BY TERRY LYNAM //
All organizations rely on their leaders for ideas that will set them apart from their competitors. But true innovators can be found at all levels of an organization, not just in the C-suite.
Regardless of the industry or an organization’s size, there’s rarely a lack of good ideas among employees – but very often, there’s a lack of opportunity for workers to share their suggestions with those in leadership positions.
Encouraging, recognizing and rewarding creative thinking is one of the goals of Innovate Long Island’s “Innovator of the Year” awards. Over the years, Innovate LI has honored individuals in technology, clean energy, health science/medical devices, craft food and beverage and other categories. And whether it be in the private sector, government or academia, the awards program has demonstrated that good ideas are in abundant supply across Long Island.
One of the keys to advancing entrepreneurialism throughout the region – and further elevating Long Island as a magnet for high technology and research – is for organizations to imbed and embrace this culture of innovation.
Terry Lynam: Encouraging creativity.
As the largest healthcare provider and employer on Long Island, Northwell Health established an “Innovation Challenge” four years ago, modeling the competition after the “Shark Tank” television show. This year, the health system received 74 nominations prepared by individual employees or teams of employees. Based on the written proposals, a group of judges – including Arianna Huffington, CEO of Thrive Global and co-founder of HuffPost, and Melynda Barnes, chief medical officer at the health-tech Ro – narrowed down the proposals to seven finalists in the categories of Care Delivery and Science.
Similar to the TV show, the finalists were given five minutes to give their best sales pitch and answer questions about how their ideas could impact the health system or be transitioned into legitimate businesses.
In May, Northwell awarded $1.3 million toward the research and development of four projects – two winners were each selected to receive up to $500,000 in funding to help advance their big ideas, and $150,000 was earmarked for each of the two runners-up.
The winner in the Care Delivery category was a team developing a 3D device to facilitate early detection of pressure ulcers, which are prevalent among critically ill patients, frail elderly and others with impaired mobility, such as wheelchair users.
In the Science category, the winners were a team of researchers developing a wearable device that can be remotely activated to stimulate clotting in cases of trauma, surgery or other invasive procedures where blood loss could prove deadly.
The projects selected as runners-up included an artificial intelligence-driven algorithm that limits the need to wake hospitalized patients unnecessarily and a therapeutic drug candidate externally validated by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases – a potential treatment for HPV infection.
Creative thinking: Northwell Health President and CEO Michael Dowling (second from left) congratulates (from left) Jared Huston, Anne Marie McDonough and Alina Segal, winners of the 2021 Northwell Innovation Challenge.
“Innovation and creativity are the essence of good organizations that want to excel and move forward,” Northwell President and CEO Michael Dowling said, while announcing the awards.
Meanwhile, nine projects previously funded by Northwell in prior competitions are in various stages of commercialization.
Certainly, most smaller organizations cannot afford to allocate such a high level of funding to commercialize employee-generated ideas, even those that could potentially become money-makers.
But it doesn’t cost anything to solicit ideas from workers that could potentially be integrated into day-to-day business practices. Those on the front lines are often more aware of quality-control issues and operational inefficiencies that waste time and money, or negatively impact customer experiences.
This kind of engagement makes employees feel like their talents and knowledge are recognized and appreciated, and encourages them to look at their daily responsibilities through a creative lens.
Prioritizing employee engagement starts with leaders, who must establish a culture in which people are free to make suggestions without fear of being humiliated or ignored. A culture without fear of reprisal, and one that doesn’t present unnecessary hurdles, can quickly cultivate innovation, boost employee morale and benefit the bottom line.
Terry Lynam is a communications consultant and former senior vice president/chief public relations officer for Northwell Health.
