Grassroots Innovation: A Promising Innovation Paradigm for Pharmaceutical Companies - Innovation and Marketing in the Pharmaceutical Industry - page 138

(a) Competence-enhancing effects of innospire
The feedback of the participants was outstanding. Several participants stated
that they would have not been able to bring their idea forward if it was not
through the Innospire process. A considerable number of participants found
Innospire a life-changing event. Many of them were scientists who had barely
been exposed to business. This process was an initiation in business logic for
many of them, boosting their skills and perceived capacity to autonomously
transform ideas into full-fl edged projects for new businesses. We repeatedly
solicited feedback on the process. In one such session, one participant com-
mented that “ Innospire is a great opportunity to bring ideas into business while
learning in a professional way,” hinting at the competence-enhancing benefi ts
of the program he enthusiastically concluded that it was “defi nitely the best
education you can get at Merck.” Similarly another participant expressed her
gratitude to the “great opportunity to broaden my expertise and knowledge.” As
one participant pointed out, “ innospire has helped me to develop my
personality.”
(b) Increased autonomy
Besides its competence-enhancing benefi ts, another key benefi t of Innospire
was to spread the idea that innovation is a responsibility of every employee. We
observed a high level of dedication and motivation of project teams. A culture
was shaped that allowed the entrepreneurial teams to consider a project as their
“baby,” being provided resources by the company to move it forward. This
turned out to be highly motivating for project teams and helped to rapidly
change perceptions of some of being treated as a dispensable turning wheel at
the merit of line management. In the words of a participant, “ Innospire makes
the whole company more aware of how dependent we are on new products.”
Indeed, many participants indicated they were very pleased with the enhanced
sense of autonomy they gained and the trust they felt was being put on their
capacity to innovate. These feelings also helped increasing employee loyalty to
the organization. For example, one participant said “ Innospire adds a lot to the
fun I have in my job and makes Merck a more attractive employer.”
(c) Increased relatedness and networking
Besides this competence- and autonomy-enhancing aspects, the Innospire pro-
cess stimulated networking and relatedness among employees in several ways.
The opportunity to come together and discuss with colleagues from other divi-
sions was highly appreciated and contributed substantially to idea advance-
ment. Summarizing his experience at Innospire , one participant said that “it
gives the opportunity to discuss with people that you would not meet normally,
and this allows you to come up with breakthrough ideas.” The process espe-
cially succeeded in bringing forward ideas at the crosssection of both business
divisions, suggesting that the relatedness of people from different corners of the
organization was signifi cantly improved. Teams working on such projects were
mixed teams, with representatives from the chemicals and pharmaceuticals
business sectors. In one case, the technology base lied within the division Merck
Serono (prescription pharmaceuticals) and the application lied in the Merck