: four to six innovative projects per cohort were completed with minimal resources. Because these projects stemmed from the initiative of people on the ground, their implementation was assured, whereas many of those launched by top management are abandoned along the way for lack of buy-in from below.

Most importantly, these innovative projects could only see the light of day because they brought the company competitive advantages or improved a situation supporting the strategy. Thus, thanks to employees’ initiative, their company became more effective. That is emergent innovation.

Presenting things in this way enabled participants to internalise more fully their institution’s strategy, objectives and managerial orientations. The MicroMBA thus proved to be an effective means of deploying and also explaining the organisation’s strategy at a hierarchical level that is generally not sufficiently involved in its implementation.

Given how much silo-based working is an obstacle to innovation, the gentle breaking down of barriers brought about by the MicroMBA greatly encouraged cross-functional collaboration. Most interestingly, these cross-functional collaborations continued beyond the end of the programme. As a key factor in innovation and progress, this breaking down of silos further helps to develop intrapreneurship. By bringing together participants from all parts of the company, the MicroMBA also developed every participant’s internal network. This networking translated into easier access to information or resources. Two further factors that facilitate intrapreneurial initiatives.

Another form of network was also put in place: peer support networks. The group dynamic deliberately fostered in the MicroMBA enabled participants to forge privileged ties with colleagues from other departments with whom they were not in competition. Once trust had been established, participants continued to meet for peer exchanges, beyond the training programme.

As the MicroMBA was presented as a genuine personal development opportunity going well beyond the simple acquisition of skills required for employees’ normal work, they became aware that their company was really doing something for them. They appreciated this mark of recognition, which of course had the effect of increasing their loyalty. The company’s attractiveness as an employer was also strengthened, insofar as new recruits saw the MicroMBA as a future opportunity for themselves.

Another unplanned knock-on effect was that participants spontaneously shared their satisfaction with colleagues. Their enthusiasm generated spontaneous applications to join subsequent cohorts of the programme. Participants’ satisfaction was moreover confirmed in the programme’s final evaluations: 100% of participants recommend the MicroMBA to their colleagues.

The programme’s positive dynamic had another unplanned knock-on effect: it enhanced the value of the human resources department’s work, since, as the sponsor of the MicroMBA, its image was strengthened by it. By using the MicroMBA as an innovative talent development tool, HR was seen as dynamic not only by employees, but also by top management. Indeed, thanks to the innovative projects, they were able to see that the training was producing tangible results.

Participants also appreciated being able to discuss their concerns openly in an environment where there was no risk of sanctions. The MicroMBA therefore acted as a revealer of the real culture expressed by the men and women in the field, to such an extent that, in some cases, it made it possible to highlight the gap with the culture desired by management. On each occasion the debate was highly instructive. An analysis of the information gathered on these occasions could, without betraying confidentiality and in the absence of hierarchical bias, be communicated to management in such a way as to enable it to complement its perception of what people on the ground were actually experiencing.

The key success factors

With hindsight, it is possible to identify the parameters that contributed to the success of each of the MicroMBAs implemented.

First, participation was open only to volunteers (= desire to progress), identified by their superiors as having development potential (= recognition), willing to commit themselves and even to work unpaid overtime...

Next, a specific internal communication strategy was used to position the programme clearly in the minds of employees and also managers. The emphasis, omnipresent in all the courses (the guiding thread), was placed on the art of seizing opportunities, entrepreneurial behaviour, innovation, measurable results, achievement of strategic objectives, the importance of the human factor and interpersonal relations, as well as a generalist outlook (employability).

The use of a very operational model, the IpOp model,(6) gave participants a framework for reflection that helped them move forward systematically in their project. Knowing the path to follow gave them confidence.

The speakers were almost all proven entrepreneurs/intrapreneurs (role models) who also had an academic MBA-level profile; these trainers thus had the legitimacy required to be convincing and to inspire (intellectual stimulation). The content of their teaching was always aligned with the specific approach, issues and vocabulary of each company.

Innovative teaching methods (including frequent use of humour) enabled rich exchanges in an environment without risk and without doublespeak, one that encouraged constructive questioning. A specific approach to group dynamics ensured a sufficient climate of trust for participants to be able to express themselves freely, without fear of sanctions or reprisals.

Participants were supported in their projects by an academic director, himself an experienced external entrepreneur (intrapreneur), who also managed the group dynamic throughout the programme. In addition to serving as a role model, his committed presence showed participants that their success was his primary concern.

The external academic director worked closely with the internal HR coordinator, so as to ensure optimal customisation taking account of the company’s specific situation and the participants.

One of the key lessons drawn from this innovative approach is that intrapreneurship training is far more likely to produce concrete results if it is led by an academic director external to the company who, in addition, has not only the legitimacy needed to serve as a role model, but also the independence and academic background required to engage in genuine debate.

As the practice of “Do as I say, not as I do” convinces no one, this role cannot be fulfilled by a company employee unless that person has truly proved themselves as an intrapreneur. Finding someone who also has the pedagogical qualities required to lead a multidisciplinary programme is not easy... An academic with no real intrapreneurial or entrepreneurial track record would run up against the same difficulty: lack of legitimacy.

A final lesson, far from insignificant: training, when designed in such a way as to concretely support the company’s strategic objectives and when taught with the required legitimacy, can become a genuine vehicle for change and for energising employees’ intrapreneurial capacity.

Rather than being a “luxury” whose budgets are cut as soon as the wind changes, training can thus play a real role in acquiring competitive advantages. For that, HR directors and those responsible for talent development must themselves be capable of innovation and boldness in implementing approaches which, like the MicroMBA, go off the beaten track...