The Role of Experimentation Campaigns in the Air Force Innovation Life Cycle (2016) / Chapter Skim
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4 Findings and Recommendations for Closing Gaps
4 Findings and Recommendations for Closing Gaps
Pages 60-75
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From page 60... ...
The committee concluded that the Air Force knows what needs to be done to use experimentation in driving innovation but is struggling to actually employ that knowledge in the widespread way needed. In this chapter, the committee will look at what the Air Force might do to close the gaps between its current practices and the best practices seen in highly innovative organizations.
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From page 61... ...
Finding 4: Dedicated leadership in the form of "Innovation Catalysts" is the essential foundation on which innovation through experimentation must be built, a foundation largely missing in today's Air Force. In the highly innovative organizations the committee studied, there are positions in which a single named individual is responsible for working with other senior leaders to maintain the strategic technical vision and for leading campaigns of experimentation and in novation to fulfill those visions.
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From page 62... ...
In the highly innovative organizations studied by the committee, innovation is a by product of a reward structure and work environment in which innovations and innovators are valued as precious resources. In these organizations, leaders, peers, and organizational systems are all aligned to emphasize and encourage innovation through experimentation.
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From page 63... ...
Based on what was observed in highly in novative organizations, an Innovation Catalyst can make important contributions at various levels of an organization. All the highly innovative organizations studied had a very senior leader working as an Innovation Catalyst at the highest levels of corporate leadership, usually with a title such as the corporation's chief technology officer, but always as a key member of the organization's C-suite.
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From page 64... ...
Commercial: Joint: DIUx Other Services • ID Threat • ID Needs • ID Technology Gaps • Develop Strategy AF SDPE Office ECCTs • Experimentation • DP "Sandbox" M&S Analysis & Assessment • Rapid Prototyping • People Field: CoCOMs MAJCOMs Bottom Up FIGURE 4-1 Air Force capability development planning and experimentation campaigns. NOTE: Acro nyms are defined in the front matter.
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From page 65... ...
This is not to say that sustaining innovations are unimportant. In fact, in some situations, the Innovation Catalyst will need to provide oversight of 1 On June 2, 2016, the USAF Chief of Staff and the Secretary of the Air Force signed the Charter for Air Force Capability Development (the complete document is reproduced in Appendix D.)
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From page 66... ...
The committee has identified several of the best practices of highly innovative organizations it finds most salient to the Air Force. Beyond committee research, the Air Force can draw upon a useful body of knowledge captured in the extensive literature on managing innovation (see Box 2-1)
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From page 67... ...
What the committee can safely recommend is that metrics need to be established wherever an Innovation Catalyst is established, that these metrics need to reflect the particular strategies and organizational circum stances facing that particular Innovation Catalyst, and that any proposed metric be subjected to the simple acid test: What could be the unintended consequences if the organization takes this one metric to its illogical extreme? Recommendation 6: Senior leaders should establish a clearer set of messages and incentives encouraging a culture of experimentation and risk-taking.
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From page 68... ...
Its top recommendation is that Air Force leadership should identify the areas in which increased innovation is most important to the service and identify Innovation Catalysts, who will be
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From page 69... ...
As captured in the committee's second finding, it is clear from an examination of the literature and a study of highly innovative organizations that well-designed and -executed experimentation campaigns are critically important drivers of innovation. In its report the committee has explained that a key responsibility of Innovation Catalysts is to oversee planning and execution of strong experimentation campaigns.
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From page 70... ...
Based on the review of best practices in highly innovative organizations, the com mittee was able to identify corresponding recommendations for the Air Force: • Leadership. Prioritize areas where innovation needs to be increased, and name Innovation Catalysts to drive this effort (see Recommendation 1.)
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From page 71... ...
. Its research failed to produce a uniformly ac cepted set of metrics in widespread use across the highly innovative organizations it studied.
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From page 72... ...
2. ssess the role of A F-2 Well-designed and executed R-2 Wherever they are established, the experimentation in experimentation campaigns are Innovation Catalysts should be directly linked to the innovation life critically important drivers of their senior leadership.
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From page 73... ...
F-7 The culture in today's Air R-4 The Innovation Catalyst should establish Force is not one supportive of a portfolio of proven management tools and widespread experimentation, disciplined approaches for experimentation especially those leading toward based on established best practices. disruptive innovations.
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From page 74... ...
Based on the committee's review of best practices in highly innovative organizations, the committee identified corresponding recommendations for the Air Force: Leadership -- see R-1. The Innovation Catalysts provide the connection between senior leaders' use of development planning and experimentation campaigns (see R-2 and Figure 4-1)
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From page 75... ...
enhance the likelihood R-3 Air Force leadership should move of successfully proactively to create organizational space for implementing a robust experimentation-driven innovation. experimentation R-4 The Innovation Catalyst should establish program within the a portfolio of proven management tools and Air Force acquisition disciplined approaches for experimentation community.
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