The Business Centre in Newcastle has developed the first nationally accredited innovation learning and skills business course of its kind in the Hunter.

The Rippler Effect is a highly resourced 7 day program where individuals and companies turn innovative ideas into a commercial reality. On completion individuals achieve accreditation in Innovation Practice and Innovation Management that can articulate into a Diploma in Entrepreneurship.

International research has shown that most companies highly value innovation yet few invest in it.

A study by the Boston Consulting Group investigated the types of innovation companies considered to be most critical to success. The most critical were found to be:

• New offerings for existing customers 
• New products that allow for expansion into new customer groups

The study also identified a framework of capabilities that are critical to innovation success, which included:

• Developing a deep understanding of customers and their preferences
• Partnering effectively with suppliers and others for new ideas
• Ensuring executive-level sponsorship of projects
• Enforcing timelines and milestones
• Earmarking sufficient funds for projects
• Moving quickly from idea generation to initial market entry
• Balancing risks, time frames, and returns across an entire portfolio of projects
• Fostering a corporate culture that promotes innovation

The Rippler Effect has been developed through consultation with local organisations and businesses in the Hunter. The Innovation program acknowledges the strong correlation between innovation and strong leadership and organisational alignment to ensure commitment to innovation.

Under The Rippler Effect, The Business Centre has developed a series of workshops over a seven-day program over six months, aimed at embedding innovation into organisational culture. The program is delivered in two stages. At the successful completion of Stage One participants will be accredited with a Skill Set in Innovation Practice. At the successful completion of Stage Two, participants will be accredited with a Skill Set in Innovation Management.

A key outcome of the program is to arm business owners, business managers and executives with the resources to harness innovation in their business. Then they can increase productivity and profits from good ideas.

The workshops approach is one which encourages collaboration amongst different companies to solve existing problems, create new product or create new processes.  These skills will then be transferable into individual businesses and assist companies with making decisions about where to invest.

A component of the program is the development and delivery of an innovation project related to the participant’s business, presented to the group for peer review and support.

The Business Centre, with the support of State Training Services will be running two courses in Innovation Practice and Management. The first course will commence on June 2, 2014 and the second course will commence on June 30, 2014

For more information