Case Study of a Public Sector Institution implementing Innovation
For this assignment you are required to:
Select a public sector institution that is known for its innovativeness, and that uses technology intensively to deliver smart services.
- Access secondary sources of information about the institution from their web site, annual report, external reports, journal articles, newspaper articles, and other sources. - Complement this information with primary data collected from a contact person in institution. This will enable you to identify a new service innovation that the organization launched recently. - Study, analyse, and synthesize the institutional innovation strategy to develop a case study, illustrating your work using the new service launched as example.
An important part of this course involves the preparation of a research paper- in other words, a study that includes a link between theory and real life. Case studies are designed to help you link a ‘real life' example to the bigger picture' (a theory or a broad trend). They usually require learners to identify problems and issues in a scenario, to demonstrate their developing knowledge of theories and professional policies and to make decisions and recommendations based on these to either prevent or solve some of the issues in that scenario.
Case studies can provide a range of opportunities for you:
- To learn how to distinguish and articulate a critical issue(s) in an organization.
- To learn how to research this issue, including questioning of participating parties and developing conflicting analytical positions and alternatives.
- To deepen your knowledge and understanding of course concepts by applying principles you have learned while dealing with issues of newly emerging data.
- To develop the ability to exercise judgment and discretion as you use the flow of information to produce the best product for potential future readers and users of your case study.
So as you write your case study, make sure that these come through clearly in your writing:
1 Case background: A Brief description of the institution, its vision, mission, leadership, and innovation strategy, as well as one new service launched recently. This section is brief (<10% of word length) and is meant to quickly introduce reader to case organization. Instead of lengthy descriptions, you may refer the reader to some relevant online background information (e.g. by giving the URL) on the institution.
2 Environmental Analysis (15-20 % of word length)
Analyze the external environment that affects this innovation. Recall that an external environmental analysis consists of a detailed analysis of the natural (ecological), macro- (general external), and Task (operating) environments Internal Environment: Analyze the main resources, capabilities, competencies, and activities of the organization. Use the VRIO (or VRIN) framework to analyze the organization's "true" competitive status.
SWOT. Summarize the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in implementing this strategy.
In this section, you do NOT need to report all your analysis, only some major findings.
3 Analysis of the issues/ causes/ factors (Approximately 30-40 % of word length):
Briefly state what the major issues are in this case study (i.e., why was the case chosen and what "good practices" or any "problems/issues" you notice. You can get this information through field visits, interviews, and/or getting access to official documents, and other secondary sources, etc. In your report, you will link your observations with a discussion of the theoretical concepts you learnt in the course, which may include, as applicable:
- The Importance of Technological Innovation - Sources of Innovation - Types and Patterns of Innovation - Defining Strategic Direction - Choosing Innovation Project - Collaboration Strategies - Protecting Innovation - Organizing for Innovation - Managing New Product Development
- Managing New Product Development Team - Crafting Deployment Strategy - Organizational Culture and Change - Managing Conflict in New Product Development Team - Effective Communication for NPD Team Performance
This part should include:
1. Type: What type of innovation was it (using typology of innovation or Doblin framework)?
2. Business Model: What is the organization's business model?
3. How sustainable is it (can it pay its expenses and eventually make a profit in a reasonable timeframe)?
4. How scalable is it (what aspects will govern the pace of growth and ultimate scale of the enterprise)?
5. Will it make a significant impact on a real problem?
4 Recommendations
1. How strong is the institutional Innovation ecosystem?
2. What should the innovation champions do to enhance quality and number of innovations?
3. Where are the strengths/weaknesses and what resources/capabilities/competencies would they need?
4. How should the management continue to grow their innovation output, both qualitatively and quantitatively?
8. References (Harvard referencing system)