Creative writing in business

Guidelines for Team Innovation Project

Your team will research and identify a new idea that has potential business value. This might be an idea for a new product, service, process, technology, method of delivery or organization, etc. that has a business purpose. The focus is on the innovative idea itself, not the creation of a business to support, deliver, or sell that innovation. Your team will prepare a written paper and give an oral presentation to the class. The format for this project is as follows (ICE model): Section 1: The Idea (approx. 3-4 pages)

Background: What led to the discovery of the idea (e.g. frustration as a consumer, your experience in the industry, recent trend or opportunity you researched).

Description of the Idea: Describe your idea as specifically as possible. If appropriate, use photos, drawings, narrative, or any method to convey as clearly as you can the nature of your idea.

Potential value of the idea: What need does your idea fill? Does it solve a problem, or help companies embrace an opportunity?

Section 2: The Context (approx. 3-4 pages)

To what industry does your idea apply? What are some trends in the industry? For which businesses in this industry would your idea be most appropriate? Do big players dominate the industry, or are there many small and medium-sized firms in the industry? Provide a few examples of organizations that could potentially adopt the idea.

To what market(s) could your idea be targeted? Provide information (e.g. statistics such as demographic information, or research on the market’s preferences, if available) to support the fit between your proposed idea and the market(s). Research the industry and market, and include your findings in the paper. Provide full citations for all sources.

Are there implications related to social values, norms, and trends? Any ethical concerns or legal/regulatory factors that could affect the idea’s success?

Section 3: The Evaluation (approx. 1-2 pages)

Use one of the idea evaluation methods covered in class: PMI, ALUO, or the Idea Grid to objectively assess the idea. Conclude with a summary of the major contribution of your idea and any recommendation for overcoming some of the potential weaknesses.

References: Provide complete citations for sources referenced in the paper. You can do this either by including a Reference page at the end of your report, or using a footnote format throughout the paper. Also include any Appendices relevant to the project. Important Note about References: Team Innovation Projects that are submitted without appropriate references (this includes full citation of sources used in the paper) will be returned without a grade, and the team will be notified and given 48 hours after the project due date/time to submit references. If this is not done, the result will be a two-letter grade penalty for the project for all team members. It is strongly suggested that all team members keep track of references used in the project so they are available for the final paper. Here is a guide to the appropriate format for citing your sources: http://www.liu.edu/cwis/CWP/library/workshop/citapa.htm Team Presentations of the Innovation Project will take place on the last evening of class (see Syllabus). Each team will have 15 minutes maximum to present, with 5 minutes allowed for audience questions. Cover all three sections above in your class presentation, although you may summarize the information due to the time frame allotted to each team. Please refer to the course Syllabus for the project due date.

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