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Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of an innovation manager. Feel free to use our job description template to produce your own. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as an innovation manager.

 

Who is an Innovation Manager?

An innovation manager is a professional who is in charge of putting innovative plans into practice to develop a work environment that makes use of modern and innovative technologies, procedures, and operations. They carry out beneficial adjustments to boost a business’s productivity and operational effectiveness. They might also launch projects to develop a culture of innovation within the organization, which frequently promotes steady growth and ensures a business’s ability to compete in its sector. They give their workers training in creative development so that they may foster a work environment that values coming up with original solutions to issues. Innovation managers frequently create workplace events and activities that let staff members examine the advantages of innovation as well as recent developments in their industry. Innovation management combines change management and the management of innovation processes. It alludes to organizational, marketing, and business process innovation. The tools used in innovation management enable managers and employees or users to collaborate with a shared understanding of procedures and objectives. Utilizing its creativity to offer novel concepts, procedures, or products, the company can respond to opportunities, both internal and external, through the application of innovation management.

The title “innovation manager” is not widely used by corporations, but they routinely create particular jobs to supervise innovation teams. Chief innovation officer, vice president of innovation, and product innovation manager are common job titles held by people in those positions. To support the growth and success of the organization, organizations also require personnel in the management and executive ranks to exhibit the traits and abilities of an innovation manager. As the field of innovation, research has grown over the last two to three decades, organizations have been more and more interested in hiring innovation managers. The research demonstrates that innovation management is a discipline that calls for particular abilities and procedures and that these abilities and procedures can be taught. Since learning about innovation management was possible for decades, forward-thinking businesses noted for their inventive operations trained their managers in the subject. In recent years, more businesses have opted for that strategy.

In the meanwhile, innovation courses have been added by business schools, and several colleges now offer degree programs in innovation. However, education alone does not necessarily translate into competence in innovation management. An effective innovation manager must also have experience working on projects that start from scratch and are later scaled. The responsibility for building the strategy and culture needed for employees to experiment as well as the appropriate resources at the appropriate level to support such experimentation falls on innovation managers. Project management, strategic thinking, and leadership are skills that innovation managers possess. They can encourage both individual and group creativity, as well as develop systems and methods for ideation, prototyping, and production. They are also able to weigh organizational risk tolerance, organizational objectives, and other criteria against the potential rewards of their teams’ efforts. Innovation managers typically have a creative and imaginative mindset, the capacity to recognize opportunities, and the business savvy to guide concepts from the conceptual stage to production.

Since innovation management is a relatively young field of employment, there are many different prerequisites to becoming an innovation manager. Some innovation managers start their careers as designers or developers who can generate innovative and effective new concepts. Others may be adept at guiding a business through the difficulties of coming up with new concepts. To become an innovation manager, you typically require a bachelor’s or graduate degree in a relevant discipline together with several years of professional experience. Innovative managers that are successful possess a range of abilities and traits. They are inventive and can spot and encourage inventiveness in others. To accomplish your organization’s goals, you must be flexible and actively attempt to alter established practices. The success of an innovation manager must be sustained by creating a comprehensive long-term plan that encourages innovation over several years. Additionally crucial are superior analytical and market research skills. You need to be detail-oriented, strategic, motivated, and forward-thinking in your business practices to succeed as an innovation manager. A top-notch innovation manager will have a history of high-level interventions and initiatives that have been productive and effective, leading to long-term competitiveness inside their organizations.

 

Innovation Manager Job Description

Below are the innovation manager job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write an innovation manager job description for your employee. Employers can also use it to sieve out job seekers when choosing candidates for interviews.

• Make sure to decipher corporate strategy and choose creative answers to assist plan implementation.
• Create and model solutions for customer innovation and experience, as well as variations on related efforts.
• Work with innovation development groups to gather insights and provide work-related design outputs.
• Manage and assess portfolio data and the innovation pipeline to aid in the Go-to-Market and strategic decision-making processes.
• Design, research, develop, analyze, and propose fresh marketing ideas and tactics.
• Manage key team tasks and activities for strategic direction.
• Establish objectives and metrics to track development in the main areas of the business.
• Analyze data to find areas where current procedures might be made better.
• Manage projects from beginning to end, collaborating with different teams within the company to make sure goals are accomplished.
• Create new methods or technology to enhance goods or services.
• Promote fresh thinking and allocate funds for R&D to foster an innovative culture within the organization.
• Coordinate with other departments to make the introduction of new products or services easier.
• Create and implement marketing plans to introduce potential clients to new goods and services.
• Develop new ideas or enhance current ones by collaborating closely with engineers, designers, and other team members.
• Discuss the status of projects and difficulties the organization is encountering regularly with top executives.
• Make sure to delegate decision-making power while implementing strategies through procedures and programs.
• Create a climate that is high-performing.
• Play the role of a strategic partner in driving innovation for new processes that can affect change.
• Lead and oversee many cross-functional projects and programs of various sizes and kinds concurrently.
• Contribute to and have an impact on senior leadership’s strategic direction using informal and formal communication.
• Manage client expectations, meet them, and make sure the delivery lives up to them.
• Coordinate all cross-functional activities, speak for customers internally, and work with different leaders on resource allocation across projects.
• Make sure you use independent judgment and decision-making while maintaining alignment with management and customers.
• Work with the appropriate contacts to coordinate the new product’s packaging plans.

 

Qualifications

• A degree in strategy, leadership, business, management, or any related discipline is essential.
• Years of experience in technology, business, marketing, IT, finances, or any related field is required.
• Years of experience as an innovation manager or any management position.
• An outstay knowledge of concepts such as RPA, blockchain, AI, machine learning, and cognitive computing is essential.
• Must be innovative and creative.
• Must be a forward-thinking person.
• Outstanding business acumen and presentation skills.
• Proficiency in project planning, budgeting, and oversight is required.
• Critical-thinking skills.
• The ability to adapt to dynamic situations is essential.
• A good understanding of innovation and how it is applied in business is required.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Excellent leadership skills.
• Excellent communication skills.

 

Essential Skills

• Project management skills: Project management skills may be used by innovation managers while developing new strategies and initiatives. They might collaborate with business executives to develop initiatives that foster employees’ creative and innovative thinking. They frequently set deadlines for staff members to integrate an innovative procedure into their daily routines during project development. For instance, innovation managers can ask team leaders to finish integrating a novel method for tracking employee attendance by the end of the year. Incorporating initiatives for staff employees who embrace new approaches into their workdays may also be done using project management skills. Giving employees who use cutting-edge technology or procedures praise could be one of these campaigns.
• Strategic thinking skills: To create fresh concepts and business strategies for their organization, innovation managers frequently collaborate with a group of other experts. Strategic thinking is the capacity to take into account how a decision might affect the long-term objectives of the business. You can determine the most crucial activities to do and their priority by using strategic thinking.
• Business acumen: Innovation managers require business savvy to comprehend how their ideas will affect their bottom lines. They must learn how to pitch their ideas to leaders and defend why they are worthy of the time and resources of the organization. To comprehend the market and sell their ideas to the general public, they also require business acumen.
• Leadership skills: Innovation managers must possess excellent leadership qualities because they may design and oversee modifications and novel tactics. They might advise business executives on recent advancements in their sector, allowing them to participate in the adoption of new procedures. These abilities may also enable innovation managers to assist staff members who may be unsure about a novel tactic by answering their queries. They may use their leadership abilities to provide training and seminars on industry-related innovations to make employees more receptive to change.
• Risk management skills: This is an essential skill in an innovation management position. This is so because risk assessment is common step innovation managers take when developing new strategies for innovation to identify any potential problems the changes may bring about. For instance, while implementing a new technique, they may take into account the fiscal impact that employee training may have. They can meet with company management to address potential concerns before concluding an innovative startup or long-term change, and they can also talk about a plan with employees to assess what changes are required.
• Communication skills: Communication between innovation managers and employees, clients, managers, and other stakeholders is common and crucial in this position. They motivate people by using their communication skills to spread ideas and clarify procedures. Together with others, effective communication can help you create original ideas.
• Creativity skills: Innovation managers use their creativity and imagination skills to come up with fresh concepts and plans for their business. They may employ creativity to create new items, enhance current products, or create novel marketing strategies for their goods. Additionally, creativity might help come up with concepts for fresh efforts or enterprises.

 

How to Become an Innovation Manager

Step 1. Education

A bachelor’s degree is frequently a requirement for an innovation manager’s minimum education. You can get a bachelor’s degree in the subject of your choice because innovation managers can concentrate on a variety of industries. To better comprehend typical business operations and spot potential for innovation, many innovation managers pursue a bachelor’s degree in business. Consider obtaining an internship with an innovation manager in a field you might be interested in while pursuing your degree. You might get to see what an innovation manager does and how they behave. By doing this, you can pick up useful research skills that will help you discover cutting-edge trends and comprehend how businesses adopt new procedures. By doing an internship, you may also be able to expand your network and connect with business and innovation leaders who can help you find a job after earning your degree.

Step 2. Internship, training, and experience

Once you have the required educational qualifications, look for entry-level employment options to assist you to get experience in your desired industry. It is typically necessary to work in a beginner-level position, such as an internship or support function, to land a managerial post. Since an innovation manager is a leadership position, it’s crucial to accumulate enough experience to enhance your career. When you graduate, search for entry-level positions in your field where you might be able to work under the direction of seasoned innovation managers. Apply for associate or support roles in your industry related to innovation. Try developing the abilities you might need to manage innovation while performing the tasks associated with your job. To achieve this, search for leadership positions where you can help your team members or suggest innovative workarounds. Consider working on projects where you can provide ideas for important reforms and beneficial breakthroughs. In particular, internship programs are advantageous because they give you the chance to work in a real-world setting while being supervised and advised by a highly qualified professional. You can finish an internship program and earn your degree at the same time by effectively managing your time.

Step 3. Certification

Although certification is not often required by employers, it may help you stand out from other innovation experts and broaden your understanding of innovative work cultures and procedures. In addition to helping you progress professionally, certifications may assist you to land a job in innovation management earlier in your career. The following are some of the various certifications available to those working in innovation:

Certified Innovation Manager (CIM): This credential is provided by the Global Innovation Management Institute to assist professionals in developing and implementing innovative business processes.

Certified Innovation Leader (CIL):  This credential is also provided by the Global Innovation Management Institute, which focuses on instructing professionals in the application of innovative ideas to resolve business-related problems. Additionally, it enables experts to comprehend and recognize typical difficulties they can experience when putting cutting-edge ideas into practice.

Innovation Management Certified Professional (CertiProf/IMCP): This certification from CertiProf Professional Knowledge aids innovation professionals in their understanding of the key components of industry innovation, which could aid in their ability to come up with fresh concepts that have a good effect on a business.

Step 4. Secure an innovation manager position

Once you have the necessary educational background, certifications, and professional experience, start looking for and applying for innovation manager positions. These possibilities are typically available on career portals or job forums, where you may search for certain roles based on factors like experience level and job kind. See if you can apply for an internal position if you already work for a company that has this type of employment. Make touch with people from your professional network that you established throughout your education and previous employment. These contacts could direct you to a position that isn’t easily searchable on a job board online.

 

Where to Work as an Innovation Manager

Corporate offices, Research and development (R&D) labs, and production factories are just a few of the places where innovation managers are employed. When necessary to meet deadlines, attend meetings, or participate in training sessions, they frequently work full-time and occasionally put in extra hours. To coordinate research and development activities, innovation managers typically collaborate with other managers, engineers, and scientists on teams. As a result, they must be able to communicate effectively with these experts. Additionally, they must be able to communicate their findings to senior management, investors, and other interested parties. Over the following ten years, a substantially greater rate of growth than average is anticipated for the employment of innovation managers. To remain competitive and offer customers fresh goods and services, businesses will need to innovate. Organizations will require the assistance of innovation managers to create novel goods, systems, and services.

 

Innovation Manager Salary

In Nigeria, an innovation manager typically earns a net salary of NGN305,000. From NGN105,000 to NGN505,000 is the salary scale. In the US, the average annual income for innovation managers is $83,165. Depending on your degree of education, talents, location, certifications, and job duties, your income may change.

Administration and Management

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