Abstract
This chapter presents research on innovation culture in Australian business organizations in the information technology sector, with a survey sent out the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) commercial members' executives. The survey was designed to determine organizational culture traits that determine innovation culture from the perspectives of their employees and competitors. Two hundred and forty-four responses were received from 102 organizations. A detailed analysis of the research data using qualitative and quantitative methods leads to the conclusion that the perceived innovation traits. This investigation confirmed that the employer organizations had very good innovation cultures, and this view was further confirmed by responses from their competitor organization. This chapter teases out some of the cultural factors that lead to these outcomes.
TopBackground
Pursuit of innovation has been repeatedly identified as a major cornerstone of successful firms. For example, a recent study by market research firm AON Hewitt (2011) investigated over 180 international organisations and reported the consistently superior financial performance of companies receiving high scores both internally (employees) and externally (competitors) in regard to innovation culture and behaviors. These organisations averaged 38% higher return on investment and 22% higher gross margin than other market counterparts. Similarly, work by Jaruzelski et al. (2011) suggests businesses with cultures highly aligned to innovation can post up to 30% higher growth in enterprise value than rivals. These authors are not alone as over the last decade many researchers (e.g. Christensen and Raynor, 2003; Piperopoulos and Scase, 2009; Vaccaro et al., 2010; Borjession and Lofsten, 2012) have found themselves independently repeating the same litany.
But getting it right can be a challenge.
Key Terms in this Chapter
AIIA: The Australian Information Industry Association.
ASX: Australian Stock Exchange.
Culture: The ideas, customs, and social behavior of a particular people or society.
Attributes: A quality or characteristic of a person, place, or thing.
Cultural Factors: Encompasses the set of beliefs, moral values, traditions, language, and laws (or rules of behavior) held in common by a nation, a community, or other defined group of people.
Innovation Culture: Culture enables creating new process, products, and services for competitive and sustained company growth.
Business Success: The feelings of satisfaction and completion you have when your business career is over; success has other dimensions that for many business owners are as significant, or more so, than monetary rewards.