As a human resource (HR) professional, you have the power to drive major innovation within your business and team. Its importance to your business’ current and future success is crucial. With an innovative culture, you can unlock the potential of your team and shape your organisational design.

 Without fostering innovation, employees can become disenfranchised with their day-to-day work, and not have a visible career path. This can lead to businesses experiencing staff turnover, with employees seeking better opportunities for growth elsewhere.

Constant innovation is a key factor in evolving business, and it’s up to you as an HR professional to cultivate this. Innovation can be maintained and shaped through HR’s responsibilities.

An evolving and culturally innovative workplace means that team members are enabled to have more personal growth and benefits, including:

-higher job satisfaction

-personal upskilling

-better sleep and more energy for work

-more immersion and greater engagement with their work

-less apprehension in taking on challenges

-faster work rate

-scope for leadership opportunities

With innovation driving further employee engagement, a more engaged team results in greater profitability for your business. 

It’s important to understand that there’s no solution for a perfect innovative culture, but there are several ways that HR can improve their workplace environment.  

HR can implement a variety of workplace characteristics
These are key parts that can contribute to the cultivation of an innovative culture in your workplace, allowing your HR team to impact the growth of your business.

Welcome risk-taking and creativity
Innovation can provide opportunities for employees to take risks. If employees are being assured that failures are accepted as a natural part of innovation, further opportunities for growth and learning can be explored.

Recognising these moments and acknowledging the attempts made is a great way to foster better creativity and effort from team members. According to Gallup, only 29 per cent of workers strongly agree that they’re expected to be creative in their workplace, showing that the other 71 per cent may not feel as comfortable taking risks with creative solutions or ideas.

Rewarding team members who may have come up with a fantastic idea that ultimately didn’t work can be a key contributor to a more confident and innovative work culture. Having a physical award, such as “Best Monthly Idea” can be a useful method of rewarding creativity. This shows team members that creativity and innovation are welcomed, not discouraged.

Provide opportunities for growth
An innovative culture is one that’s constantly growing a team’s confidence and self-belief in their roles. Survey results from Mercer showed that 78 per cent of employees said they would remain longer with their employer if they saw a career path within their current organisation. To aid employees who feel their day-to-day work has no impact, HR teams are able to promote a more detailed career map. This allows team members to grow and help their business to greater heights.

Being encouraged to attend industry events, take online courses and upskill is key in fostering a sense of continual development that’s career-based, rather than job-centric. Team members are then able to bring these new skills back to work, where they can help provide new insights and new solutions for your business.

Provide open communication and support
Having positive interpersonal exchanges demonstrates an innovative work culture. According to SalesForce, employees who feel that they are heard and have a voice are 4.6 times more likely to feel empowered to succeed at their work.

An open line of communication between management, HR and team members enables business goals and outcomes to be transparent.

By doing so, discussions are more natural, where team members can feel comfortable knowing they have a voice and they are listened to.

How can HR professionals learn more?
If you’re interested in using your position as an HR professional to grow a work culture and make it more innovative, you may be interested in studying the Master of Human Resource Management at RMIT. This two-year intensive part-time program is 100 per cent online, allowing you to continue your work in HR while growing your skill base to create even more value for your business. 

By studying the tools and principles of RMIT’s Master of HR Management today, you’ll be equipped to grow into managerial HR roles across all industries and transform any business’ future opportunities.