Casting a Wide Net for Innovation: Bringing Interdisciplinary Collaboration to Real World Problems

Abstract

Federal agencies are seeking new ways to innovate, procure and enhance enterprise capabilities. Competitions are one tool that federal agencies can use to drive innovation and solve mission-centric problems—whether technical, scientific, or creative. In this paper we present an examination of several approaches to foster open innovation through challenges and competitions in support of key business operations in the workforce. We highlight specific examples of their use in "real world" environments and provide an assessment of applicability, benefits and challenges for implementation in large organizations.

Keywords

• Challenge-Based Acquisition
• ChBA
• Competitions
• Continuous Innovation
• Gamification