Assessing your idea

The purpose of the IDEAS framework is to help you identify, evaluate and promote innovative ideas in the public sector.

Everything, from the smallest incremental improvement to the most transformational innovation, starts with an idea. Many public servants know of many opportunities to apply innovative solutions in their workplace. However the process of getting an idea, to implementing it, keeping it going and diffusing it throughout an agency and to other agencies can be complex, costly and time consuming.

Being able to evaluate the merit of new ideas very early in the innovation process is very important as it is the least costly stage in which to identify and eliminate likely failures, and focus attention on the more promising ideas. Innovation is not a democracy in which all ideas are created equal – it is a meritocracy where those ideas with demonstrated merit should be the ones to receive encouragement.

An IDEAS assessment is used to make an early assessment of a new idea. It should take place long before there is enough information to do a business case, and its purpose is to decide if further work on the idea is warranted.

IDEAS consists of a standardised analysis drawn from innovation research on the public sector. It provides a uniform, easily communicated and easily understood basis for assessment coupled with comprehensive feedback.

How to use the IDEAS process

  1. Print off a copy of the worksheet
  2. Complete the initial questions for the idea on the worksheet
    • What will you call your idea?
    • What is the problem your ideas will solve?
    • Why is the problem important?
    • How does your idea manifest itself in terms of something tangible, like a new service, a new process or a new policy?
    • Who are the intended end-users or beneficiaries of your idea?
  3. Rate your idea on the 20 assessment questions after reading through the material available on the toolkit on these assessment questions under perceptions, stakeholders, risks and resources
  4. Using the results complete the spider diagram for the idea
  5. Add up the score (the innovation feasibility rating) for the idea
  6. Check the result against the traffic light scores
  7. Decide what to do with the idea
    • Proceed with the idea
    • Refine the idea
    • Wait till circumstances change
    • Abandon the idea.

IDEAS Questions

The IDEAS Framework is divided into four themes, each with five questions.

  • Perceptions – how the problem is understood, the embedded culture of the organisation and the reaction your idea is likely to provoke when it is first proposed
  • Stakeholders – identifying the individuals and groups that have a stake in your idea and where each stands in relation to it
  • Risks - anticipating the risks that are relevant to your idea and the consequences if they occur
  • Resources – the demands your idea will make on the resources of the organisation.

Traffic light report

Once you have completed your assessment of the idea you can check it’s innovation feasibility rating.

Panel beating

If your idea receives a lower rating than you think it deserves, you may want to ‘panel beat’ it to make it into a stronger proposition.

GD Star Rating
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