The return on investment (ROI) of idea management software is an important facet for buyers to consider during their decision-making process. ROI is a performance measure that indicates whether money and time spent is ultimately worth the return value.
When the notion of implementing idea management software is introduced to a company, it’s to be expected that the program’s ROI be taken into consideration so the potential impact can be evaluated – however, it can be a little tricky to accurately predict.
Idea management software can be as effective or ineffective as a company chooses. But, when taken seriously, programs can have a positive and impactful ROI.
These are four ways ROI can be measured for idea management software.
Save program moderators, decision makers and IT staff time
Time is money. And the more time businesses spend on archaic innovation tactics, the less time is focused on actually improving the company’s bottom line.
Alternatives to idea management software like SharePoint, Excel spreadsheets and emails are time-consuming and hard to navigate.
According to the 2017 Forbes article, “How To Stop Wasting 2.5 Hours On Email Every Day,” the average office worker receives 200 emails each day. This means that if email is a company’s main channel for innovation communications, it’s very possible for ideas to get lost in the shuffle.
Idea management software also allows for crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing automatically taps into employee knowledge to surface the most valuable ideas – no more digging through email threads to find that one good idea that one person sent that one time.
Reviewing and prioritizing ideas in a virtual platform also eliminates the need for in-person meetings, efficiently cutting time out of the implementation process. In addition, tracking idea progress and ownership is streamlined, making it easier to check the status of ideas and hold idea owners accountable as their ideas are being implemented.
Increase short-term and long-term engagement rate
Value found in idea management software relies heavily on the engagement rates of stakeholders. These rates can be determined by the number of active users, the number of ideas submitted and the number of ideas tested and implemented.
Programs like Ideawake that are specifically created for idea management are easy to use and result in more users signing up and repeatedly using the platform. This is done by providing a custom marketing plan to companies to maximize sign-up rates, and is followed-up with incentives for participation.
Long-term engagement is dependent upon transparency and communication throughout the duration of the program. Transparency assures participants that their ideas are valid and being taken seriously.
Ken Lin, founder and CEO of Credit Karma, says, “In a company that shares information openly and often, we can empower our employees to go about their jobs with confidence and to know the real bigger picture we’re all working towards.”
Capture and develop higher quality ideas
The Development Dimensions International report, “Driving Workplace Performance Through High-Quality Conversations,” found that only 10% of the assessed executive are considered “highly effective at inviting ideas from others.” This means that the other 90% of executives are most likely missing out on ideas that could greatly improve their company’s bottom line and/or company culture.
When participants feel like their thoughts and ideas are not only welcomed, but actively being sought out, they’re more likely to participate and invest in an idea management program.
Besides promoting leadership and innovation, idea management software improves the quality of ideas because research shows that innovators become more invested in the success of a project when they have personal connections to it. This means contributors will submit developed, thoughtful ideas.
Test and implement a higher percentage of ideas
There isn’t really a purpose of utilizing idea management software if a company doesn’t actually intend on implementing innovative improvements to their products and services.
According to a 2017 Forbes article, developing stakeholders’ original concepts ultimately allow the innovator to become more proactive and confident in taking risks to achieve success. Therefore, by testing and implementing a higher percentage of ideas, more and more stakeholders will come forward with ideas that could change the face of a company.
Ideawake has features to help track the innovation pipeline and assign ownership to ideas, which ultimately optimizes the idea management process from start-to-finish.