Creating, supporting and sustaining a culture of innovation

Recently the industry's clients, designers and society as a whole, have begun to accept that innovation can offer key benefits in the form of financial growth and increased profits. Therefore, it is apparent that the development of a culture of innovation is of utmost importance if a business is to become universally proactive, entrepreneurial and remain successful. This owes much to the fact that the agility and ability of an organisation to respond to the changing marketplace is driven by its propensity to innovate. This paper does not attempt to resolve these problems; it merely attempts to raise awareness of the key issues relating to innovation, diffusion and the associated management of change. Moreover, it promotes the benefits afforded by developing an organizational culture of innovation. The content will be of interest to industrialists and researchers and will describe the key issues associated with product derivation, introduction and wider diffusion. Ultimately, it aims to demonstrate that creativity, the promotion of a culture for innovation, and the development of intellectual capital are issues of utmost importance in generating and maintaining a proactive and entrepreneurial organisation.