If you decide you need to go outside your organization for technical solutions and opportunities, it is easy to understand how your internal R&D teams get the message that they aren’t good enough. After all, if they have done a good job, why ignore them?
Even if they haven’t done a good job, you need them on your side, not bitching and moaning in corridors or at the water cooler. OI will never succeed without a critical mass of internal leadership and involvement. So you should tell them what you intend to do with OI, explaining the reasons along the lines of “what we have now won’t meet our growth needs for the future.”
Hopefully your organization is already one that places much more emphasis on business output than measures of input such as where products are originated. It is much less likely that your internal people are upset if you are able to focus on the end result.
OI will never succeed unless key internal people drive it and have the responsibility for delivery. Give them the opportunity to succeed with OI by doing all you can to incentivize and motivate people to support the success of all your initiatives, from wherever they originate.
In many companies, the existing culture will mean that OI will face very few barriers, and will be embraced. In others, you will need to communicate carefully, ensure people in key leadership positions buy in to the approach and if necessary, remove blockers. Like any strategy to ensure growth, the pursuit of OI needs determination and leadership – just don’t assume at the start that your people will be upset.
If you’re still not sure – call us.
Agreed, you can look outside your current business new ideas.