What is an Innovation Challenge?

A Brief Description About Innovation Challenge

For brainstorming and idea generation, a large number of companies organize an innovation challenge. Employees, business partners or customers of a company develop ideas for a question that has emerged from a customer survey or a business challenge for example. Innovation challenges are held in-house using idea management software or externally using open innovation software. Ideas are collected over a limited period of time (usually four to eight weeks) and developed into sound concepts through systematic idea development. Innovation challenges serve as accelerators for idea managementcontinuous improvement and innovation management: Many ideas from different perspectives in the shortest possible time.

Innovation challenge within a company

Boosting idea and innovation management

Innovation challenge for new ideas

An innovation challenge in a company can be conducted in different ways. The time limit ensures a high motivation of the participants, who inspire each other for creative top performances due to the competition character.  Typical use cases are:

Competition of ideas to increase efficiency within a company

An innovation challenge in a company can be conducted in different ways. The time limit ensures a high motivation of the participants, who inspire each other for creative top performances due to the competition character.  Typical use cases are:

Increase your service quality through innovation challenges with customers

The company uses customers’ ideas to obtain concrete suggestions and suggestions for improving service quality. The advantage: Ideas are developed from the customer’s point of view and typical “blinkers” within the company are eliminated. This approach is very often referred to as co-creation.

Innovation challenges in sales

Employees and sales partners of a company develop ideas for customer acquisition and lead generation. Such an innovation challenge can be initiated for new ideas or successfully implemented ideas.

Open Innovation Challenge

An innovation challenge for the development of new products and services is held with external participants (e.g. students or partners of the company). Companies that invest resources in university marketing or want to establish relationships with creative service providers (advertising agencies, graphic designers, etc.) benefit from this competition.

Innovation challenge for digitizing business models

Digital native, i.e. younger target groups who grew up with the Internet, are invited in a specific way. In the ideas competition, they develop innovative concepts for digital advertising and sales measures, service optimization and the development of innovative digital business models.

Idea competition to attract creative employees

When companies are looking for employees for areas such as innovation management or digital marketing, they often look for creative minds. An ideas competition helps to identify and evaluate the ideas of potential future employees as part of a selection process. The aim of such a campaign is primarily to identify talents who can develop ideas to drive a company forward.

Preparation and management of an idea competition in a company

The idea management software and innovation management software developed by Innolytics AG supports companies in planning, designing, implementing and evaluating innovation challenges. Our consulting services ensure that your competition is successful.

  • Preparation of an innovation challenge

    Together with our clients, we work out the topic, the target group and the approach to the participants. The ideas competition is divided into different phases and a communication plan is drawn up.


  • Implementation of an innovation challenge

    The Innolytics® team is available to answer users’ questions about the innovation challenge. Incoming entries will be reviewed and commented by moderators. Users are methodically guided to systematically develop their ideas into mature concepts.


  • Evaluation of an innovation challenge

    Innolytics® Ideas, the software tool for idea managementcontinuous improvement and innovation management, makes it possible for users and a selected jury to evaluate ideas according to various criteria. In the evaluation, customers receive information on which ideas performed best according to predefined criteria.

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