An organizational innovation strategy for the member-institutions of the National Council of Educational Innovators (NCEI)

• Main Author: Belleza, Evelyn Segui
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2001
• Subjects: Educational innovations; Organizational change Work environment.; Business Administration, Management, and Operations
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_doctoral/939; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etd_doctoral/article/1938/viewcontent/CDTG003576_P.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

The first (of three) part of this investigation made a concept clarification on the perceived applications of innovation in both the workplace and the learnplace, among the respondent-member institutions of the National Council of Educational Innovators (NCEI). Through an indigenous qualitative research method called ginabayang talakayan , the study established three learning outcomes: the concept of innovation in the context of education, the appropriate characteristics of an educational innovator, and the spectrum within which an innovation initiative (as an organizational learning process) in an educational institution can evolve and be practiced. Given the above concept, the second part of this study approximated the organizational innovation quotient (INNOV-Q) of these member-institutions. This is to initially assess/audit the pervasiveness of an innovation climate within and among the different sectors (school executives, school managers, and faculty) of these learning communities. This investigation, using the CEO's Innovation Mindset Test of Kuczmarski (1996) and Higgin's Innovation Quotient Inventory )(1995), showed that among the seven hard dimensions of operating the schools, the practice of innovation has been highly prevalent in their systems (e.g. IT-icing the internal information exchanges) and shared values (e.g. susceptibility change, openness, and transparency). Furthermore, their INNOV-Q is considered lowest in their organizational skills (e.g. having the necessary individual and team learning competencies to constantly effect changes to cope with a new need). Among these institutions' soft dimensions, the INNOV-Q of the school executives and their managers (in undertaking their marketing and management functions) has been higher than that of the faculty/training specialists group when it comes to pursuing their process (instruction/learning strategies) and product (development of learning tools) innovations. In the final analysis, this study determined the areas where perceived organizational cohesiveness needed to be improved and strengthened in order to start up a culture of change. This study derived two learning outcomes: the potential areas wherein the Best Practice of Innovation (BPI) across the respondent-schools can be harnessed and the areas wherein a continuous improvement program (CIP) can be done. The above-mentioned three respondent-groups were cohesive in identifying the areas where the CIP must be implemented. These are in the system and structure of both the management and product innovations. These were identified with the use of a non-parametric statistical tool, the Mann-Whitney U Statistic (with the school as the unit of analysis) and a parametric tool, the two-sample t-test (with the individual respondent as the unit of analysis). With the above-mentioned first-level innovation audit results, the third part of this study proposes an organizational architecture, the Innovation Car Model. Said car uses its four Learning Wheels to guide an educational institution in implementing the two-dimensional strategy master plan. The said plan provides the NCEI member-schools with an array of strategies to expedite the cohesive development on an institution-wide innovation culture within the context of a learning-centerd environment. To monitor the development of this culture, this study recommends the adoption of a three-looped organizational learning cycle.