ASSESSMENT 1: ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY

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 Table of Contents
Introduction 2

Argument 2

Conclusion 5

References 6

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Introduction
The essay is aimed at discussing the relationships between entrepreneurship, innovation and
creativity, and it can impact the creation of wealth, sustainability and business growth (Runco
& Jaeger, 2012). The focus of the essay will be to discuss how the development of skills,
following theoretical frameworks and others can help in expediting the process of innovation
in an organisation. According to Gerrit de Waal (2016), innovators, in the form of young
professionals can greatly benefit from knowledge acquired through formal studies, through
structure, resources like textbooks and classrooms. This can help innovators in developing
skills, knowledge and expertise required for introducing innovations in the business. Through
innovation-centric learning and skill acquisition, innovators can focus on learning practical
skills and expertise that can help in speeding up the innovation process and help in sustaining
business growth and creating wealth (Coyne, Clifford & Dye, 2007). The focus of the essay
will be on discussing various tools, methods and theories from the four modules that can help
in expediting the innovation process.

Argument
Modern businesses succeed and grow in the current highly competitive “corporate” climate
because of various reasons. Some of the businesses are known for their services, while others
are known for their products, and some others due to lesser factors like engaging ads, brand
loyalty and others (Hennessey & Amabile, 2010). However, from an organisational
perspective, one of the biggest reasons behind the continued success and growth of some
businesses over time is mainly due to innovation. Some might argue that the process of
innovation is exhausting and might halt after some innovations. However, Kanter (2010),
have argued that innovation is a cyclic process and through change management initiatives
are consolidated in the business model of the company. As a concept, innovation is the
“process” that an organisation or individual undertakes for conceptualising new ideas,
processes, products, services or new approaches to some existing processes and products.

Innovations in business processes, product development and others can help the business
survive the cut-throat competition in the market (Rebecca Shambaugh, 2019). At the team
level in the organisation, innovation helps in introducing new innovative processes that can
help in improving communication, coordination and others areas crucial to the teams.
Whereas, in regards to the individual level, innovation processes allow individual employees
an opportunity to achieve their potential and fuel career growth. Innovation as process is

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extremely important and necessary for keeping the organisation relevant (Hughes et al.,
2018). For example, according to reports, 90% of the data in the world has been mined over
the last few years. Moreover, almost 580 new websites and platforms are created online each
minute. Reports suggest that almost 9 billion devices will get connected to the world wide
web by the year 2022.

This has created an urgent need for the company to innovate and stay competitive in the
hyper-competitive market. Innovations in product design, processes and business practices
can help the business in obtaining competitive advantages in the market (Amabile et al.,
1996). However, the process of innovation is extremely critical and requires extensive
knowledge, specialised skills and expertise for identifying opportunities for innovation and
help the business in achieving its goals (Kahn, 2018). The training for acquiring such skills,
knowledge and expertise needs to come from formal sources in classrooms, textbook
resources and others. These resources provide a solid foundation to professionals for learning
about innovations’ framework, analytical models, and tools that can help the professional in
developing a comprehensive strategy for introducing the innovation (Gerrit de Waal, 2016).
For example, the “La Salle Matrix” model taught in the module during the course is one of
the most efficient and effective innovations’ framework that can help the business in
facilitating the innovation process through a well-defined strategy.

The matrix had been taught as in the form of an “innovation matrix” that can help the
company in visualising how it can identify the various innovations, based on the goals that
are necessary from a particular perspective (Runco & Jaeger, 2012). For example, if a
company uses an outdated inventory management system, using the innovation matrix can
help the company in identifying it the gaps in the inventory management process by
analysing the data regarding the process and introduce a new inventory management system
that uses Data Analytics, which can allow the company to analyse historic data for
identifying historic trends and patterns regarding inventory control (Coyne, Clifford & Dye,
2007). Such innovations’ model, taught in the module, during the course can help in
enhancing learning regarding the concept of innovation, and how it can be expedited. The
tools taught in formal settings can help in standardising learning regarding innovation in
business management modules.

Similarly, the “Ishikawa diagram” or the “Fishbone diagram” has been design as a toll for
showing the causations behind an event”. Usually, the diagram is used for facilitating change
management initiatives or undertaking projects. The tool was one of the most important and

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effective business management tools taught in the module and during the course. However,
the tool can be a highly effective and efficient tool for facilitating the process of innovation in
an organisation. It can help business executives and managers in outlining the various steps in
the innovation process and demonstrate where issues, especially ones regarding quality can
arise. This helps them in determining the resources which might be required in particular
times (Hennessey & Amabile, 2010). The diagram resembles the skeleton of a fish, with the
bones “branching” out for presenting the causations of the event, which in this case happens
to be innovation. Every “bone” represents the needs, issues and areas that need to be
addressed for facilitating the innovation process.

The tool was taught during the module and was taught for understanding how it can be used
for innovative product design. For example, the tool can be sued as an effective
“methodology” for the creation of innovative product “designs”, that can help in solving
“practical” problems (Kanter, 2010). Moreover, it can also be utilised for preventing quality
defects and identifying the “potential” factors that have been causing the overall impact. Any
business, whether struggling or successful, needs to focus on providing the employees
training for developing and learning new skills, knowledge and expertise for identifying
opportunities for innovations and bringing welcome changes in the processes, product
development and business practices of the company or organisation (Rebecca Shambaugh,
2019). However, the company or organisations need to use formal learning and training
process for using theoretical models, practical tools, analytical tools and others, that can help
the employees in learning new skills and knowledge.

Similarly, another important innovations’ theory taught during the module was the “Porter
and Lawler Expectancy Model”. The model argues that the performance of employees is
“driven” by various factors and causes, including abilities, knowledge, experience, skills and
personality (Hughes et al., 2018). The core component of the model is “expectancy”,
meaning the “belief” that enhanced efforts can lead to better and improved performance.
Such theoretical models can help an organisation or company in assessing the various
organisational factors that drive the abilities and knowledge of the employees, crucial for
introducing innovations (Amabile et al., 1996). A company or organisation, undergoing
performance issues, declining sales or other issues regarding organisational behaviour can
face difficulties in identifying the causes behind the issues. Moreover, the leadership and
governance structure can also create roadblocks in identifying the causes behind the issues.
For example, when the leadership of the company follows a democratic structure, identifying

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the ones responsible for miscalculated decisions or establishing accountability can be difficult
(Kahn, 2018). This can cause delays in the process of innovation.

However, these issues can be addressed by using the tools, models and theories discussed
earlier. For example, the fishbone or the Ishikawa diagram can be used for understanding the
causations behind the issues and what has been delaying the process of innovation at the
company. Similarly, the “Porter and Lawler Expectancy Model” can help the company in
identifying the skills, abilities and knowledge that drive change and innovation in the
organisation (Gerrit de Waal, 2016). These theoretical tools can help a company or
organisation in adopting employee learning regimes that can help in creating new skills,
expertise and knowledge among the employees for enhanced product design and
development, better services and most important of all, innovation (Runco & Jaeger, 2012).
However, such regimes need to be adopted after identifying the learning needs of the
employees and the areas that need improvements, which can help in developing the correct
“innovative-centric” strategy for the employee training.

Conclusion
The essay was focussed on making informed arguments regarding the importance of
innovation in a company or organisation, and why the they need to adopt innovative business
practices for staying relevant in the highly-competitive market. The importance of innovation
in product design, service delivery, processes and others has been discussed in the essay. The
focus of the argumentative essay was to discuss the importance and impact of theoretical
tools, models and methods like Ishikawa diagram, the Porter and Lawler Expectancy
Model and the La Salle Matrix regarding the process of innovation. The practical uses of
such tools have been argued for in the paper, especially regarding capacity building and skill
development among the employees. .

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References
Amabile, T., Conti, R., Coon, H., Lazenby, J., et al. (1996) Assessing the work environment
for creativity. Academy Of Management Journal. 39 (5), 1154–1184.

Coyne, K.P., Clifford, P.G. & Dye, R. (2007) Breakthrough thinking from inside the
box. Harvard business review. 85 (12), 71–145.

Gerrit de Waal (2016) The links between Creativity Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Hennessey, B.A. & Amabile, T.M. (2010) Creativity. Annual Review of Psychology. [Online]
61 (1), 569–598. Available from: doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.093008.100416.

Hughes, D.J., Lee, A., Tian, A.W., Newman, A., et al. (2018) Leadership, creativity, and
innovation: A critical review and practical recommendations. The Leadership Quarterly.
[Online] 29 (5), 549–569. Available from: doi:10.1016/j.leaqua.2018.03.001.

Kahn, K.B., (2018). Understanding innovation. Business Horizons, 61(3), pp.453-460.

Kanter, R.M. (2010) Think Outside the Building. Harvard Business Review. [Online] 88 (3),
34–34. Available from: http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=bth&AN=48219378&site=ehost-live&authtype=sso&custid=s5445732.

Pinchot, G. and P. (n.d.) Improving your climate for innovation. In: Intrapreneuring in

Rebecca Shambaugh (2019) How to Unlock Your Team’s Creativity. Harvard Business

Runco, M.A. & Jaeger, G.J. (2012) The Standard Definition of Creativity. Creativity
Research Journal. [Online] 24 (1), 92–96. Available from:
doi:10.1080/10400419.2012.650092.